Search

  • The Beauty of Orchids in Ikebana
    … Harmony and asymmetry are hallmarks of the ikebana style. At the Orchid Show, artists from three schools, or styles, of ikebana created the compositions on display. The arrangements …
    Type: Blog
  • Where Love is in the Air
    … and the long  boardwalk to Spider Island  does that in a particularly brilliant way. Hand-hewn from black locust, the boardwalk bridges our largest island to our smallest, with an angled path …
    Type: Blog
  • Praying Mantis Children in the Growing Garden
    … nymphs resemble the adult, but they do not have wings.  Colorless praying mantis nymphs emerge from the ootheca all at one time. During their first hour, they darken in color to blend in with …
    Type: Blog
  • Planting a Fire Escape Herb Container
    … to a wooden fire escape—built after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 as a second means of exit from the building. The landing is wide enough to finagle furniture during moves, but doesn’t …
    Type: Blog
  • Osprey: Fish-eater returns as breeder in Cook County
    … to bring to its young.  Once endangered in Illinois, the osprey disappeared as a breeding bird from Illinois about 60 years ago. Scientists think, as with the bald eagle, that when the osprey …
    Type: Blog
  • Garden trials biochar to improve challenging soils
    … Benefits of one application are long lasting, and it does not take a lot Biochar is made from recycled materials, such as pines killed by bark beetles or trees damaged by fire This year, …
    Type: Blog
  • Finding Awe
    … eaten all the fruit. I also got a nice surprise the other day when I came upon a viburnum from China in bloom (some come into flower at the first warm spell in winter). To spot new …
    Type: Blog
  • 5 Perennials for Spectacular Fall Color
    … of fall, it is no wonder that species of Rudbeckia are a fall favorite. Petal colors can range from shades of bright yellow to orange-gold, and some cultivars have flushes of red on the …
    Type: Blog
  • We Need More Women in Science
    … we work hard to create a pathway into science for all—especially groups historically excluded from the sciences—through our Science Career Continuum .  We will continue to strive for a staff …
    Type: Blog
  • We Need Native Seeds and Plant Scientists
    … in the future. But ecosystem restoration is complex. It requires both a large amount of seeds from plants native to the area being restored and scientists, specifically botanists, who … representative has signed on here . For more information, visit: https://botanybill.weebly.com/ …
    Type: Blog