… Explore the Chicago Botanic Garden at your own pace. Small, chaperoned groups may visit the Model Railroad Garden (early May – October) and Butterflies & Blooms (Memorial Day …
Type: Item Detail
… the smallest diving duck in North America. You can identify the male fairly easily—look for a small black-and-white duck. The body is mostly white, the back is black, and the head looks … which is how this species got its name. Don't expect these diving ducks to stay in view for long. Before you know it, the bufflehead is diving under water searching for food, then … ice begins to melt and the aquatic critters below awaken from their winter snooze. The only place to find a bufflehead during extremely cold winters in northern Illinois is on Lake Michigan …
Type: Birding
… and epiphytic roots anchor it to tree trunks. My last post, Vanilla inhabitants: The search for associated bacteria and fungi , showcased my ongoing experiment in Mexico. This included collecting roots from four different Mexican farms that had very different practices for how they grew the orchid. We know that vanilla orchids use their epiphytic roots for support, … colonize a vanilla’s root. To further investigate the situation, I ran an experiment using the latest DNA technology—Next Generation Sequencing (NGS)—to document the communities of fungi …
Type: Blog
… February is such an exciting month for gardeners—time for the first seeds to get started indoors, and time for our Seed Swap! As you pull out your … old, or questionably stored seeds can test a gardener’s patience and sanity, as even the best-tended pots and plots can’t make nonviable seeds sprout. Seeds don’t live forever (at Seed …
Type: Plant Info
… prom dresses in the garden, there are some fall-blooming plants we will always find room for, even though they sport colors more akin to April than October. Their springlike colors … irresistible. Autumn windflower, Japanese anemone, and fall-blooming anemone are common names for the many hybrids and cultivars of Anemone hupehensis or Anemone hybrida , available in … and dark autumn. A thorough reading of the Plant Evaluation Notes will help you select the best plant for your needs — and isn’t that what we gardeners all want? Greek anemone ‘Blue …
Type: Plant Info
… of experience of the horticultural therapy staff, the Buehler Enabling Garden is a model site for programs that foster a direct experience with nature. Additional educational offerings at the Garden include intensive study tours, workshops for special-education teachers, and continuing education for heathcare providers. Garden planting and maintenance is provided by the Garden coordinator … of experience of the horticultural therapy staff, the Buehler Enabling Garden is a model site for programs that foster a direct experience with nature. Additional educational offerings at the …
Type: Page
… the rare Amorphophallus titanum to the Garden in 2018. The Velvet Queen first bloomed for the university in 2008 and has bloomed every two years since (it was donated to us after … team got a big surprise in the staff-only production greenhouses—and treat. It's unsual enough for one corpse flower, or titan arum, to power up for a single bloom. We saw one plant produce an extraordinary triple bloom, over three days in …
Type: Page
… I love my container gardens in the growing season, but what’s the best way to brighten your doorstep for the longest season of all: winter? The answer is the easiest kind of container gardening, … to weigh your container down so it won’t blow over in the wind and to hold the branches in place. Step 2: Place birch branches in wood mulch, and dig down to stabilize branches. Step 3: …
Type: Blog
… heat and drought have passed. In fall, cool air temperatures and warm soil are perfect for seed germination, whereas in spring the cool soil and chilly air are less favorable. In … the seed with a very thin, 1/8-inch layer of straw, leaf mold, or peat moss to hold seed in place and help keep it moist. Water very lightly but frequently until the seed germinates in 10 … This makes them vulnerable to herbicides. As with most chemical controls, herbicides are best used selectively, by spot spraying individual weeds, rather than treating an entire lawn. …
Type: Plant Info
… evergreen conifer can grow to 60’ in cultivation but may top out at 200’ in the wild. It does best in colder climates and doesn’t do well south of Zone 7. It has the classic evergreen pyramid shape. It tolerates humidity well and does best in sunny locations with well-drained soil. Archived Copy: This content was captured before …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
