Planning a Spring Celebration at the Antiques & Garden Fair

Who isn’t ready to celebrate spring? The Antiques & Garden Fair is a great first stop to get inspiration for your own home and garden as well as purchase accents that bring them to life. David Drummond takes us on a tour of this year’s Fair to show us some items we could use to throw a spring garden party. We hope this gives you some ideas and inspires you to visit this weekend! See www.chicagobotanic.org/antiques for details.

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.

Escape to The Greenhouses this winter

Here at the Chicago Botanic Garden, we’re trying to make winter a little brighter and a little warmer. In The Greenhouses of the Regenstein Center, visitors can escape to a desert oasis and see aloes in bloom. They can feel the humidity of the tropics in the tropical greenhouse. They can even smell the fragrances of the temperate regions and see some interesting carnivorous plants! Sharon Nejman, Senior Horticulturist, takes us on a tour to show us what’s in bloom in each of the different climates we have recreated. Visit chicagobotanic.org/inbloom for more information on what’s in bloom at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Spring is Underway in Production Greenhouses

Though it’s still winter outside, Tim Pollak, Outdoor Floriculturist, and his team in the Production Greenhouses are getting ready for spring on the inside. Tim takes us on a tour of the Production Greenhouses to show us what they are growing for spring this year. All year round, his staff and volunteers work to grow many of the annuals that are later planted in the display gardens at the Chicago Botanic Garden. See what it takes to grow all of those plants!