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  • … Nick Dorian is an urban ecologist and conservation biologist who aims to understand how animals and plants make a living in the context of rapid Anthropogenic change. … and economically important insect pollinators—because they are common, tractable systems for asking population-level questions, are one of the few taxa that shows promise for conservation in highly urbanized areas, and provide benefits to people through pollination. As a mentor, Nick aims to help students pursue their own interests …
    Type: Staff bio
  • … native perennial that's popular because of its rugged habit, bright flowers, and the ability to attract pollinators. 'Blonde Bombshell' is a yellow flowering clone selected from a field of … a seed strain. Incredibly dark foliage holds golden yellow flowers that radiate down the habit for an extremely long season of bloom. Plant this refined selection and get ready to see butterflies! Gather bouquets of Asclepias all summer long; the long stems are wonderful …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Asparagus is a hardy perennial with thick, succulent shoots that are harvested in April to early May, leaving younger shoots for future growth. Asparagus is high in vitamin K and many minerals. It needs to be planted in well-drained soil, with careful selection of the site, considering that it will …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Twist™ weeping redbud. This beautiful bloomer offers a lesson in how plants are bred for consumers. This particular cultivar was found as a chance seedling in 1960 along a road in upstate New York by a gentleman who transplanted it to the home of his sister, Connie Covey. Many years later, Covey's neighbor decided not to remove the twisty branch under an overgrown lilac that she asked him to remove. Instead, a …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … where the new greenhouses are now being built. This mat-forming perennial takes full sun to partial shade. It produces clusters of starry cherry-red blooms in July and August. The tiny … along the nodes into patches a foot or more across. Older stems may become scraggly and need to be pinched back. Because they are so low-growing, they are suitable for a rock garden or a ground cover for a dry area. Care should be taken that they don't need to
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Members of the genus Syringa , commonly known as lilacs, are shrubs or small trees prized for their showy and fragrant blooms in late spring. The individual flowers are tubular in form and are borne in large panicles. While the common name of the plant has come to define a shade of pale purple, some species and hybrids have pink or white blossoms. Lilacs begin to set buds for the following year shortly after they finish blooming; if pruning is desired, it …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … It’s that frightfully fun season again at the Chicago Botanic Garden, and so we encourage you to set the tone with plants we’re certain would be found in the home of any respectable witch or goblin, and are easy to care for, too! Snap! Watch a Venus flytrap snag its next meal. Our top choices are the spider plant ( …
    Type: Blog
  • … shaped flower with pink markings that resemble the face of a monkey. The requirement for consistently moist, cool, humid, well drained growing conditions makes it, unfortunately, a … and contrasting colors and in a variety of shapes and sizes. Although some orchids are native to temperate zones, most orchids tend to prefer a semitropical or tropical environment (USDA Zones 9-11) and have epiphytic …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Soft Pink Butterfly Bush BUZZ™ series is a compact butterfly bush series that is perfect for containers and small spaces. It has continuous blooms in brilliant colors. Dead-head spent blooms for longer lasting color. …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … The first species in this genus to be discovered, it produces large, fragrant, showy white or orchid colored flowers during Chicago winters. For gardeners of a certain age, this was the favorite flower for high school dates. Difficult but not impossible to be grown by homeowners, the following approach has produced repeat bloom. Once temperatures in …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant