… golden grasses sparkling like jewels with touches of color, and the lake rippling marvelously in the wind. The black-eyed Susan and coneflower plants you spot here may seem sparse, lanky, and … unlike the neat clumps or broad sweeps that can be seen on Evening Island and, perhaps, in your garden. Over the last few decades, plants once native to midwestern prairies have been … asphalt, and masonry store heat and then radiate it — making summer hotter for plants. Rain is channeled into storm sewers and treatment plants rather than replenishing the deep reservoir …
Type: Plant Info
… 'La Veta' is a shrubby form of white fir. It has dense branches of flat teal blue needles that curve upwards slightly. New growth is a contrasting shade of mint green. The form is rather irregular when young, and when older … five or six feet wide. White firs are the most tolerant of the firs with growing conditions in the Chicago area, but prefer a good, organic soil that is well-drained. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Ghost painted fern is a clump-forming fern that requires partial to full shade with moderate moisture. It grows to a maximum height of 30 inches with a similar spread. It is mostly used as a ground cover, an understory, or in a border. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… conditions. It has yellow blooms that attract butterflies from July through October. It is a specimen in a border or a ground cover and is attractive to birds. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… protruding from the flowers. The yellow flowers turn reddish-orange as they age. The fruit is a dry capsule with long filaments. The new growth of 'Copper' is coppery-red, fading to olive green, especially in shaded parts of the plant. This was one of the earliest shrub honeysuckles cultivated for the foliage color. They tolerate a wide range of moisture and light conditions and will grow in clay or other poor soils. Plants can spread by suckers and may form colonies. Fall color is …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… has untoothed, opposite, ovate leaves with a pleasant, spicy aroma. The flowers, blooming in May and June, have numerous overlapping strap-like petals and a fruity scent. The flowers are … with a rough texture. Shrubs can get quite large, up to 8 feet, and suckering may occur. Plant in full sun or partial shade, in well-drained soil. Native to the southern states, it blooms on new growth, so do not prune until after flowering. The Chicago area is a little north of its native range, so some winter damage may occur, but will not affect …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Cocos nucifera is the scientific name of the coconut palm. Its origin may be the islands of the Pacific or Indian Ocean, but it has become widespread in tropical areas. Coconut trees can grow up to 80 feet tall and they start by sprouting from the deepest of the three holes in the de-husked fruit. Everyone knows what coconut palms look like: tall gray trunks topped with …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… We know spring has arrived in northern climes when we see the cheery yellow blooms of the ubiquitous forsythias in April. Named after William Forsyth, one of the founders of the Royal Horticultural Society in … poor soils and varying moisture, but the flower buds may be tender on older cultivars. Pruning is best done immediately after flowering, giving new growth time to form flower buds. Never shear …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… In May, pink colored flower buds open up to pure white flowers, and if a different variety is nearby, the golden yellow fruit with a pinkish blush will appear from late August to early September. Like most fruit trees, the flowers, and their fragrance, in May are a welcome addition to the garden. This cultivar, like many apples, requires a …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Red kalanchoe ( Kalanchoe) is one of about 125 species of tropical, succulent, perennial flowering plants in the Crassulaceae family. Normally cultivated as ornamental houseplants and rock or succulent … of propagation, low water requirements, and wide variety of colors. They can grow to 2 feet in height and width with blossoms that are typically borne above the leaves in large, upright …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
