… Scarlet O'Hara is a cultivar of our native deciduous winterberry hollies. In the wild they are found in swampy sites and stream margins in the eastern US. Scarlett O'Hara is a slow grower to about 6-8 feet high and 6-8 feet wide. After the dark green leaves have … on the stems throughout winter, and are a food source for birds in the colder months. It is a female cultivar and requires a male pollinator nearby (within 50 feet) for berry production. …
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
… Prunus tenella 'Fire Hill' is a dwarf shrub with long thin leaves and a breathtaking display of dark pink flowers in spring. This is a low growing suckering shrub that is not fussy about soil pH, texture or moisture but does best in full sun. Because of the …
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
… Deam arrowwood viburnum is notable for its densely branched habit and very lustrous foliage that can handle hot, dry … are raspberry red and do resemble raspberries prior to opening. Its blue-black fruit in fall is held above the foliage, which turns a combination of red, purple and orange. This variety is native from southern Ohio to Missouri but is relatively rare in the trade. Viburnums are a …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Marie's doublefile viburnum is a broad shrub with a distinct horizontal branching habit that gives it a layered look. It … clusters of nonfragrant flowers held in two rows along the branches in May. Fall foliage color is a reddish-purple. It will grow in full sun to partial shade and is not fussy about soil types or conditions. This cultivar was introduced from Japan in 1879 and …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Native to northeastern North America, the yellow birch is rare in Illinois, which is at the southwestern edge of its native range. While its shiny bronze exfoliating bark is attractive, the quality of yellow birch's wood makes it an important source of lumber. When …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… The crimson or lemon bottlebrush is a native of southeastern Australia that produces massive displays of red stamens at the tips of the branches from mid-winter through early spring. Full sun in average-to-moist soil is the preferred growing condition. The new growth is produced just after flowering, and the silky, white leaves are attractive in and of …
Type: Garden Guide Plant