… Description: This hawk is a rare winter sight flying over, or in, trees. …
Type: Birding
… Description: This Great Plains migrant is a rare sighting in the Dixon Prairie. …
Type: Birding
… Q. When is the correct time to prune evergreen hedges? A. March is actually a fine time to prune junipers … you can shear your arborvitae, if necessary. Junipers can be tip-pruned instead of sheared in order to maximize their feathery qualities. Most dwarf conifers require very little, if any, pruning and definitely no shearing. Boxwood and yew hedges can be pruned in March unless they have suffered from winter dieback or winter burn. In that case, wait until …
Type: Plant Info
… Q. I would like to bring some of my patio plants indoors for the winter. Is it necessary to change the soil or repot them first? A. Most plants do not appreciate being repotted in early fall. This chore is best done in spring right before a plant begins its new growth. If your patio plants are insect- and …
Type: Plant Info
… This bugbane is native to northern Asia, from Mongolia and Eastern Russia to Japan. Its wands of densely packed, fluffy white flowers can reach 5-feet tall, making it a dramatic presence in the shade garden, particularly in late summer when not much else is in bloom there. 'White Pearl' may be slow to establish, but …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Spanish bluebells, bulbs native to the Iberian Peninsula come in a variety of colors ranging from the typical blue to pink and white. Flower spikes measuring 12 inches tall are covered in dainty, bell-shaped flowers in April. Several exceptional color forms have been selected over the years and given cultivar names, but the natural range of colors is charming as well when used in a mass planting. In its native habitat, it is frequently found …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Preziosa is classified as a mophead-type hydrangea; a compact, deciduous shrub with a rounded habit that … stems, emerge with a purple tint, mature to green, and finally take on red to purple tints in fall. The plant prefers rich, moist soil in partial shade and, although known among hydrangeas for its winter hardiness, is best protected …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… SCENTLANDIA™ sweetspire is a variety of the native Virginia sweetspire. Virginia sweetspire is a native of the stream … banks and swamps of the southern and eastern US including Missouri and southern Illinois. In summer SCENTLANDIA™ sweetspire bears showy racemes of fragrant white flowers that are attractive to pollinators and hummingbirds. In fall the leaves turn various shades of red and purple prior to falling. SCENTLANDIA™ …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Narcissus ‘Spellbinder’ is in Division 1. It blooms in early to mid spring with 4 inch wide flowers. The petals are broad and brilliant yellow with a … not be eaten by deer or rabbits. The name Narcissus comes from the Greek word for narcotic and is tied to the myth of a young man known as Narcissus who fell in love with his own reflection. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… rhododendron with small to medium-sized leaves. Rhododendrons have a tough time of it in most Chicago gardens. Typically, the soils are alkaline clay, which are not ideal, and snow cover to buffer the coldest temperatures in winter is not always available. 'Pillow Party' is one of the few that reliably survive, despite all of … plant in acidic, well-drained, moisture-retentive soils in partial shaded locations, and site in the garden to avoid, if possible, cold, dry winter winds. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
