… Hyacinthoides non-scripta is called English bluebell, although it is also native to Spain, France, and Italy. Its range is a little farther north than Spanish bluebell. Flower spikes 10 to 12 inches tall bloom in April and May, typically with violet-blue flowers. The spikes tend to arch over, and the florets droop to one side. The flowers are fragrant. There …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Tall, raspberry-red spikes throughout the summer attract butterflies and hummingbirds. The gray-green foliage covers this mounding nonhardy perennial to 2.5 feet in height and smells of mint with a hint of lemon when crushed. It thrives in full sun with …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… nootka cypress ( Chamaecyparis nootkatensis 'Pendula') is a statuesque evergreen addition to the Chicago landscape. Its graceful, pendulous lateral branches fold out from a central trunk. Taxonomists have argued over which genus this plant should correctly be placed in. By any name, it makes a strong focal point in the landscape. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Iris sibirica ssp. elegantissima is pale yellow or cream colored with dark markings on the falls and stands 8 to 12 inches high. It is native to northeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran and Armenia. As a … at the base of each fall that other iris groups have. Typically these irises grow together in thick clumps which keep out weeds, while the thin, grass like foliage remains a highlight …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Lavender daisies grace this moderately sized perennial from summer through to the first hard frosts of fall. Native (and collected by Garden staff) from mountain meadows in the Republic of Georgia this hardy perennial prefers full sun and moderately fertile, moisture …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… " Nelumbiifolia ” translates as “with leaves like a lotus” to point out the most distinctive aspect of this begonia, the waterlily-like leaves with the stem attached at a central point. It also flowers generously in airy white sprays. With consistent moisture, warmth, and at least partial shade it can grow to …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Deep blue-purple flowers in spikes contrast with the silvery green, finely divided leaves on this medium-sized mounding plant native to the Midwestern prairies. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… is a Chicagoland Grows® selection. Chicagoland Grows® is a plant introduction partnership of the Chicago Botanic Garden, the Morton Arboretum and the Ornamental Growers Association of Northern Illinois formed to promote plant cultivars that perform well in northern Illinois. This variety was developed at the Chicago Botanic Garden; its heritage …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… spikes of purple flowers with throats intensely spotted with maroon. This cultivar is unique in that it blooms the first year from seed (all other species and cultivars are biennials and will only bloom the second year), and that the flowers face all directions (typically the flowers all tend to one side of the stem). Because of its tall, upright habit, Foxglove makes a great perennial …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Although the foliage makes this tidy plant an attractive addition to the shade garden, the flowers of Miyazaki hairy toad lily ( Tricyrtis hirta 'Miyazaki') are so … that they must be viewed up close. They are white with pale purple spots, and they occur in clusters all along the stems in the leaf axils. What an amazing plant! Use it where its …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
