… Native to the West Indies, coastal northern South America, and Panama, Barbados gooseberry is frequently grown as an ornamental or for its fruits in the American tropics, Bermuda, California, Hawaii, Israel, the Philippines, India, and Australia. A member of the cactus family, the plant does not fit the standard cactus mold. It is an erect woody shrub when young, which with age begins vining and climbing with spiny branches reaching 33 feet long. 'Godseffiana’, a cultivated variety …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Why Care about Fungi? The Chicago area is host to more than a thousand species of mushrooms and mushroom like fungi—beneficial, symbiotic organisms, critical to the survival of our forests and grasslands. Some are edible, while others are toxic to humans. Yet, like native plants and animals, fungi are threatened by land use change, pollution, and climate change. Meet a Major …
Type: Plant Info
… question that native plants are hot. They’re touted online, in magazines, at garden centers, and in the news where their benefits are often linked to helping the plight of bees and other important pollinators . Many natives get the nod for their drought tolerance, low maintenance, and disease or pest resistance, as well as their attractive features. There are more than 1,600 …
Type: Plant Info
… a dose of serenity with Pantone’s “Cloud Dancer” Think of a soft, warm white—fresh, breezy, and effortlessly chic. That’s “Cloud Dancer,” Pantone’s Color of the Year for 2026. Calm without … As curator of plant collections at the Chicago Botanic Garden, I’m always dreaming in color, and I couldn’t help imagining how this serene shade might drift into beds, borders, and containers. “Cloud Dancer” brings unity, clarity, and quiet confidence, pulling plants, …
Type: Blog
… In partnership with the Garden Conservancy Lecture and book signing by Marta McDowell Thursday, May 12, 7 – 9 p.m. Alsdorf Auditorium $37 nonmember; members receive 20% discount $15 with student ID Garden Conservancy members and students, please call (847) 835-6801 to register Register Now From the moment a spade broke … the White House have been a backdrop to history. Wars, territorial expansion, economic booms and busts, the growth of agriculture and industry, the changing tides of taste and fashion—all …
Type: Event for Calendar
… Here, in the Chicago Botanic Garden’s McDonald Woods, spring arrives unaided by mowers and edgers, or fertilizers and bags of peat moss. In this hundred-acre restored oak woodland, spring means the welcome presence of natural wetland areas, where amphibians, reptiles, birds, and water plants congregate before summer’s sun and heat turn these low spots to dried mud. …
Type: Walks
… Susceptible Plants Trees, shrubs, turf grasses and other grassy plants. Description & Symptoms Voles are tiny, mouselike rodents with stocky bodies and short legs and tails. They weigh only 1 to 2 ounces. Voles eat mainly the leaves and stems of grassy plants …
Type: Plant Info
… Sun-style tai chi is a modern form known for flowing movements and gentle postures. Select this advanced-level course if you are experienced with the movements and practice of the Sun form and have previously taken tai chi classes at the Garden. Class locations vary between spaces in …
Type: Item Detail
… Ear is a striking plant with large, puckered, heart-shaped, dark greenish-black leaves, and purplish-black veins on the undersides of the leaves. A jungle plant, it prefers shady conditions and rich consistently moist soils and protection from drying or damaging winds and harsh afternoon sunlight. These conditions can …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Heuchera , or Alumroot, can be any of a number of species and their hybrids commonly called Coral Bells or Alumroot. Some are cultivated for showy flowers, others for striking chartreuse, amber or plum foliage, others for frosted, spotted and attractively patterned leaves. The group of species, individually and hybridized, has some of the most interesting plants for partial shade. In milder climates the …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
