We had a great time with our 11th annual Earth Partnership for Schools Summer Institute last week. K-12 teachers brought their enthusiasm for learning and a willingness to put themselves in the shoes of their students. For five days, they practiced hands-on curriculum activities and developed action plans to plant native prairie school gardens in […]
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Daleas – now called Petalostemons and commonly known as prairie clovers – is a genus in honor of Samuel Dale, an English botanist (1659-1739). Sixteen taxa of these hardy legumes are listed in the Flora of the Great Plains. Few prairie clovers are cultivated, yet they offer splendid summer blooms and interesting, often fragrant foliage. Here […]
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This is the time of year when our favorite daffodils, tulips and alliums are looking sad and spent. The flowers have dried up and the foliage is floppy. Here are a few Dos and Don’ts to follow, ensuring a bounty of blooms next spring. DON’T cut foliage before it is yellow and dying. Green […]
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An interesting thing happened in the Fall of 2012, after one of the hottest and driest summers on record – the prairie bloomed. The historic drought was harsh and many plants that were borderline hardy in Kansas were lost, but very few of the wildflowers and grasses of the prairie were lost. Asters, blue sage and […]
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Garden centers and nurseries carry more native plants each year, because gardeners have caught on to the many benefits that native perennials – such as milkweeds, coneflowers, blazing stars, black-eyed susans, and penstemon – provide aesthetically and environmentally. One of the best native plants for early spring bloom is spiderwort. They are fantastic in the […]
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When we think of shrubs that grow in the prairie, lead plant (Amorpha canescens) is the first one that comes to my mind. Rightfully so, the soft gray foliage and lavender flower spikes are a must for any summer prairie garden. However, its lesser known cousin, dwarf false indigo (Amorpha nana) is blooming now in […]
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Originally published on April 29, 2015, here are some helpful hints from our Executive Director Scott Vogt on getting your native plants established using “waterwise” methods. Also, due to the rainy weather during our FloraKansas Native Plant Sale last weekend, we are happy to announce we will be having a “rain check” native plant blitz this […]
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With growing season and FloraKansas on the horizon, we have been asking a few questions of ourselves over the past few months about native plants. Certainly, we have seen the benefits of using native plants in the Arboretum and at our homes, but what would it take to convince someone to install them in their […]
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There are many positive things that can be said about insects. They are important to healthy ecosystems. If you have any appreciation for wildlife of any kind in Kansas, you have insects to thank. Aside from a handful of pests, they are beneficial to humans as well. Click HERE to see an earlier blog post […]
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We are experiencing a paradigm shift that is sweeping across the country. People are becoming increasingly aware of the natural world and their ability to impact it. If we begin establishing landscapes that appeal to us aesthetically, but benefit wildlife ecologically, we can have the best of both worlds. Each of us has the opportunity […]
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