… Senecio stellata ‘Giovanna’s Select’ is a seed strain featuring purple, blue, and blue-purple flowers on 3 feet tall plants that thrive under cool, moist, shady conditions. This species is an annual in the Chicago area but is perennial in USDA zones 9 to 10. Free of most insect and diseases (botrytis on the petals in …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Chenille plant, also known as "red hot cat's tail," is a large shrub in the euphorbia family native to New Guinea and Malaysia; it is widely cultivated in tropical areas. It is known for the long, fuzzy red catkin flowers that can reach up to 18 inches long. The leaves …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… emerge early. The plant grows 10 feet in height with a spread exceeding its height, and it is highly admired for its wonderful horizontal branches. Use the Japanese maple as a specimen … flowers. The samaras, or winged fruits, mature in fall and turn a rich red. This is a cut-leaf or lace leaf variety of Japanese maple. Its foliage emerges deep purple, maturing … native to the Far East, can be grown only in very protected areas if you live in Zone 5. It is an exceptional small ornamental maple. Archived Copy: This content was captured before …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Desert rose or impala lily, is neither a rose or a lily but a small succulent perennial in the dogbane family found growing … branches growing in an irregular pattern from the thick, trunk-like stem. Once established, it is very drought-tolerant. In its native habitat, it can reach nine feet tall, but in our greenhouses it is three feet tall. A scattering of small, glossy ovate leaves cover the branches, but these are …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… This uncommon species is found in open woodlands, and it looks like a tall, spindly version of the more robust common … glossy, opposite broad leaves that come to a narrow point. It blooms in early June, when it is topped with loose clusters of drooping, starry, white flowers with swept-back green sepals. The flowers and flower stalks may have a tinge of lavender. It is exalted by naturalists, who consider it an indicator of a good quality woodland habitat. Its …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… has tiny flowers in spherical umbels and attracts butterflies in July and August. 'Cinderella' is a cultivar with deep pink buds and sepals, which contrast with very pale pink crowns. The … silky tufted seeds airborne. It can be used as a specimen in a border or butterfly garden and is resistant to deer. Swamp milkweed is a native plant found growing through much of eastern and central North America. Like other …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… well in shade to partial shade where it adds a welcome touch of color to a shady garden. It is generally pest free and tough. It is resistant to rabbits and deer, but attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds. This is an excellent cut flower. After the blooms have died, the stalks with the dried seed heads are …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Old man palm or thatch palm is a native of Cuba that makes a nice lawn specimen in tropical gardens. The leaves, which can be … segments that are green on top and silvery beneath. When the trees are young, the entire trunk is covered densely with billows of stringy tan fibers. When the trees mature, up to 25 feet tall, … shed on windy days, revealing a narrow brown trunk. Although commercially available, this palm is on the IUCN Red List as endangered in the wild, due to habitat loss and overharvesting for …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… bee ( Xylocapa sp.). (Unlike bumblebees, carpenter bees have a shiny, hairless abdomen.) It is a deciduous shrub that can grow to a height of 6 feet with arching branches. The plants have … ovate leaves, often with a silvery tinge. In the South, this native of China and Japan is a woody shrub; however, in Illinois, it is best to treat it as a perennial as it may die back during winter. It blooms from July through …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… This plant is commonly called lady's mantle because of the circular, pleated leaves which resemble the … worn by women in olden times. The name of 'Thriller' refers to the height of this plant which is much taller than other commonly found lady's mantle plants. 'Thriller' lady's mantle grows to … so remove dead flower heads to prevent reseeding. The low, clumping form of this plant is well suited to front of borders and cottage gardens. Archived Copy: This content was captured …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
