Spring’s Earliest Blooming Flowers

Boyce Tankersley, Director of Plant Documentation, took us on a tour of the earliest blooming plants in the display gardens. We began in the Sensory Garden, where huge patches of Iris histrioides ‘George’ were blooming better than ever. Then we went to the Lakeside Gardens to see large patches of giant snowdrops blooming under deciduous trees. The witch hazel outside the English Walled Garden is very fragrant and quite showy right now. We also like the Galanthus nivalis ‘Flore Plenum’ snowdrops in the English Walled Garden, because their petals look like a miniature rose and they are very fragrant. The Waterfall Garden has a nice display of snowdrops that is worth the climb to the top. The crocuses in the lawn near the Bulb Garden were also very showy. You’ll also find crocus in the lawn on Evening Island.

These are just some blooming highlights, visit www.chicagobotanic.org/inbloom for information on what’s in bloom now.

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Julie McCaffrey

Julie McCaffrey is media relations manager at the Chicago Botanic Garden and is responsible for promoting the Garden's programs and events through traditional and social media. Julie holds a B.A. in English from Northern Illinois University and an M.S. in Communications from Northwestern University.

3 thoughts on “Spring’s Earliest Blooming Flowers”

  1. Burried in my ground covering are two flowering plants who’s foilage looks like mums however they bloom in spring. The blooms open and close with the daylignt hours. One plant’s blooms are pink the other purple any clue as to what they might be? I’d like to transplant them this season and would like to know more about them. Thanks.

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