… and with a bit of advance planning, choosing suitable varieties to plant in the spring is possible. Here are a few ideas to get you started creating, and/or caring for, your edible … to frost. Here, a transparent plant cover called a cloche (from the French word for bell) is used to protect plants if frost is expected. Plan to plant strawberries No grocery store strawberry ever tastes as good as one …
Type: Blog
… chomping at the bit to plant this native shrub. It’s unfortunate, because the chokeberry is one of the best shrubs you can grow in Illinois. Iroquois Beauty™ chokeberry ( Aronia melanocarpa ‘Morton’) is starting to ripen. The beautiful black fruit stays on the plant longer than some other … Not to be confused with the chokecherry tree ( Prunus virginiana ), chokeberry ( Aronia sp.) is a fruiting shrub that ranges from 3 to 10 feet tall with red, purple, or black fruit. The name …
Type: Blog
… the words “evergreen” and “conifer” —they are not the same thing!—and every year, someone is confused. I blame Christmas trees. The “Christmas Tree” intersects both of the sets … spruce, fir, and Douglas fir. Wait a minute…those are are the same trees! You see, the problem is that our Christmas trees tend to be both evergreen and conifer, and as a result, many of us … Brown’s tree might have been a bald cypress. One conifer that loses its needles, and therefore is not an evergreen, is the bald cypress. These can be very attractive when covered in snow. (The …
Type: Blog
… year, I’m growing peppermint, catnip, banana mint, and pineapple mint. Rich in nutrients, mint is both delicious and medicinal, known for easing both digestion and indigestion. Mint can also … a runny nose by clearing congestion. A perennial herb that thrives in both sun and shade, mint is a vigorous grower and should always be grown in its own pot—plant it in a raised bed or in the … and acidic—but it does provide a nice grassy, mild lemon profile. Packed with antioxidants, it is good for heart health and blood pressure, boosts immunity, and may even help lower anxiety. …
Type: Blog
… A longtime favorite of staff and visitors alike, the zebra longwing ( Heliconius charitonius ) is native from South America to south Texas and Florida, and occasionally an immigrant can be found as far north as Nebraska! The zebra longwing is the state butterfly of Florida. One very interesting thing about these beauties is that they roost communally in groups of 25 to 30 butterflies. In the Butterflies & Blooms …
Type: Blog
… Tom Soulsby is the senior horticulturist for the Rose Garden, Heritage Garden, and Linden Allée. He is responsible for curating and maintaining a collection of more than 5,000 roses in one of the … Garden's Employee of Distinction award and as an Outstanding College First Mentor. Soulsby is also responsible for both supervising and coordinating the horticulture of diverse group of …
Type: Staff bio
… A striking century plant is putting on a show in the final stages of its life—it’s blooming for the first and only time in … right before it dies. In the Arid Greenhouse at the Chicago Botanic Garden, Agave ocahui is known as the century plant because people used to think it flowered only once every 100 years. A more accurate estimate is that it blooms once after 25 to 30 years of growth. The Garden’s century plant came from The …
Type: Blog
… with its breathtaking flower…accompanied by a titanically rotten smell. “Your heart is full of unwashed socks, your soul is full of gunk, Mr. Grinch. The three words that best describe you are as follows— and I quote: … ( Catharsius sp.) think that stink smells great. Photo ©2012 via potokito-myshot.blogspot.com A different view of ewwww! Carrion beetles, dung flies, and flesh flies aren’t responding to …
Type: Blog
… it’s time to start thinking about moving your houseplants inside. The best time to do this is when temperatures outside are relatively close to the temperatures indoors, meaning mid- to … unsightly growth from your plants. 2. Lightly trim back plants as needed. This step is optional, and you really only need to do it if your plants have become large and overgrown. … for pests, and treat as needed. One of the biggest ways to set yourself up for success is to start with clean plants. There are several pests that can cause problems indoors. The most …
Type: Blog
… can also be an expensive endeavor for the home gardener. The first step in prepping the beds is removing the top layer of soil. Plantings include succulents and drought-hardy plants. They … by 4 to 5 inches of pea gravel. The gravel allows plants to grow in sharp drainage, which is a very desirable attribute when growing many native prairie plants or other dry-loving plants. … (Penstemon x mexicali ‘Red Rocks’). The key to establishing the plants in a gravel garden is to prevent the root balls from drying out until they have a chance to root down below the …
Type: Blog
