A Garden Fit for Royalty

Can’t make the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle? Visit the Helen and Richard Thomas English Walled Garden instead.

If you’re in Chicago this weekend, that means—like most of us—you didn’t get an invite to the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, a graduate of Northwestern University. Get in the spirit of the occasion anyway by visiting the English Walled Garden at the Chicago Botanic Garden. This garden has enough connections to the British royal family to satisfy your royal appetite, and you won’t have to be up at 5 a.m. to start watching the wedding and feel part of the experience.

Here are just some of the connections to British royalty that can be found in the English Walled Garden:

The garden was dedicated by a member of the British Royal Family. The English Walled Garden was dedicated in 1991 by none other than Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, who was Queen Elizabeth II’s younger sister. The occasion was fit for royalty, with a performance from a bagpiper, and an official dedication by the princess, who sported a lovely royal blue coat. You can find a plaque commemorating the dedication just outside the entrance to the garden.

Princess Margaret visits the opening of the English Walled Garden in 1991.
Princess Margaret visits the opening of the English Walled Garden in 1991. Designed by John Brookes, the English Walled Garden contains six “rooms” that demonstrate traditional English gardening styles: Vista Garden, Cottage Garden, Pergola Garden, Daisy Garden, Courtyard Garden, and Checkerboard Garden.

A legendary designer created this garden. When the English Walled Garden was just an idea, the Woman’s Board of the Chicago Botanic Garden looked to legendary garden designer John Brookes for his vision. Known more for being a modernist, Brookes agreed to design our English Walled Garden in a more traditional style. In 2004, he was made a Member of the British Empire, an order of chivalry bestowed by the Queen for outstanding contributions to society. Brookes died in March 2018, but leaves behind a footprint that includes, along with the English Walled Garden here, many gardens on private estates and in town squares around the world. A quote from his last published book describes his legacy: “I have sired no heir, but I have given birth to perhaps a thousand gardens.”

English Walled Garden (at Chicago Botanic Garden) in May
The English Walled Garden in May

The garden is divided into six “rooms,” and one was made as a nod to the working class. The least formal of the six different spaces in the English Walled Garden is the Cottage Garden room. It’s modeled after the type of garden a rural homeowner would create, and serves to be more functional than ornamental. You’ll see fruits, vegetables, and herbs growing together, filling every space possible. If you’re someone who’s not altogether fond of the concept of royalty, the Cottage Garden is a place to visit and ruminate on how the common folk get by.

Charles and Diana are there—but not together. The garden features two varieties of clematis with familiar royal names. Clematis ‘Prince Charles’ and Clematis ‘Princess Diana’ are both located in the same garden bed, but planted at opposite ends. You can find them next to the ramp exit leading to the adjacent Dwarf Conifer Garden.

Clematis 'Prince Charles'
Clematis ‘Prince Charles’
Clematis 'Princess Diana'
Clematis ‘Princess Diana’

The floral emblem of Scotland is there, but England’s is not. Planted as an annual this year along the west perennial border of the garden is Onopordum acanthium, more commonly known as Scotch thistle. The flower is so named because it’s similar to the thistle used as the national emblem of Scotland (which is technically Cirsium vulgare). If you’re looking for the national emblem of England, that would be the Tudor rose, a combination of the red and white roses of the Houses of Lancaster and York. But you’ll have to go outside the English Walled Garden to get a good view of roses. Peek through the terra-cotta tiles next to the Linden Allée or venture to the Krasberg Rose Garden next door. There’s a variety of rose named for Prince Harry’s grandmother and Meghan Markle’s future grandmother-in-law: Rosa ‘Queen Elizabeth’.

Guardian by Simon Verity
Guardian by Simon Verity

The Guardian has royal connections. If you enter the English Walled Garden from the main entrance on the west side, you can’t miss the Guardian. The sculpture was carved by Simon Verity, an English sculptor who has created pieces that stand in many English gardens, including one owned by Prince Harry’s father Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, as well as Elton John (who is definitely music royalty). Constructed of semiprecious stones and minerals, the sculpture represents air, earth, fire and water, the ancient elements of earth.

