… For one December session of our Plant Explorers after school program at Chicago International Charter School—Irving Park, the students made living ornaments for the holidays. This tiny terrarium project can have a calming influence on a potentially … more relaxed. It requires you to find some live moss, but it makes an extra special decoration for kids—and adults—who love plants. The finished moss terrarium ornament A fillable plastic …
Type: Blog
… the annual Woman’s Board Fall Bulb Sale is online only. You’ll be able to shop at your leisure for hundreds of varieties of bulbs imported directly from growers in Holland. The members’ … 9 to 10 at the Chicago Botanic Garden, where you can take in the fall color . Can’t wait for spring? The sale also offers several fall-blooming bulbs that you can plant immediately for flowering this fall (see the Colchicum selections). Here are some tips and suggestions to …
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… My top pick for cool new plant species? The media has called it grotesque and compared to an eyeless worm. … when researchers stumble on a species unknown to science. Here are five of my favorite recent news stories on orchids: Gastrodia agnicellus , by Rick Burian, courtesy of the Royal Botanic … across a crested fringed orchid (Platanthera cristata) , which no one had seen in the state for nearly 20 years. It’s always a feel-good story to learn that a plant has been rediscovered …
Type: Blog
… Botanic Garden. A room in the basement of the Regenstein Center is the hive of repair activity for the Model Railroad Garden. There are also ghost trains for Night of 1,000 Jack-o’-Lanterns . That is why there is a staff of three year-round engineers … They also invent their own fixes. They have to. Cubs fans in fresh whites never lose hope for their team winning one day. “The Amtrak train hasn’t been made since 2004; we couldn’t get …
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… of fall allium and autumn crocus blooms. This year, however, a special mention must be made for the glorious gladiolus! Especially the delicate, 4-inch, salmon pink flowers of the salmon … cold temperatures! Two characteristics of its native habitat nominated the gladiolus for trial at the Garden: first, it is a winter-growing bulb in South Africa, which translates to … in North America. Second, this plant thrives in moist soils in grassy areas—it was perfect for the site we chose in the Bulb Garden. Based on its initial success in our plant trial …
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… Using peonies as a cut flower for floral design is easy, with a few tricks to preserve the health of your plants and flowers. … the plant can continue to thrive. You can select flowers that are as open as you like, but for the best vase life, select buds that have just begun to open and feel similar to a marshmallow. Cut stems can be stored in the refrigerator for two to three weeks, but ... no fruit—such as apples—can be in the refrigerator with your …
Type: Blog
… composed of three petals contrast with its six bright yellow anthers, each flower opening for a few hours in the morning or longer if cloudy. Spiderwort belongs to the Commelinaceae, the day flower family, which commonly features plants with flowers that open for a day or less and then deliquesce (liquefy). If you pinch one of the blue petals between your … came to be. The genus Tradescantia and others in this family have a mucilaginous sap that, for all you farmers out there, resembles bovine saliva as it drips from the broken leaf. A …
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… in spring! Snow brings an important nutrient into the soil: nitrogen There are not many ways for nitrogen to enter the soil. While planting legumes and adding fertilizer are the most common … the poor man’s fertilizer. Don’t forget, snow is water! When snow melts, it provides moisture for evergreen trees and shrubs. This moisture helps keep these plants happy and healthy … willows, hazels, winter hazels, and witch hazels are only a few of many very attractive plants for a winter landscape. Dogwoods and willow varieties often will have young growth that is …
Type: Blog
… to add up. An Amorphophallus titanum shoot to the right of a leaf stalk provides comparison for determining the slight bulge, which could mean a flower bud. The emerging Amorphophallus … take a decade or more to send up their first flower shoot. We’ve been tending to this corm for about 12 years, so the timing was right. Is the corm big enough? The smaller the corm, the … and expertise. Their final confirmations gave us the thumbs up to go public with the big news that Spike would soon blast into bloom! Like first-time parents, we are learning as we go. I …
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… and some are broadleaf evergreens—this is a deciduous variety. Crape myrtles are most famous for their flowers, which grow as clusters of small blooms. Flowering typically takes place … in the ficus genus in the world, but there are only about a half dozen that are commonly used for bonsai. Ficus benjamina , Ficus microcarpa , Ficus retusa (or Green Island fig), and … bonsai that will love their new temporary home in the Greenhouse. Be sure to keep a lookout for the new additions. Here is a sneak peek at one of the trees you might see…can you tell what …
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