… Acer x freemanii , commonly called Freeman maple, is a hybrid of red maple ( A. rubrum ) and silver maple ( A. saccharinum ). Only specific … cross are sold commercially today. 'Jeffersred', sold under the trade name of AUTUMN BLAZE, is an older cultivar that was discovered by nurseryman Glenn Jeffers in the late 1960s. This is an upright, fast-growing, deciduous tree that will typically grow 40 to 55 feet tall with …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Allium caeruleum is a native of Central Asia and is known as a blue globe onion. People seem to be attracted to the color blue — at least as it is displayed by flowers. Name the rarest, most sought after cultivars and species, and there will …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… leaves have sunken pores that prevent water loss. Burgersfort Aloe, or Aloe burgersfortensis is very similar to two of its closer spotted aloe relatives and is only distinguished from the other similar species by its smaller size and longer floral bracts … it was combined with Aloe parvibracteata . Burgersfort Aloe's native habitat in South Africa is on sandy soils in the open or the shade of trees. The tight rosettes can be 11 inches to 15 …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… until August, with 3-inch spheres of starry pink flowers. The structure of the tiny flowers is complex, with 5 reflexed pink sepals and 5 forward-pointing petals. Each petal has a hood at the base and a little curled horn, giving the flower the appearance of a crown. The fruit is a soft, warty pod that splits open to disperse little brown seeds attached to white silky … monarch caterpillars eat the leaves, they become toxic and are avoided by birds. This species is native to east and central North America. It tends to grow in weedy fields and is difficult to …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Orange Jelly Burn Plant ( Bulbine frutescens 'Orange'), a member of the lily family, is derived from a native to desert grasslands in South Africa. The name Bulbine comes from the Latin word "bulbus", meaning onion or bulb. This name is misleading, however, because these plants do not have a bulbous base. A clump-forming … plant, which bloom continually in mid-spring and again in the fall. In its native habitat it is known as the burn jelly plant, because the fresh leaves produce a jellylike juice that is …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Spotted beebalm is a plant native to eastern North America, where it is found on the sandy edges of rivers, lakes, and coastal waterways. Its name refers to the … debris to prevent these diseases from harboring in the soil over the winter. As a native it is attractive to pollinators and generally repels deer. It is suitable for border plantings in …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… moisture and can support a range of fauna including insects and frogs. Good quality light is necessary to develop and maintain leaf colors. Since this plant is epiphytic it is essential that it be grown in freely draining soil. This plant is not hardy in Chicago but can …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… moisture and can support a range of fauna including insects and frogs. Good quality light is necessary to develop and maintain leaf colors. Since this plant is epiphytic, it is essential that it be grown in freely draining soil. This plant is not hardy in Chicago but can …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… 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
… Hydrangea macrophylla is a deciduous shrub that grows 3-6’ tall and wide. It features dark green leaves and large … bloom from May through June on old wood and on new wood from July to October. Flower color is dependent on the soil in which the hydrangea is planted – blue in acidic soils and rose-pink … the winter. Although the plant is hardy to Chicago’s Zone 5, it benefits from a sheltered site, winter mulch and burlap wrap to protect the buds and stems from dying to the ground during …
Type: Garden Guide Plant