I BROUGHT THEM HOME (WITH PERMISSION!) from Wave Hill, the public garden in the Bronx, a couple of decades ago: a few delightfully fuzzy, fat seedpods of celandine poppy from plants that brightened the perimeter of their famed Wild Garden. Stylophorum diphyllum has been a bright, shiny companion ever since in my shady and semi-shady borders, a native American wildflower that animals don’t eat; pests don’t chew, and that doesn’t get diseases.
Stylophorum is a poppy relative, a member of the family Papaveraceae (as the distinctive orange-gold-colored sap will tell you if you break a stem or leaf). This Zone 4-9 self-sowing perennial is native to moist woodlands and stream banks of Eastern and Central North America, growing to a foot to 18 inches tall (the flowers soar above the basal rosette of leaves). Unlike some plants that seed themselves around, this one’s easy to pull out—no nasty rhizomes that stay behind.
The big gold flowers appear mostly in April-May but then repeat all season (unless the plant’s in too dry and hot a spot, when it may even go dormant). Even the foliage is nice: a fresh-looking blue-green and so textural with its beautifully lobed shape, plus undersides that flash with white.
And then there are those seedpods that got me started in the first place with this plant. (The ones in the photo below are just starting to ripen and will fatten up.) Irresistible.
Of Stylophorum’s native range in the central and Eastern U.S., the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower center says this:
Their website also notes that chipmunks will eat the seeds–but what DON’T those little devils eat, I ask?
I was interested to read on an Illinois wildflower site that the celandine poppy is found, “in high quality woodlands; it is one of the
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A quick way to clean the algae out of a garden water feature after a long, dark, and wet winter is to use a power washer. It only takes a few minutes to dislodge the long mats of algae, and the low volume of water that blows out of the nozzle doesn’t disturb even the smallest of rocks. Start at the top of where the water flows and work your way down to the bottom of the feature. This is a lot easier and more effective than grabbing the strands by hand and then using a brush to clean the rest away. You can see the difference in these “before” and “after” photos. I enjoy this a lot more than power washing the patio.
I am often asked to recommend plants for problematic garden areas during my call-in radio program or after public-speaking engagements. As a result, over the years I have developed a list of my top picks for sunny and shady gardens depending on whether the soil is dense, heavy, and clay-based, or lean, sandy, and quick-draining. Fortunately, I have experience gardening with both soil types, and so I know that each presents its own challenges and opportunities. Here are a few options for perennials, trees, and shrubs that can survive and even thrive in the trickiest soil conditions.
Parasitic plants derive their required energy and nutrition from other plants, hindering their growth. Here is a list of some Unwanted Plants that are Parasites!
Tomato plants are a staple in many gardens, but did you know that there are weeds out there that can easily be mistaken for them? From horse nettle to black nightshade, check out these Weeds that Look like Tomato Plants.
Soil provides nutrients for plants as well as millions of microorganisms. However, this only applies if the soil is healthy. Soil conservation is the movement to keep soil healthy, fertile and productive, as well as protecting it from erosion and deterioration. Learn about different methods of soil conservation here.
Illinois has a wonderful biodiversity. It is the habitat to many species of plants that harmoniously live and adapt to each other. This article will provide a Complete List Of Illinois Native Plants. Jump right in and lets start this journey!
The tropical rain forests of South America hold a treasure when it comes to plants that are beautiful, exotic, and can make for great houseplants. Have a look at the most amazing South American Indoor Plants you can grow!
Red, White and Blue the patriotic colours of the Hydrangea are augmented by pinks and purples like H. Ayeshia above as a variation on those themes. Flowering from mid-summer these shrubs give a magnificent display with very little effort. Did you see Hydrangea maritima on seaside holidays in large displays of sugary pink and sometimes blue.
In times of this pandemic, it is imperative that you take good care of your health, especially the respiratory system. Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds (which are 10 times higher indoors than outdoors), Particulate Matter, Polluting Gases like Nitrogen Oxide andRadon, and Contaminants like Asbestos are commonly found inside homes.
Each year, I look forward to watching the bleak winter landscape begin to come to life as if transitioning from black and white to Technicolor. Yellow is one of the first colors to appear with the flowers of forsythia and our state flower, yellow jessamine. As I was driving to work this week, I noticed a new color emerge amidst the roadside trees.