Delphinium elatum 'Royal Aspirations'
Delphinium elatum ‘Royal Aspirations’

Surround yourself in purple and feel like royalty. Now that spring has arrived (finally), there are plenty of blooms to be found in the traditional color of royalty. Blues and purples were a key part of Brookes’ design for the garden. You can find that color family prominently in the Pergola Garden room. Another can’t miss purple flower in the English Walled Garden is delphinium, a stately and regal bloom newly planted in two urns close to the Linden Allée.

Say hello to the lion. The lion has long been the symbol of England. The Barbary lion is the country’s national animal and also adorns a number of national symbols, from the coat of arms of the royal family to the England national football team’s logo. Naturally, there’s a lion in the English Walled Garden as well. Named Cuddly Lion, the sculpture was donated by Brookes and is located at the entrance.

Wander away from the English Walled Garden to find the plants and flowers of the royal wedding. While the English Walled Garden is full of botanical references and nods to English history and culture, you’ll have to trek to the Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden to find plants and flowers that are part of Prince Harry and Meghan’s wedding celebration. Traditionally, lemon myrtle from Queen Victoria’s holiday home on the Isle of Wight has been featured in the bride’s bouquet of royal weddings since Victoria’s daughter (also named Victoria) was married in 1858. The flowering plant is expected to make an appearance in Meghan’s bouquet. There’s lemon myrtle located inside the greenhouse, at the center of the garden. One tradition Prince Harry and Meghan are not following is with their choice of cake. Instead of the traditional fruit cake, their wedding will instead have a cake made of lemon and elderflower. Cross the bridge to the Fruit & Vegetable Garden and veer left. You’ll find several elder trees (Sambucus nigra) along the shoreline. Looking for a reason to head back to the English Walled Garden? Finish up your homage trip in honor of the royal wedding by seeking out lemon thyme, planted in several different spots in the English Walled Garden. Take a sniff and, with the right bit of imagination, it’ll be like you’re in London with the royals after all.

Cuddly Lion sculputure outside the English Walled Garden
Cuddly Lion is a favorite of young visitors to the English Walled Garden.

©2018 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org

Cold April delays some blooms, but now the spring show is on

April definitely did not go out like a lamb this year. You probably didn’t put away your sweater until the end of the month, when temperatures finally hit 80 degrees.

Here at the Chicago Botanic Garden, we recorded our coldest April ever since we started recording temperatures in 1982. Our average high temperature in April was 48.1, which is 8.7 degrees below normal.

What did the cold weather mean for our plants?

Luckily, nothing devastating. Early bloomers, like winter aconite, crocus, and snowdrops, weren’t affected, and many bloomed as expected. Those species can also tolerate the colder temperatures we saw in April. If we had seen a few days of high temperatures and some of the more delicate flowers had opened, followed by a subsequent freeze, that would most likely have damaged plants.

May (and later) bloomers are also probably going to arrive on schedule. But plant species that usually bloom in April took their time. Celeste Vandermey, supervisor of plant records, checked to see how late some perennials and trees were this year. On average, most were about two weeks late, with a few outliers taking even longer than usual:

Saucer magnolia (Magnolia x soulangeana) in bloom
Saucer magnolia (Magnolia × soulangeana)

Magnolias: Usually, these start to bloom during the first two weeks of April. This year, we didn’t see flowers start to open until the first week of May.

Nanking cherry (Prunus tomentosa) in bloom
Higan Cherry (Prunus subhirtella ‘Autumnalis’)

Cherries: Mid-April is prime time for cherries here. They have their own festival in Washington D.C. and this year reached their peak there in the first week of April. Our cherries waited until early May.

Red oak (Quercus rubra) leaves emerging
Red oak (Quercus rubra) leaves emerging

Native trees: McDonald Woods is home to many native trees, including oaks and maples, which usually start to leaf between April 8-15. But this year leaves didn’t start to appear until May as well.

Gold Tide forsythia (Forsythia 'Courtasol') in bloom
Gold Tide® forsythia (Forsythia ‘Courtasol’)

Forsythia: Since the Garden began to keep track of first blooms on our grounds more than 25 years ago, this is the latest we’ve ever seen forsythia bloom.

Late bloomers have now all started to exit their winter dormancy. Their tardiness does not mean other species will continue to be late. Once temperatures remain above freezing and the soil warms up, which seems to have begun, most species will do their thing at their expected time. It’s safe to—finally—say spring has arrived.

