… In the Chicago area, record-breaking weather was recorded in 2016 and 2017: For the first time in 146 years, the National Weather Service documented no measurable snowfall in either January or February. Chicago’s record year was mirrored globally. Scientists from both NASA and NOAA released reports showing that 2016 was the hottest year since global temperature …
Type: Blog
… Grunsfeld Children’s Growing Garden. That leaves us with four empty walls. So we get creative and make an “alternative” living wall. These burlap pocket planters contain alyssum, lettuce seedings, grass, and coriander. Here's what we did one recent spring: Our carpenters covered foam boards with brown burlap and installed these panels on the living wall frame where the plant cells had been removed. …
Type: Blog
… Leaves are green. There are very few exceptions in healthy living plants, and most of the exceptions are partially green with red, yellow, orange, or white patterns; or they look white, but upon closer inspection they are actually whitish, bluish-green, and not pure white. The pigments that give all leaves their color are essential for the plant’s ability to harness energy from the sun and make sugars in the process we know as photosynthesis. But every once in a while, a …
Type: Blog
… miss the orange flowers of this jewelweed, but look closer to find the seedpod hanging below and to the right of the third blossom. Its scientific name is Impatiens capensis , and jewelweed has some interesting features that make it worth getting to know. Its common names, jewelweed and touch-me-not probably come from the characteristics of the flowers and seeds. The bright …
Type: Blog
… in McDonald Woods, I stopped, having heard a high-pitched squeaking emanating from the sedges and grasses along side the trail. (This was when my hearing was still acute enough to detect such … 4.8 inches (122 mm) in length, with the tail being about a quarter of the length of the body and head combined. It is by far the largest of the shrews we will see here. They are generally a velvety, dark gray color and have a conical, pointed snout. The ears and eyes are quite small and are mostly embedded …
Type: Blog
… As director of horticulture, Tim Johnson oversees and directs operations in the Horticulture division, which includes 27 display gardens, plant production, plant healthcare, and general grounds. Johnson graduated with a bachelor of science degree in horticulture from the … of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1984. He worked as a foreman for Campbell's Garden Center, installing and maintaining landscapes. During summer breaks from college, he completed internships at the …
Type: Staff bio
… Ph.D., who completed research examining the success of individual species within seed mixes, and their combined potential to power up to the diversity level found in remnant prairies. A healthy, diverse prairie Urban and agricultural development has left us with less than one-tenth of one percent of prairieland, … which is vital part of our ecosystem. Today, the prairie can be found only in small patches, and scientists at the Chicago Botanic Garden study prairie plants and their chance for survival …
Type: Blog
… the opening weekend for the Farm on Ogden , a joint project between the Chicago Botanic Garden and Lawndale Christian Health Center (LCHC) that brings food, health, and jobs together under one roof. Visitors explored the 7,300-square-foot greenhouse, marveled in the blue-purple glow of the 50,000-gallon aquaponics system, and picked up vegetables grown in the corner Windy City Harvest Youth Farm. The new Farm on …
Type: Blog
… extinct, of course, like passenger pigeons, Carolina parakeets, ivory-billed woodpeckers, and Labrador ducks. I had read the life histories of these species and marveled at descriptions of their colors, sounds, and abundance. It made me feel depressed that these amazing creatures were gone forever. Then …
Type: Blog
… house. A circa-1850 glazed Chinese jar is filled with green Cymbidium orchids native to Asia. And we’re pampering 10,000 other orchids so they’ll be in full flower for Asia in Bloom: The Orchid Show. Lighting crews, horticulturists, and dozens of other staff members are putting the finishing touches on Asia in Bloom: The Orchid … of the year. The Show features sweeps of orchids native to Asia, blooming with color and scent. In our heated greenhouses and galleries, the exhibition runs February 10 to March 25 …
Type: Blog
