Every fall I bring in several plants from the patio to overwinter as houseplants and most fare well indoors. Except for my terracotta teacup full of succulents. I love the way the burros tail spills over the edge and the senecio stretches like steam. All goes well for those first few weeks in my south-facing window. Until one day, fuzzy critters (aka mealybugs) arrive and I'm forced to deal some death. All. Winter. Long. Protected by a soft, fuzzy exoskeleton, mealybugs camp out in clusters along the undersides of leaves and reproduce rapidly. A single female lays anywhere from 400-500 eggs in her short life. She dies after egg laying. Piercing-sucking mouthparts enable them to extract nutrients from their host and diminish its vigor. They tend to favor fresh new growth. A ...
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Plant Truck Chicago: Connecting Plants and People
What do you get when you cross a 1974 GMC van with an artist and one of the biggest names in the Chicago gardening scene? A plant truck, of course. While attending a garden media event in August, I ran into my friend Tony Abruscato, aka Mr. Green Chicago. He owns the Chicago Flower and Garden Show and was excited to tell me about his latest garden venture, Plant Truck Chicago. Think food truck, minus the food. As I tried to envision a mobile greenhouse, he told me to get over to the IGC (Independent Garden Center) show where the truck would make its official debut. It's pretty cool! The truck was the brainchild of artist Jason Verbeek. As Tony was telling me the story of how he acquired the truck, I had to stop him once he dropped the artist's name. It sounded so familiar. Turns out ...
Mangave for the Cold Climate Gardener
Mad in Love mangave mix - photo courtesy of Walters Gardens, Inc. Have you ever purchased a plant that wasn't originally on your list? Dumb question. We're gardeners. Lists are a distraction and feel so limiting. Therefore, I rarely stick to them. Which was the case last May when my mom and I visited Sunrise Greenhouse in Grant Park, IL. In addition to the coleus, banana plant, clematis and roses, a mangave landed in my cart. I've grown plenty of succulents and had heard of it before but I can hardly say I knew what to do with it. All I knew was that I had to give it a go. How hard could it be? As it turns out, mangave is one of the most undemanding, and quite surprising, plants I've grown. This is my Mission to Mars mangave the day I brought it home from the nursery. The water spots ...
From Fish to Flamingoes, It’s All Garden Art To Me
Several years ago, my mother-in-law, a devout Catholic, gave me a St. Francis of Assisi statue for my garden. As the patron saint of nature and those who care for the environment, she thought it perfect for my little Eden. And it is in so many ways. I'm not religious, but I deeply appreciated the sentiment behind the gift and for this reason he stands among the phlox and rudbeckia every year. I think it suits him. To me, he is art and a reminder of the loved one who gave him to my garden. It never occurred to me that someone could be so deeply moved by my garden art. It was an awkward moment but in a way reiterates the point of art. To evoke a feeling or emotion, no matter how kitschy or trite. A neighbor asked to see my garden and I eagerly invited her in. What gardener doesn't jump ...
Eight Houseplants for the Beginner
I used to think dust was the only thing I could grow on my windowsill. Houseplants were not my thing. So you might be wondering, after such an admission, why the heck you should trust me on this one. My answer is simple. I haven't killed these guys. And that's saying something. I'm not the most doting houseplant mom. Most of them get the third child treatment. You know, the kind where you temporarily ignore the saggy diaper and crusted snot smeared across his face long enough to down a cup of coffee, brush your teeth and attempt to look human. You care about their wellbeing but aren't maniacal about it like you were with your firstborn. Lucky for us, most houseplants thrive on neglect. Children, not so much. But I've matured enough to know that a little attention to their health is worth ...
Shake the Winter Blues with a Visit to Chicago’s Garfield Park Conservatory
I had never visited the Garfield Park Conservatory so when my friend and fellow writer/plant lover Beth Botts offered a guided tour in the middle of February, my guy and I were Johnny-on-the-spot. A two-acre public greenhouse is good medicine for winter weary souls. Often referred to as "landscape art under glass," the conservatory is part of the Chicago Park District and is located on the city's West Side. It's a horticultural phoenix, rising from the ashes of disrepair, public disinterest and a colossal hailstorm in 2011 that shattered half of the glass panes in the fern room. For months, workers armed with tweezers painstakingly removed shards of glass from priceless plants, some of which have been there since the conservatory's opening in 1908. The conservatory was designed by ...
