… field trips last year as a way to bring the natural world to students who were participating in remote learning at home. In order to do so, we remodeled a classroom and purchased equipment including cameras, computers, and a sound system. Our learning team learned a new set of skills, both in front of and behind the camera. Our virtual classroom in action As the Garden’s youth programs …
Type: Blog
… are appropriate. Hold off on doing any detailed cleanup of garden beds as the mulch and leaves in the beds will provide some protection to any early growing perennials when the weather … to take any special maintenance steps to protect these plants. If you have some perennials in a warm area of the garden with more pronounced growth, they might benefit from a light layer of mulch. For the most part, though, there is nothing special for most gardeners to do in their perennial beds. Even in great weather for pruning, proceed with care. Spring-flowering …
Type: Blog
… A few years ago, in early spring, I was traveling through the McDonald Woods at the Chicago Botanic Garden, … for some of the flat-bodied crab spiders ( Philodromus ) that typically spend the winter in communal groupings under the loose bark of dead trees. Upon reaching a small stand of dead … Years ago, in the late fall, while using fine nets at night to capture owls to attach U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service bird bands, I often caught many of the large, hoary bats migrating …
Type: Blog
… are my favorites. The other day, when the rain cleared and the sun came out, I found myself in warbler heaven! Yellow-rumped warblers ( Setophaga coronata ) are some of the most common … anywhere! Photo © Carol Freeman As soon as I walked out of the Visitor Center, I saw movement in the trees next to the bridge: my first warbler of the day—a prothonotary! ( Protonotaria … can be seen hopping along branches looking for insects. Photo © Carol Freeman After delighting in the abundance of birds for a few hours, I slowly made my way back to my car, choosing to walk …
Type: Blog
… Did you know that one in every three bites of food you take required a pollinator visit? Pollination is essential for many of our favorite foods—from almonds to vanilla, and so many fruits and vegetables in between. The decline of pollinators around the world is threatening not only our food supply but also the function of plant communities and ecosystems. Multiple factors play a role in pollinator decline, including land-use changes, pesticide use, climate change, and the spread …
Type: Blog
… When buckthorn moves in to the ecosystem, it dominates. Imagine a friend invites you to a dinner party, promising a … aren’t eating the kale, the kale continues to dominate the party. Even if someone brought in better foods that more people enjoy, there is no room on the tables. The kale is everywhere! … forest ecosystems. The dinner guests are like the other plants and animals that usually live in the woods. They have certain dietary needs, and if those needs cannot be met, they will have …
Type: Blog
… Our “founding gardeners”— author Andrea Wulf's depiction of early U.S. presidents who passionately promoted farming as a means to independence — would be tickled to see the American Seed Saver bed in the Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden. There, visitors will find varieties of heirloom fruits and vegetables grown by our third president, Thomas Jefferson, in his country estate at Monticello , just outside Charlottesville, Virginia. Many of these …
Type: Blog
… Create a miniature landscape in an open, shallow container: a dish garden! Gather small foliage and flowering plants together in a decorative container—like a basket or saucer—for a versatile display you can enjoy … Dish gardens are easy to grow, very adaptable to most environments, and can be placed anywhere in the home. Even if you do not have a green thumb, you’ll find it difficult to kill a dish …
Type: Blog
… One day at Butterflies & Blooms, I noticed a crepuscular , cosmopolitan imago puddling in order to prepare for an upcoming lek . What did I just say? The vocabulary surrounding … decode the sentence above. The very cosmopolitan painted lady (Vanesa cardui) Cosmopolitan— In this case, a cosmopolitan is not a mixed drink or a well-traveled individual—although this term is related to being in many geographic locations. "Cosmopolitan" describes a butterfly species that is found …
Type: Blog
… been with the Garden since 2003, when he began as a seasonal horticulture assistant working in the Landscape Demonstration Garden. Shortly thereafter, he was promoted to Grounds department crew leader and then in 2008 to assistant horticulturist for the Garden Wall and Berm. He also teaches for the Joseph … Regenstein, Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden. Cantwell has a bachelor of arts degree in mass communications from Columbia College, Chicago, and a master of science degree in …
Type: Staff bio