Redbud (Cercis canadensis) in bloom
Next up: Redbuds
(Cercis canadensis)

Check out the Garden’s What’s in Bloom Highlights every Monday and Thursday for new selections of plants that are putting on a beautiful show, and where to find them.


©2018 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org

Protect Spring Plantings When Cold Returns

It’s that time of year when the sun finally comes out and temperatures go up, allowing you to get some outdoor planting done. But beware the fickle Chicago spring.

Spring planters are out all around the Garden.
Don’t let frost take out all of your plants (and hard work). Cover less hardy plantings or move them into sheltered areas if  temperatures dip below freezing.

Perfect gardening days are sometimes followed by colder temperatures that can wreak havoc on your newly installed containers. Horticulturist Heather Sherwood shared some of the things she does to protect plants that the home gardener may want to do as well.

  • Move containers inside. Sherwood’s team planted large containers with a mix of flowers, including foxglove and Persian buttercup. In cold weather, the containers are moved into McGinley Pavilion, which has plastic draping down to keep the cold out. If you’ve started to create containers for your back porch or balcony, bring them inside. Even an uninsulated shed offers more protection than none. 
  • Not all containers are easy to relocate indoors. Some of our spring annual display containers weigh more than 200 pounds, and stay where they are through the cold. Sherwood covers the ones that can’t be moved with plastic, including used soil bags. If you were planning on just disposing of your empty soil bags, reuse them this way to protect your containers instead. Sherwood also recommends covering plants with old bedding, especially fitted sheets. They fit snugly around the bottom of the containers and keep out the cold air.
  • If you do cover your containers, it may be helpful to prop up the covering with bamboo poles. The covering shouldn’t touch the plants, because it can weigh down and crush any leaves or fresh blooms. And if the temperatures drop too low, the covering can freeze to the plant and damage it. Circulation is always good, so give your plants “breathing room” if you cover them.
  • Leave some plants alone. Some flowers don’t need your fretting. Pansies will likely withstand colder temperatures. Daffodils and tulips, some of which haven’t even emerged yet, will probably also be fine. Focus your efforts on protecting the more vulnerable flowers and let the hardy ones tough out the cold.
  • Protect the containers. Your plants won’t stand a chance if you don’t also protect the containers you’ve planted them in. If you use terra cotta pots, keep them dry in cold temperatures. If they’re wet and then freeze, cracks can form. Containers made from fiberglass and plastic will degrade over time if they’re in direct sunlight, so check these for damage and move inside if you’re unsure of their durability. Your reused containers will last much longer if you have stored them out of the elements over winter. (Make a mental note for next winter.)
Container plantings in the English Walled Garden are covered lightly with soil bags.
Container plantings in the English Walled Garden are covered lightly with soil bags.
Heavier frost blankets are stapled around tree trunks to protect displays around the Regenstein Center.
Heavier frost blankets are stapled around tree trunks to protect displays around the Regenstein Center.

Still not sure what to do with your containers? Contact Plant Information at the Garden at (847) 835-0972 or plantinfo@chicagobotanic.org with any questions. The master gardeners and horticulture specialists who run this service can help you figure out what’s best for your plants.


©2018 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org

Gardening in Winter: Dos and Don’ts

Welcome to winter, one of the best seasons for gardeners. You have time to plan, prune, and enjoy those houseplants that don’t get much love during the outdoor growing season. Make the most of your winter gardening with these dos and don’ts from Chicago Botanic Garden experts.

DO prune your deciduous trees. From mid-November to mid-March, it’s much easier to prune because you’ll be able to better see a tree’s branching structure and there is less chance of transmitting diseases from one plant to another.

Winter is the perfect time to prune deciduous trees or remove nuisance buckthorn.
Winter is the perfect time to prune deciduous trees or remove nuisance buckthorn.

DON’T prune conifers. Needled evergreens can be pruned in late winter or early spring, before growth begins. Arborvitae should be pruned during spring and early summer.

DO water newly planted trees and shrubs that might be in the path of salt spray from salted roads during periods of winter thaw. Consider wrapping vulnerable trees to prevent damage from salt and extreme temperatures.

