… or staring angrily at the purslane popping up in your vegetable garden, I have a suggestion for you: make a salad. You may be familiar with the concept of foraging for weeds. I first became … in the subject in college, when I realized that free food was everywhere once you knew where to look. (The reality soon set in that most of this “free” food was actually growing on lawns and private property.) Whenever you forage weeds and wild plants you have to be careful that what you take isn’t getting sprayed with herbicides—which is why I recommend …
Type: Blog
… On a walk through the Chicago Botanic Garden, you are likely to encounter dozens of woody plants—short, tall, flowering, or simply lending structural beauty to a landscape. It’s OK to have a favorite. Phillip Douglas, the Garden’s new curator of woody … on the southeast corner of the Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center—for smaller landscapes. He describes Regal Prince as a hybrid oak that is columnar in shape. …
Type: Blog
… noticed more garlic mustard in your garden, yard, or alley this year. The ecologists who tend to the Chicago Botanic Garden’s natural areas have, too. We had not seen much garlic mustard in our natural areas in recent years, and its reemergence is a reminder for all of us that controlling and managing invasive species is an ongoing challenge. Our natural … Botanic Garden’s 385 acres, and these woods, prairie, river, shorelines, and lakes are home to a remarkably diverse collection of plants. In most of our natural areas, we allow natural …
Type: Blog
… like something a scarecrow might wear. His bushy black eyebrows dance when he talks, bringing to mind the woolly bear caterpillars abundant in the fall. A playfulness—tinged with the macabre—also shows in the jack-o-lantern characters Obenchain created for HallowFest, the Garden’s former celebration of Halloween. Riley Obenchain poses with some … smile on another jack-o-lantern gives a mixed message. Obenchain describes it as an “I’m-happy-to-see-you-because-I’m-going-to-eat you” look. “I get a lot of, ‘Wow! I could never do that!’” …
Type: Blog
… What’s the right kind of mulch? 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 … prevailing idea is that mulch is a definitive weed barrier. I hate to be the bearer of sad news, but the answer to that one is, well…have you noticed that weeds will grow quite well from … break down or compost into smaller, organically beneficial material. But its primary benefit for trees and shrubs is threefold: To protect and optimize the root zone To protect the trunk, …
Type: Blog
… magnolia tree population on the edge of fading away. He had discovered the treasure he set out to find. Often, this is where the story ends. But when the prize is an elusive plant sought by … at the Chicago Botanic Garden, was on day three of a nine-day adventure across the East Coast to collect northern populations of Magnolia virginiana var. virginiana L. After locating a … vines, wild roses, and other invasive plants to reach stable ground. It’s all in a day’s work for Bunting, who has gone on wild plant-collecting trips around the country and world during his …
Type: Blog
… What’s not to love about a Shrek-like sprout head? This DIY project connects young kids to plants and the magic of sprouting seeds. In camps and youth classes at the Chicago Botanic … ones to get their hands dirty as they explore the natural world. We’ve got lots of ideas for projects you can do at home to get kids thinking about plants and how they grow. Here’s how …
Type: Blog
… in the natural world, you might think of destruction and loss of wildlife. But when it comes to the North American prairie, fires are a crucial tool for native plants to thrive and to safeguard against extinction. Until now, it was unclear precisely why and how …
Type: Blog
… Looking for a reason to be glad for the cold weather in winter’s stretch? Consider the needs of fruit trees. Fruit trees need to spend a certain amount of time during their dormant winter period at cool temperatures in …
Type: Blog
… planning, you can harvest something from your garden from April through October. The trick is to gather what you need now and start dreaming so you can get a jump on things as soon as the … says Lisa Hilgenberg, horticulturist, Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden. Now is the time to start a garden journal—make lists of projects you want to do such as pruning trees, dividing … in early. One of my winter projects is to get started on crop planning. Make a spreadsheet for the crops you want to grow in order to keep track of your planting dates. I’ve wanted to so …
Type: Blog
