Chicago Botanic Garden’s “seedy” preservation project

Visitors to the Chicago Botanic Garden's seed library read about the seed saving process. (Robin J. Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)

By Claire Donnelly This library never worries about anything overdue.  But expect to  give back from what you borrow. This is a seed library established by Leora Siegel, director of the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Lenhardt Library. Visitors can “check out” different seed varieties like heirloom tomatoes, mesclun greens, peppers, peas and beans. The library, housed […]

Growing Opportunities for Ex-Convicts in Urban Agriculture

Chicago Botanic Garden urban farm

By Anna Boisseau Antonio Henry only recently learned he likes lunchbox peppers. “They’re so sweet, you can just eat them straight,” he said of the multi-colored vegetables that he learned to grow last summer at a local urban farm. Henry is a former member of Windy City Harvest Corps, a 14-week program through the Chicago […]

Orchid show blooms away winter chill

Madison Hopkins/Medill

By Madison Hopkins About 28,000 people will step out Chicago’s freezing winter and into a tropical paradise of 10,000 flowers at the third annual Orchid Show at the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe. That’s the expectation if this year’s show compares with the previous popularity of the crowd-drawing event. And program organizers are presenting special […]

The long and (very) short of bonsai

bonsai-web-1

By Claire Donnelly Chris Baker has 269 children. His children are green, grow leaves and live at the Chicago Botanic Garden. They’re bonsai trees.