… Kohleria are herbacious perennial plants in the gesneriad family native to tropical America. Kohleria ‘Peridots Cowichan’ has flowers with soft red tubes with a fringe … by soft, ovate scalloped leaves and tubular flowers that are covered with soft fuzz. Related to African violets, the leaves are often suffused with purple or brown. The tubes, which are an … five spotted lobes. In the right conditions (indoors) kohlerias grow quickly and will need to be pinched back after flowering. They do well in sunlight from a south-facing window or bright …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… And they all open pale yellow. But they don't stay that color. They mature, one by one, to pink and red, so you may see all three colors on the same bush, or even in a single flower … hummingbirds love <em>Weigela</em>, and so do gardeners. For a plant that gives you so much to look at, they're very easy to care for. No particular disease or pest problems. No special soil requirements. Just give them …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Home gardeners can sympathize: not every seed that is planted grows. This truth extends to restored prairies that are grown from seed mixes, … to a large swath of acreage in the suburbs, she and her team visited each restored prairie site to compare the plant communities to the mix of seeds that were planted there initially. “I …
Type: Blog
… collectors, we spend a lot of time and energy researching the flora of the areas we are going to visit. We search out areas of the world where the climate is similar to that of the midwestern United States, and we make lists. Lots of lists. Massive spreadsheets …
Type: Blog
… Why Pumpkins Are Fruits and Other Cool Botany Think you know what a fruit is? Most people think of fruit as being sweet or tart, juicy or crunchy, or peel-able like a … small black berries. Close × Yes, jackfruits are fruits. Fun fact: A jackfruit can weigh up to 100 pounds, or about as much as a big dog. Close × Yes, pineapples are fruits. Fun fact: Pineapples are native to South America, not Hawaii. Close × No, rhubarbs are not fruits. Fun fact: We treat a lot of …
Type: Blog
… Thousands of visitors to the Orchid Show at the Chicago Botanic Garden have been delighted to see a special guest star at the Tropical Greenhouse: Alice the Amorphophallus is on display, in full and glorious fruit! Visitors are asking: why are some of the berries on …
Type: Blog
… my nostrils at an Orchid Show scented display one year. The sweet smell was a great way to show many Chicago Botanic Garden visitors that vanilla comes from the fruits of the vanilla orchid (Vanilla planifolia). As a docent at that Show, I was eager to show off the Garden’s vanilla plant (located in the Tropical Greenhouse next to the banana … cabinet. Currently, I am in the second year of my research of the vanilla orchid. Vanilla is an exciting plant to study because it grows as a vine with two different types of roots. These …
Type: Blog
… I study biodiversity and restoration in the tallgrass prairie. My post-doctoral research is focused on seed mix design for restoration from both a social and ecological perspective. … though observation and experimentation, I am determining how seed mixes become prairies, that is, which planted seeds and species are likely to germinate, emerge and establish in restored prairies. …
Type: Staff bio
… From ancient China to Greece, Europe, and finally the New World, the tradition of sending messages as a gift of … group. Even the number of blooms was important. While much of the secret language of flowers is lost in modern times, the traditional gift of roses on Valentine’s Day still expresses … you a happy Valentine’s Day with a virtual bouquet, and hope that if you were lucky enough to get some flowers of your own, you enjoy them at least until the snowdrops pop up to welcome us …
Type: Blog
… employee in 1980. He grew up on a farm near Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico, where he learned how to operate equipment and take care of plants. Within a few months, Melecio was promoted to foreman; then a few years later, he became Grounds supervisor. Melecio supervises four regular employees and 43 seasonal employees, and is responsible for general grounds maintenance, major event support (set up and tear down), and …
Type: Staff bio
