… yellow 'moth' orchid flowers are delicately veined in dark pink. One of the easiest orchids for home owners, they do well when provided bright light, roots are moistened every other day, and relatively high humidity. Fertilize with low doses of foliar feed during summer to build up enough energy to support large bloom spikes in winter. The orchid family consists of a large number of genera, …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Large pink flowers with darker pink spots and splotches are produced in masses close to the end of the cane. Stake this Vanda to keep the plants upright when in flower. For repeat flowering, you need a combination of very bright light, high humidity, high …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… When cutting peony blossoms to bring indoors, remove as few leaves from the plant as possible. Remove spent blooms after they are finished flowering. Remove spent blooms of annuals and some perennials to encourage new flower formation. Stake tall perennials and continue to tie annual and perennial … their height. Sow seeds of biennials, such as hollyhock, directly into the garden this month for next year's bloom. Mark the area carefully to avoid accidentally disturbing the seeds. …
Type: Plant Info
… a windbreak, but a row of evergreens, like arborvitaes, can provide privacy and a nesting site for songbirds. A blanket of snow on their boughs adds winter enchantment in our garden. Eastern … hours) but some will tolerate part shade. Depending on the cultivar, mature size ranges from 3 to 25 feet tall and 3 to 15-feet wide or so. Yews (Taxus—pronounced Tacks-uss) Canadian yew ( T. candensis ) is a …
Type: Plant Info
… The European beech is a stately addition to any large landscape and in time becomes an imposing shade tree. The simple foliage is dark green and somewhat shiny. The beech nuts it produces in the fall are attractive to wildlife. Autumn foliage is golden bronze; in winter the handsome gray bark is prominent. A … of the European beech have been developed, many of which are eye-catching show stoppers for their shape (weeping, columnar or rounded) or foliage color (green, variegated, purple or …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… apples offer a wider variety of tastes than most commonly found grocery varieties and are easy to grow. For the adventurous, the class will feature a grafting demonstration that allows you to grow more varieties than you can find at your local garden center. Dan Bussey, apple historian …
Type: Item Detail
… It has a very narrow pyramidal form, with rich, teal blue-green needles. Balsam fir is native to the colder regions of Canada and the northeastern United States. The slow growth rate makes it an ideal low-maintenance plant for lawns in cold climates. In the Chicago area, it is prized as a Christmas tree because of its fragrance and symmetry. It grows in full sun to partial shade, in a slightly acidic, well-drained soil. It is not tolerant of heat and needs …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Beautiful five-to-nine-lobed leaves emerge early. The plant grows 10 feet in height with a similar spread, and it is highly admired for its semi-weeping branches. Use the Japanese maple as a specimen plant. May and June bring … rich red. Foliage is red and turns a brighter red in the fall. This lovely small tree, native to the Far East, can be grown only in very protected areas if you live in Zone 5. It is an …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… August on this rhizome-producing onion. Ornamental onions with rhizomes are typically confined to the late summer flowering group but are much better adapted to Chicago soils than their bulb-producing cousins flowering earlier in the summer. This hybrid … apparently a spontaneous occurrence in the garden of Mark McDonough—internationally recognized for his work with Allium . It strongly resembles nutans , a native of Siberia, the leaves of …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… The common name for Anthurium superbum is Ironclad Birdsnest. "Birdsnest" refers to the shape of the plant and … blooms year round. Its spear-shaped spadix is covered with tiny green flowers that age to pink and are followed by colorful purple berries. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
