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  • … two years since I co-founded Plant Love Stories, people have told me their stories. I love to hear them—and not just because I’m a plant conservation scientist. Maybe you remember your … Welch Director of Plant Science and Conservation, shared her Plant Love Story, “Grandma Knows Best.” Dr. Havens’s grandma “was the first to say...I should be a botanist (when I was about 6 … of us who love plants, we may find it hard to believe that most people don’t feel the same way. I think perhaps it might be because no one tapped their shoulders when they were young and …
    Type: Blog
  • … Peking lilac started as a selection made by the Beijing Botanic Garden and was given to the Morton Arboretum, where it was developed in the Chicagoland Grows plant introduction program. Its yellow blooms are unusual for a lilac and it features golden foliage in the fall when most lilacs do not show attractive … 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 …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … The pale pink blooms of the Hiawatha lilac appear one to two weeks after the common lilac. It is one of the Preston lilacs. Preston or Canadian Lilacs were first hybridized for their cold hardiness in the early 20th century by Isabella Preston of Ottawa, Canada. These … 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 …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … The red buds of Miss Canada lilac open to rosy pink blooms a week or two after the common lilac. It is one of the Preston lilacs. Preston or Canadian Lilacs were first hybridized for their cold hardiness in the early 20th century by Isabella Preston of Ottawa, Canada. These … 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 …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … in height and 18 inches in width and can be grown in full sun or partial shade. It needs to be watered the first two years after planting to develop an extensive root system that can survive thereafter on its own. This seed-strain … is more uniform in size and habit than the straight species. The genus Alchemilla is known for having a number of species that are apomictic and polyploid. Apomixis is a condition in …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Q. I received a lovely ivy topiary for the holidays and need some watering and fertilizing information. A. Ivy prefers bright light and rather cool indoor conditions. Water the soil when it feels dry to the touch and fertilize monthly during the growing season, using a dilute fertilizer of 5-10-5 … well as a regular washing of the foliage. If possible, move the topiary outside in the summer to a partially shaded location, but watch the increased need for watering at that time. …
    Type: Plant Info
  • … Fertilize roses for the third and final time at the end of the month with a liquid 20-20-20 fertilizer. Do not fertilize after August 1. Continue to deadhead roses by cutting flowers back to the first set of five leaflets. Monitor roses closely for blackspot. Remove any leaves that …
    Type: Plant Info
  • … showy but sterile florets with a sprinkling of fertile florets around the outside. It grows 3 to 4 feet tall, blooming in June until fall with bright green foliage. It blooms in mid summer on … new wood, and later in the summer it will bloom on old growth until fall. It is winter hardy to USDA Zone 5, but for added protection the plants can be sited in a sheltered location and given a good mulch …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Milka New England aster Symphyotrichum 'Milka') is hardy in the Chicago area and is grown for the lavender-purple flowers that cover the plant during autumn. It is insect- and … of a wave of new aster hybrids promoted for growing as seasonal potted plants and cut flowers to compete with chrysanthemums. It has also proven hardy in gardens. It can reach a height of 3 feet, with double flowers. It blooms from late September to early November. …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant
  • … Masses of small, double pink flowers cover this nonfragrant polyantha shrub rose from mid-June to frost, with an especially strong flush of flowers just before the season ends. This is a perennial favorite for bridal bouquets. Suitably named for its small stature, the mature size of The Fairy rose ( Rosa 'The Fairy') is 1 to 2 feet tall. The bright glossy green foliage is scaled with the flower size and is disease …
    Type: Garden Guide Plant