… Hydrangea macrophylla is a deciduous shrub that grows 3-6’ tall and wide. It features dark green leaves and large … bloom from May through June on old wood and on new wood from July to October. Flower color is dependent on the soil in which the hydrangea is planted – blue in acidic soils and rose-pink … the winter. Although the plant is hardy to Chicago’s Zone 5, it benefits from a sheltered site, winter mulch and burlap wrap to protect the buds and stems from dying to the ground during …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Rue is a dainty, attractive perennial native to south Europe with spicy, aromatic foliage. It grows … dried leaves are used in herbal medicines, and stems can be used to flavor vinegars, but it is not used directly as food, only as an extract. The fragrance is intriguing, like a combination of pine, thyme and soap; some considering it malodorus. It …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… ACCOLADE™ elm is a deciduous pyramidal elm tree growing 50 – 60 feet tall and 24-40 feet wide. Its claim to fame is its resistance to Dutch elm disease and the elm leaf miner. This elm grows vigorously, … It was named 2012 Urban Tree of the Year by the Society of Municipal Arborists. This tree is a Chicagoland Grows® selection. Chicagoland Grows® is a plant introduction partnership of the …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Vanilla, besides being a fragrant extract essential to baking, is a vining orchid native to Mexico. It is not at all difficult to grow indoors given the proper conditions, but it may be difficult to … ensure production of the vanilla pods that carry vanilla "beans". This labor-intensive method is one reason that vanilla is so expensive. The Aztecs were the first to create the sublime blend …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Prairie ironweed is a perennial plant that is native to the eastern parts of the US where it grows in locations that are consistently moist … should be taken in siting it especially in smaller gardens. However, because of its height it is suitable for borders, screens, and for native and cottage gardens. Since Vernonia fasciculata …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Solanum betaceum. It's a tree...in the tomato family. The oval fruit is about the size of a Roma tomato, and it has a recognizable tomato taste, though it's somewhat milder and tarter. The flower is always lavender-pink, but the fruit can be yellow, purple, orange, or red depending on the … it's now grown widely in South America, Africa, Asia, and Australia as a food source. The skin is quite thick, so to eat it fresh you have to scoop out the flesh. It can also be cooked as a …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Jade vine ( Strongylodon macrobotrys ) is a rare find in U.S. botanical gardens. Aside from the Chicago Botanic Garden, only the … Gardens in Hawaii have this interesting plant. The unusual color of the jade vine's blooms is the result of pigments in two different color classes being modified by high pH in the sap of the stems. Native to the Philippines, only old, mature plants produce flowers. Jade vine is a member of the pea family (Fabaceae) and is bat-pollinated in the wild. The brilliantly …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… At the top of the list of why we garden is for the joy it brings. Yes, there is the effort of physical labor, and true, some plants succumb and we don't know why. But most … spot might accommodate rhododendrons, azaleas or other marginal plants requiring a special site. Examine your soil carefully. This is especially true for new homes, where much of the good …
Type: Plant Info
… are more difficult to get to rebloom than others. Kalanchoe ( Kalanchoe blossfeldiana ) is a popular gift plant that is available in shades of red, pink, yellow, white, and orange. Kalanchoe is a short-day plant that, much like the poinsettia, requires darkness for 16 hours per day for …
Type: Plant Info
… The gray birch is distinguished by its large, long, pointed triangular leaves and chalky-white non-peeling bark. … by the large V-shaped patches of black that appear on the trunk under the branches. It is often a multi-stemmed tree in the wild. The gray birch is considered more borer-resistant than the European white birch or paper birch. The branches are …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
