… succulent, hen-and-chicks get their common name from their tendency to start new “chicks” in a circular pattern around the mother “hen”. The botanic name sempervivum comes from the Latin … meaning “always” and vivus, meaning “living,” because this perennial plant keeps its leaves in winter and is very resistant to difficult conditions of growth. The foliage varies from blue, … green, purple, black, to red and silver, and these colors remain even when the plant is not in bloom. The flowers, which bloom from May to June, come in a variety of solid and mixed colors; …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… with broad, rough-textured leaves. Native to the tallgrass prairies, it thrives when grown in full sun and moist soils in garden settings. Beetles find the pollen tasty, while a number of bee species prefer the … by only female florets. Based upon Native American medicinal uses of this species, it was used in World War I as a substitute for the bark of the South American Chinchona sp. (quinine) to …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Asian Beauty linden viburnum has a vase-shaped habit and produces abundant white flowers in spring and bright red berries in the fall, which persist into winter. Native to China, Korean, and Japan, linden viburnums … deciduous shrub that grows to 8 – 10 feet tall and to 6 – 8 feet wide. Creamy white flowers in showy, domed clusters appear in May to early June, giving way to bright red fruits in late …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… a vase-shaped habit with long, arching branches. White flowers completely cover the branches in early May and may last for two or three weeks.It is one of the easiest plants to grow; it … lance-shaped and held close to the branch. Spring to early summer abundant blooms tend to be in white or pink tones, depending on the species and/or cultivar. While individual flowers are quite small, they occur in clusters of inflorescence that can be very showy. Spireas are best used in groupings in a …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Persian lilac has been in cultivation for centuries and has not been found in the wild. Its abundant fragrant pale lilac blooms appear in May. Members of the genus Syringa , commonly known as lilacs, are shrubs or small trees prized …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… and along the leaf margin and are stippled with creamy white dots. The flowers, which bloom in fall and winter, are reddish-pink, though their color is often described as orange. This Kelly … Carol aloe has all the beauty of 'Doran Black', with the addition of vibrant red colors in the leaves. It is successful when used as small-scale ground cover in rock gardens or containers. It thrives in full sun, where its color will be brighter, but it …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… a variable example of Aloe zebrine . Wide spread across much of southern Africa, it is found in dry grasslands, along rivers and can tolerate some cold temperatures. It usually found a as a solitary rosette or in small groups in the wild. It forms a sturdy short stemmed rosette and a branched inflorescence of lax dull …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… season from May through August. It is a staple of the sunny perennial garden, usually planted in beds and borders where its cheerful color lights up the area. Its leaves are finely divided … veronicas and coreopsis, and its rough-textured flowers contrast with smooth platycodon in late summer. Let it spread to fill in the border, and divide it in early spring, or better yet, in the fall. Other cultivars from …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Dahlia 'Ginger Willo', a cute pompon variety released in 1988, has globe-shaped short-petaled flowers 2 inches across in a tasty blend of orange and red. It grows to 4 feet tall with long stems and upright growth. Dahlias are not hardy in the Chicago area, and the tubers must be dug, cleaned, and stored over winter. Plant this …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… then change to pale lilac with a distinctive white cup. Introduced to science by M. Leichtlin in 1890. It is close in appearance to Colchicum speciosum but differs in the flowers being broadly funnel-shaped, not bell shaped. Plant in full sun and moist but well …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
