… at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Following the illuminated trail, perhaps you stood to admire the distant and beautiful Elizabeth Hubert Malott Japanese Garden. You likely saw a … in the lake, and if you looked closely, you might have noticed that there’s actually no way to get to that island. Did you wonder why that is? Horaijima, or the Island of Everlasting Happiness, represents paradise—a place inaccessible …
Type: Blog
… Meditative, artful, and transporting. In a way, the experience of seeing Asia in Bloom: The Orchid Show is much like ikebana, the traditional Japanese art of flower arranging. On display now through March 25, this new feature of the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Orchid Show invites you to pause and reflect on this historic art form. Ikebana is the traditional Japanese art of flower …
Type: Blog
… Why wait until spring? Plant a bulb container for a preview of blooms to come. In this video, the Chicago Botanic Garden shows how to create a bulb garden in a pot for … winter forcing so you can enjoy a preview of spring in the midst of winter’s chill. Forcing is the act of putting plants through a cold period in order to stimulate blooming during an … blooming, plants should be discarded. Forced bulbs rarely transplant well into the garden. The best plants for forcing tend to be on the smaller side. Tulips and narcissus work very well, …
Type: Blog
… For some gardeners, a winter landscape is a blur of neutral colors highlighted with the dark green of conifers and sometimes the blue of … also make a group of conifers more interesting, just as different leaf shapes add drama to a deciduous garden. Especially in winter, the stiff, sharp needles of spruce contrast strongly … Nana'. Not as tough as juniper or arborvitae, falsecypress must be carefully sited. It grows best in sandy, somewhat acidic soil with protection from drying winds. SHADES OF GREEN There is …
Type: Plant Info
… in open areas like the Dixon Prairie, or elsewhere around the Garden, for this warbler that is common at the Garden during its long migration stopover. One of the most ubiquitous warblers … migration is an active, thin-billed bird called the yellow-rumped warbler. It's one of up to 36 warbler species seen in the area during the spring and fall migrations. This warbler … however, there are many more, and they'll be wearing their finest attire. Though humans do best to stay away from poison ivy lest they have an allergic reaction, the yellow-rumped warbler …
Type: Birding
… an unbelievable amount of information about companion planting, but you don’t find much in the way of scientific journals or reviews,” says Tom Tiddens, supervisor of the Garden’s Plant Health Care department. “Companion planting is an interesting technique and organic growers swear by it, but you need to have all-around good horticultural practices, like scouting for pests.” Japanese beetles …
Type: Plant Info
… What better way to celebrate spring and keep kids busy than with mud? All you need is a muddy buddy, a few basic supplies, and a sprinkling of imagination to try these fun, … the mess down while still allowing kids to explore and experiment. There's no right or wrong way to do this. The only rule is no eating the cupcakes! Here’s what you’ll need: Dirt Small …
Type: Blog
… Meadow-making has become a captivating trend, often referred to as The New Naturalism, The New American Garden, The New Perennial Movement, Meadowscaping, and the Dutch Wave. All speak to mimicking the look and feel of the prairie, using great drifts of sun-loving perennials that … place that supports bees, butterflies, birds, and other wildlife. In some ways, meadowscaping is like a dreamy, modernistic interpretation of a prairie on steroids. These designed landscapes …
Type: Plant Info
… The genus Hibiscus is a large group of flowering plants in the mallow family. The name Hibiscus came from the Greek … “marshmallow.” The sticky root or stem of some plant in the mallow family was used at one time to make marshmallow confections. Some common names for hibiscus plants include hardy hibiscus, … stems back leaving two or three buds, and larger flowers may result. Rose of Sharon grows best in moist, well-drained soil that is amended with compost. Plants prefer full sun to part …
Type: Plant Info
… Replacing this year? Five to consider. Last winter was hard on us all…especially on the trees and shrubs that took the … out or requesting at local nurseries. Northen bayberry shrubs ( Myrica pensylvanica ) look best when planted in groups. Northern Bayberry ( Myrica pensylvanica ) Bayberry could be the … shrubs that have reached the end of their life cycle. Native to the east coast, bayberry is a quiet shrub—loosely mounded in shape, at about six feet tall, bayberries look best massed …
Type: Plant Info
