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  • … the radicle through the seed coat of a sunflower seed Although it may not look like it, spring is on its way, which means it’s time to start prepping for the anticipated spring planting season. This is a great time of year for horticultural therapy contracts. Everyone is itching to start planning and prepping for a successful  horticultural therapy  outdoor garden …
    Type: Blog
  • … One of the top questions we have been getting about Spike the titan arum is “How do you know how much water to give it?”  The care and feeding that we have given Spike … arums—our collection of nine Amorphophallus titanum  growing in our production greenhouses—is very specific! Yes, the cultivation requirements for these plants are strict. Titan … to their natural conditions in the tropical rainforests of Sumatra. Therefore, the cultivation is not particularly suitable for most beginners or homeowners with minimal greenhouse facilities. …
    Type: Blog
  • … and others. The national flower of Brazil— Cattleya purpurata  (formerly  Laelia   purpurata) —is also an orchid. The native orchids of Brazil are often epiphytes  growing on trees and shrubs, … elevations in cloud forests. The care of Brazilian orchids and their hybrids in cultivation is as varied as the number of species and their habitats, but where they naturally occur provides … recognized and still more commonly referred to as  Sophronitis coccinea ,  C. coccinea  is one of perhaps six to nine species and as many varietal color forms included in the former …
    Type: Blog
  • … Gardening is all about embracing change. You plant seeds and wait to see which ones will sprout. You … 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 …
    Type: Blog
  • … There’s nothing quite like a fresh start to the new year. For gardeners, this is a great time to set goals and to think through plans for the year. We asked our dedicated team … advice for gardeners everywhere. Chester Jankowski, Jr., senior horticulturist Goals: My goal is to travel to another growing zone to familiarize myself with the plants growing there as much … new, and have fun! Chris Baker, curator of bonsai Goals: My goal at the Garden every year is to produce and maintain the highest quality bonsai for our visitors to enjoy all season long. …
    Type: Blog
  • … How much do I put down? When’s the best time to mulch? How often do I need to amend the mulch? Is mulch the best weed barrier? Great questions about a basic garden element. Fall is the best time to give your trees a good layer of mulch. Mulch is an important facet of your garden, and too often, its use and application are ill-informed or …
    Type: Blog
  • … Anyone who reads the volumes of research can easily see all the reasons why a nature preschool is not just a  real  preschool, but should be a standard for all preschool environments to aspire … Many children spend time in preschool working on one-answer solutions. Their work is very cut and dry, limiting the amount of critical thinking or creativity needed for the answer. Play in nature allows children to try several solutions to a problem. Nature is unpredictable, and often, answers might not be what we would like, but we learn from this …
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  • … This is the story of a road trip I took with some corpse flowers, the rock stars of the plant world. One of the hallmarks of the Chicago Botanic Garden’s plant collection is the more than 70 species of Amorphophallus . In particular, Amorphophallus titanum , also … flowers, in 2003. There’s a worldwide conservation effort to preserve the species, as it is considered “vulnerable”—unless the circumstances threatening its survival and reproduction …
    Type: Blog
  • … But no—especially not in a natural woodland like this. A tree’s habit depends on where it is growing—how crowded it is by other trees and what it has to do to catch some sunlight. “Any tree will change its habit depending on what is given to it,” he said as we walked into the woods. “You can probably get 100 trees in a row, …
    Type: Blog
  • … then fill out a book dedication form, including copy for the bookplate. After the bookplate is printed and mounted, you’ll be notified that it has taken its place on the library shelves. … Naturally, every conservation book requires a labor of love—a typical restoration time frame is three months. After conservation work is completed, you’re invited to view the restored volume before it takes its place in the Rare …
    Type: Blog