… It was on a seasonably pleasant day this past May that 15 veterans from the Thresholds Veterans Project … planter, with a side of coffee. We toured the garden, got to know each other, and sipped on coffee. Lots of coffee. The activity I led was called Inspirational Herb Dish Gardens and was … of kitchen herbs to cook with, as well as a message of encouragement they could reference for inspiration in their daily life. After the first retreat was done, I thought to myself, “Wow! …
Type: Blog
… Project Overview: Shannon Still and Nick Jensen work on a project studying the impact of climate change on the distribution of rare plants in the western United States. The grant, funded through the … regarding rare plants. The research takes them to many exciting destinations searching for rare plants in the west. The dwarf bear-poppy The genus Arctomecon (also known as …
Type: Blog
… sheen. My interest in moths stems from the fact that many of the species are dependent on one or just a few native plant species for their survival, and as a result, may serve as valuable indicators of the health of our recovering, once-degraded oak woodland. The larval stages—the caterpillars—primarily feed on the roots, stems, and leaves of the plants. Adult moth species are very important pollinators. …
Type: Blog
… the world—estimated at almost 40,000 species. The majority live in and around plants, and feed on plants and various plant parts. Sunflower head clipping weevil, photo by Whitney Cranshaw, … of species of weevils I would like to discuss, there are two species that feed specifically on two groups of prairie plants. The Baptisia weevil or wild indigo weevil (Apion rostrum) feeds … sense if you have some background on the life of these two groups of prairie plants. Look for the white-and-cream wild indigos in a prairie near you—they are blooming now. Of course you …
Type: Blog
… was still acute enough to detect such high-frequency sounds.) It took me a while, but based on the emphatic commotion, I finally realized I was hearing either a romantic interlude or … known as insectivorous mammals. 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 …
Type: Blog
… Bloom: The Orchid Show is much like ikebana, the traditional Japanese art of flower arranging. On display now through March 25, this new feature of the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Orchid Show invites you to pause and reflect on this historic art form. Ikebana is the traditional Japanese art of flower arranging. The … back approximately 600 years. Originally, men and women arranged flowers as Buddhist offerings for altars at temples. Since then, ikebana has established itself as an art form beyond religious …
Type: Blog
… A lot of thought and work are put into raising bonsai trees and pruning them just so, but for many bonsai artists, their containers are just as important as the plant itself. “The pot and … well with the fall color.” A pine slab in the Garden’s bonsai collection. “This pine is on a slab to better tell the story on a mountain top. You can see the tree is potted on the opposite side of its direction. This …
Type: Blog
… been all about change, and acceptance of how the COVID-19 health crisis affects how we care for the Garden—and how the Garden will look when we are able to reopen. Only essential staff is on-site at the Garden and health and safety guidance on social distancing means big changes in the work the horticulture staff does and how we do it. …
Type: Blog
… of the Missouri Ozarks? And why did we need a desiderata? The first question is easy—we were on the trail of specific wildflowers and woody plants to preserve and add to our collections. … our desiderata—or essential list of desirable plants we would target—was developed, based on what plants our gardens deemed important for conservation, to fill a gap in our collections, or add beauty to our display gardens. And of …
Type: Blog
… use of road salts, and encourage snow molds. A scorch or burn can leave patches of brown on arborvitae ( Thuja ), yews ( Taxus) , boxwoods ( Buxus ), and other evergreens. Branch damage … Although slow-growing, this boxwood ( Buxus microphylla ) should make a full recovery. The bad news is that more plant damage is likely to appear once the weather is consistently warm, though … the specimen. Unfortunately, some evergreens will be a total loss. This is especially true for plants grown at the edge of the hardiness zone. To determine whether a bush is going to make …
Type: Blog