DON’T overwater houseplants. Because of shorter days and reduced humidity, most houseplants aren’t in an active growth phase, so they’ll require less water and fertilizer.

DO keep houseplants away from cold drafts, radiators, hot air vents, and cold windows. Plants growing in sunny east- or north-facing windows may benefit from being moved to a southern or western exposure for winter.

DON’T try to remove ice or snow that has frozen onto your outdoor plants. You might inadvertently damage them. Let it melt off on its own.

DO start to plan your garden for the new year. Order seeds and bulbs during the winter so you’ll be ready to plant in the spring.

Ornithogalum 'Chesapeake Snowflake'
Ornithogalum ‘Chesapeake Snowflake’

Get more indoor and outdoor plant care tips with our monthly plant care checklists.

 


©2018 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org

Get ready to play with Little Diggers

There’s a chill in the air. Flurries are flying past the windows. And your child is whining. Winter is coming and parents will need a cure for their children’s encroaching cabin fever. Little Diggers is the answer.

This four-class series gives 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds a chance to meet once a month and explore nature with caregivers in all seasons—yes, even in winter. The colder months in particular are the best time to encourage children to play in nature, said Mila Love, who coordinates the program.

“We really want to get outside and teach kids that it’s OK to be outside in all types of weather,” she said. “This isn’t a passive, sitting around and listening kind of hour.”

Outdoor play is a part of every Little Diggers class.
Outdoor play is a part of every Little Diggers class.

The benefits of nature play are many. Research has shown that children who play outdoors build confidence and creativity, and have lower stress levels, among other benefits. Nature play doesn’t need to stop when the holiday decorations come out. Increase the benefits by playing outdoors year-round.

Spending time outdoors is fun for everyone.
Spending time outdoors is fun for everyone.

So, what does a typical Little Diggers class look like?

  1. Kids and caregivers greet the instructor and check out the activity stations set up for the class theme of the day. Winter themes will be nocturnal animals (January), life in the pond (February), weather (March), and spring (April). They’ll get the chance to try out the different stations, and maybe create some art or build structures. Kids are free to decide what interests them.
  2. Circle time! Kids gather to talk about the month’s theme and read a book about it, then participate in an active, hands-on experience.
  3. Free play time gives Little Diggers participants a chance to check out the activity stations again or pot up a plant to take home. Winter Little Diggers take-home plants will be purple basil (January), nasturtium (February), lamb’s ear (March), and pansies (April).
  4. Next, the group goes outside. There are several locations at the new Regenstein Learning Campuswhere Little Diggers participants explore nature. Snow digging might take place in the outdoor classroom space. Planting activities take place in the Grunsfeld Children’s Growing Garden, while Kleinman Family Cove is where you can get a close-up look at aquatic plants and animals.
  5. Wrapping up the hour, kids come back to the classroom to pick-up their plants and projects, and say their goodbyes.

The only time the class stays indoors is when it’s too dangerous to be outdoors (if, for example, the temperature dips below zero degrees Fahrenheit). But that’s rare, so winter Little Diggers participants should dress warmly enough to be outdoors for an extended amount of time.

Instructor Mila Love leads a class of Little Diggers in the Regenstein Learning Center.
Instructor Mila Love leads a class of Little Diggers in the Regenstein Learning Center.
Little Diggers make clay veggies
Little Diggers make clay veggies

Love said she recommends Little Diggers as a first social group experience for toddlers. Because the adults stay with the children, it’s a great way for them to participate in a classroom-like setting before preschool or kindergarten starts, without being too far from their caregivers. Parents can benefit as well from meeting other parents, she said.

At home, children can care for the plants they potted in class. Instructors will often pass on instructions to recreate some of the fun. That herb-scented play dough they loved at Little Diggers can easily be made at home.

In winter, it’s common to want to stay inside because it’s cold. Having a nature-focused program like Little Diggers to look forward to, kids will want to get out and play, no matter what the weather is like.

The winter doldrums won’t stand a chance.

Online registration for Winter Little Diggers is now open. Members receive a discount. Have an older child? Sign up for one of our upcoming Weekend Family Classes, like Joyful Gingerbread of Loco for Cocoa.


©2017 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org