Pollinator Garden 2019

I can't believe I haven't updated about the pollinator garden in a blog post since 2017! I had a post sitting in drafts since last year and I've mentioned the garden many times on Instagram.

Some changes include the bird feeder being moved elsewhere, putting in a new bird bath, expanding the garden quite a bit, and planting more native plants. Speaking of the new bird bath...it is gorgeous! Steve got it from me during our second Annual Wold Lake Lawn Resort Vacation.

So pretty in the sunlight!

The pollinator garden looks wild, but that is exactly how I like my gardens to be...unruly and full of glorious texture. I planted mostly natives, with a focus on milkweed - since my last update I added Asclepias sullivantii, A. verticillata, A. syriaca, and A. tuberosa. A lot of milkweed spread, most notably the swamp and whorled milkweeds.

The wild bergamot I planted the first year spread significantly, to the point where I'll have to control it better next year. The lupine never came back, but the poke milkweed made a return in 2018 and 2019. I'm not sure the spotted beebalm or dianthus returned in 2019, but since the garden is so dense it is possible I just didn't notice them.  The silphium has yet to bloom, though the leaves seem to be doing well every time they come back up.

I missed some hostas when I tried to remove them last time, so hopefully I didn't leave any rhizomes this time around. Silver maple and boxelder seedlings are nuisances, but they're nothing compared to the field bindweed and creeping Charlie. I also let the fennel and bronze fennel go to seed the first year, naively thinking I'd have a few free fennel plants. (Dear past self: hahahahaha.)

Bronze fennel and fennel

We had so many insects, arachnids, and even a frog about the pollinator garden. I've been rearing swallowtail caterpillars, thanks to the fennel. It is really nice to see all the critters that visit or live in this small, wild space I've created for them.

I've tried to keep a list of all the plants I've put in this garden, but I went a bit crazy and didn't record everything. This is a list off the top of my head of what should still be in the pollinator garden:

Asclepias exaltata
A. incarnata
A. incarnata 'Cinderella'
A. incarnata 'Soulmate'
A. sullivantii
A. syriaca
A. tuberosa
A. verticillata
Aquilegia canadensis
Carex bebbii & C. radiata
Echinacea purpurea
E. pallida 
Eryngium yuccifolium
Eutrochium maculatum
Foeniculum vulgare
F. vulgare 'Purpureum'
Lavandula angustifolia 'Hidcote'
Liatris spicata
L. spicata 'Kobold'
Lobelia cardinalis
L. siphilitica
Monarda fistulosa
M. punctata
Nepeta cataria
Pycnanthemum virginianum 
Rudbeckia hirta
Silene regia 
Sisyrinchium angustifolium 'Lucerne'
Solidago sp.
Verbena hastata 
Veronicastrum virginicum
Zizia aurea 

Most of these plants were purchased from local native plant sales and at Gurnee Garden Center. I'm so excited to see what is in store for the pollinator garden in 2020! If you are interested in following along on updates to my gardens, follow me on Instagram!

A Plant Nerd in Peoria: Luthy Botanical Garden ft. Forest Park Nature Center

Luthy Botanical Garden

In summer 2018 I had the great pleasure of visiting Luthy Botanical Garden. It spans 5 acres, with 15 themed gardens and a conservatory. This is one of the smaller botanic gardens I've visited, but it was delightful all the same.

I entered the garden through a side gate, wandering down the shaded trail. A beautiful maple immediately caught my eye (Perhaps Acer japonicum 'Aconitifolium'? I believe the label in front of it said Acer shirasawanum 'Autumn Moon' - a different "full moon maple").

Veering right into sunny Crabapple Cove, there was so much texture and colour to take in!

The purple-pink flowers of Eutrochium maculatum matched the nearby blooms of Tamarix africana (African tamarisk) and Lycoris squamigera (ressurection lily).

    

Another tree lured me over with its cool leaves: Fagus sylvatica 'Asplenifolia' (fernleaf beech).

Moving on into the conservatory, I took a moment to admire the rows of sori on Asplenium antiquum (bird's nest fern) and a cherub statue tangled in foliage, tucked away in a corner.

The conservatory included lush tropical plants, including a HUGE Codiaeum variegatum (croton), and succulents. One of the best highlights for me was a succulent member of the Apocynaceae, Huernia zebrina (little owl eyes)! The flowers are oddly beautiful. The dark red rim of the flower, known as the annulus, is why another common name is lifesaver plant. Asclepiads are some of my favourite plants!

Wandering back outside, I made my way into the dappled sunlight of the Woodland Garden, where I saw so many male cardinals my heart could have burst! Cardinals have great significance to me because my late Grandma Sandy loved them. She taught me what they sound like when I was a child, so every time I see or hear them I think of her. It is also said that cardinals symbolise a greeting from a passed love one.

Passing by the Hosta Glade there was fragrant Clethra alnifolia (summersweet) swarming with pollinators such as ailanthus webworm moths and wasps!

Onward down the rambling paths of the Herb and Cottage gardens, I encountered Artemisia abrotanum (southernwood) and Silene regia (royal catchfly). I found the layout to be lovely, with more crowded plantings that I favour in my own garden. The stone seat and sundial added some extra charm.

After a glimpse of a bunny in the Dwarf Conifer Garden (which was reminiscent of the larger one at Chicago Botanic), I went around the All Seasons Garden, looking up at the green of a Taxodium distichum (bald cypress) canopy, with Patches of Godlight peeking through to contrast cone and branch silhouettes.

The Viburnum Border was a beautiful combination of Veronicastrum virginicum (Culver's root), Asclepias incarnata (swamp milkweed), A. tuberosa (butterfly weed), Echinacea purpurea (coneflower), Rudbeckia hirta (black eyed Susan), and Silphium perfoliatum (cup plant). I also noticed Physostegia virginiana (obedient plant) and as usual I had to play with it.

As some of the gardens were seemingly under construction and a wedding was being held shortly, I rushed through the last few areas: The Gazebo, the Fountain, and Wildlife, Children's, and Rose Garden. I was especially fond of the motherhood statue next to a trellis with Campsis radicans 'Flava' (yellow trumpet vine), as well as the variegated Fagus sylvatica 'Roseomarginata' (tricolor beech). I spotted a second bunny and the largest Ginkgo biloba specimen I've ever seen!

As my adventure came to a close, one last botanical delight was in store for me, peeking through the gate in the parking lot: Rubus odoratus (purple-flowering raspberry)! Before I left, I made sure to say goodbye to the historic Triebel Lions in front of the zoo.

Forest Park Nature Center

Forest Park Nature Center has seven miles of trails and a cute little shop. I didn't take many plant photos, but did snap a few of a doe and two fawns that crossed my path!

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Finally! I had the unfinished post sitting in drafts for months.

I hope to visit Luthy Botanical Garden again in the future! Keep an eye out for my eventual post about my day hiking and exploring of Starved Rock State Park, which I visited on my way back home to Lake County.

Wordless Wednesdays: Winter Is Coming