… and violets of the dominant fall asters, many of them blooming throughout October. Look for bottle and cream gentians in the Garden’s Dixon Prairie or elsewhere. Buried beneath the riot … to locate. Another, more common gentian of wet prairie is also worth a mention. Not so much for its brilliant color, although it is blue and fairly showy, but for the fact that its flower petals remain closed. This is the closed or bottle gentian …
Type: Blog
… juice from the stem of jewelweed and applied it to poison ivy rashes and other skin ailments for a very soothing treatment. It is ironic that “touch-me-not” is a cure for “leaves of three—let it be,” don’t you think? Folklore tells us that wherever you find a … ivy growing near jewelweed, so use caution and be careful not to touch when you are searching for this plant. …
Type: Blog
… to make use of advanced DNA sequencing technologies in biodiversity research. “We have known for quite some time that all plants on land share a common ancestor with green algae, but there … fine level of detail, looking deeply at each plant’s transcriptome (the type of data generated for this study), which represents those pieces of DNA that are responsible for essential biological functions at the cellular level. In all, they selected 852 genes to …
Type: Blog
… Insectivores are critters that depend, to a large extent, on invertebrates, mostly insects, for their survival. I wasn’t sure which shrew this was, but more than likely, it was one of the … spot shrews believe they are seeing mice, voles, or moles. In fact, some of the common names for these critters include mole shrew or shrewmouse. Mice and voles are rodents, which have incisors—those chisel-like teeth for consuming plants and seeds. Moles, like the shrews, are insectivores. The shrews, being …
Type: Blog
… be rejuvenating and take you away from the stresses of everyday life. We started a bucket list for you, focusing on some of the natural wonders in the plant world. We know, oh, just a few … are not your garden-variety plant lovers. These are people who gravitate to plants not just for their beauty or scent but for their resilience, their hunting prowess, their enchantment (even you, Venus flytrap). We …
Type: Blog
… about right this year, but the quality of the experience is a little ‘off,’” Tankersley said. “For instance, the cherry [tree] outside my office—in a good year—is a mass of light yellow … the Chicago area is hard to predict.” Part of the mission of the Garden’s Negaunee Institute for Plant Conservation Science and Action is to fight climate change through scientific research … a topic of conversation among the horticulture staff for the last couple of weeks and in the news,” said Tankersley. “The diminished [fall] displays are caused, in part, by the drought and …
Type: Blog
… leaves, buds, and flowers. How does scent play a role in attracting hawkmoths? Do moths use it for pollination? Or do they use it to find host plants to lay their eggs? Or maybe both? Hawkmoth … prior research, we know that floral scent can vary within and between plant populations. For instance, within the species O. harringtonii , some populations produce a scent compound … collaborator, Rob Raguso at Cornell University, sent us hawkmoth pupae and we patiently waited for them to emerge. Victoria Luizzi (left) and Andrea Gruver (right) dissect a female moth to …
Type: Blog
… turn to romance. Over the years, the Garden has been the site of many a romantic story for both staff and visitors. With summer in full swing—and romance in the air—here are a few more … gondola car that bore an engagement ring in a box, and dropped to one knee to ask for his lady’s hand. She said yes. 2005: Where to Hide a Ring in Spring She said yes—Heather and … Like any workplace, the Garden has its share of romantic stories starring staff, too. For horticulturist Heather Sherwood, the story began with a memorable date: 5/5/05. She worked …
Type: Blog
… important driver of this diversity was the mosaic of soil and bedrock underlying the prairies. For example, the xeric (dry) communities of the prairies were associated with exposed bedrock … be developed based on findings and past data to ensure that land managers have clear guidance for how to support healthy populations of rare species. (Fant, Kramer, POC, Casanova-Urbana, …
Type: Research
… The black-and-white warblers ( Mniotilta varia ) can be seen hopping along branches looking for insects. Photo © Carol Freeman After delighting in the abundance of birds for a few hours, I slowly made my way back to my car, choosing to walk under the amazing … you will see this many warblers in a day, there is always something to see, and the fun part for me is never knowing just what might show up. Last week it was a white-eyed vireo ( Vireo …
Type: Blog
