… fashion and design. Since the global pandemic began, designers have been turning to the earthy aesthetics and healing powers of mushrooms and other kinds of fungi. In particular, … of the design world. Mycelium—a network of tiny “threads” that links plants together to share water and nutrients—is an irresistible metaphor for connection and harmony. Designer Stella McCartney is making …
Type: Blog
… We have a problem. My cat is eating my plant. Despite the fact that my prayer plant has inhabited my apartment for over a … not taste-tested any of the plants in this photo! The ZZ plant and flamingo flower are toxic to cats and normally sit safely out of her reach.) Thankfully, prayer plants are not toxic to cats—otherwise, we’d be having a much bigger problem. My cat usually is completely …
Type: Blog
… It’s the season for grilling—time to share a simple, herb-related trick with the grill master at your house. Fashion an herb brush … spoon, a bit of kitchen twine, and freshly-snipped twigs of rosemary. Use the aromatic brush to flavor roasting meats like lamb, chicken, or pork—just dip it into marinade or olive oil and … chunks of meat onto rosemary skewers for a delicious infused kabob. Genius! A sage brush is perfect for sweeping marinades onto grilled chicken. After the meat is cooked, snip the herb …
Type: Blog
… Wolfsbane is a beautiful—and poisonous—fall-blooming perennial. It also has a colorful history associated … series, Remus Lupin, a tormented werewolf, drinks a potion of wolfsbane carefully concocted to control his transformations. As early as Dracula in 1931, wolfsbane casually replaced garlic … from the toxic slobber of a three-headed dog named Cerberus, the scary canine guardian to the gates of Hell. In the Dark Ages, wolfsbane was said to be used by witches in spells and …
Type: Blog
… Step past the sleepy stone lion, breathe in the cowslip primrose, and listen to the water trickle into an eighteenth-century lead cistern—the feeling is as timeless as the tiny thyme plants growing between the hand-pressed bricks. So how do we … Helen and Richard Thomas English Walled Garden withstands the rigors of time? Work is underway to enhance the English Walled Garden’s magestical tapestry. Dedicated in 1991 by Princess …
Type: Blog
… the Forest Preserves of Cook County, including a stint at the Garden. The Conservation Corps is a paid summer internship that gives young people hands-on conservation and environmental science experience. Students partnered with Garden horticulturists and learned to identify plants and remove invasive species. This year, they worked to clear and trim overgrown bushes, install new plantings, and remove invasive plants. In …
Type: Blog
… resolutions—whether at the Chicago Botanic Garden, or in their own backyard. Feel free to snag one of their ideas for yourself. Heather Sherwood, senior horticulturist, Helen and Richard Thomas English Walled Garden Some of my New Year’s resolutions are to clean and sharpen my tools, start a compost pile with my kitchen scraps, pet more bumblebees, … Pogue, senior horticulturist, Elizabeth Hubert Malott Japanese Garden My New Year’s resolution is to apply the principles of the Garden's soil initiative. I am very excited to learn more about …
Type: Blog
… Cathy Thomas is the plant propagator for the Plant Production department. One of her responsibilities is … and camps. She is especially interested in the complex strategies that plants have developed to prevent the germination of their seeds until conditions are favorable for the seedlings' survival. In her work, she researches and tests different techniques to break these germination inhibitors present in the seeds of native plants grown for restoration …
Type: Staff bio
… My top pick for cool new plant species? The media has called it grotesque and compared to an eyeless worm. And our friends at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in London described it as “the ugliest orchid in the world.” The not-so-pretty Gastrodia agnicellus orchid is just one of the new discoveries and developments I’ve tracked recently, as curator of the … and collector of orchids, I still geek out when researchers stumble on a species unknown to science. Here are five of my favorite recent news stories on orchids: Gastrodia agnicellus , …
Type: Blog
… as some of us in the Second City affectionately call it: Second Winter—can test our ability to feel connected to anything living, including each other and ourselves. When we are stuck inside, our mental … Flower Mandala Sun Catchers Loosely translated from Sanskrit to mean “circle,” a mandala is a symbol that represents wholeness and reminds us of the connectivity of all things in the …
Type: Blog
