Archives

• Gardening with Native Plants: November Leaves and Grasses November 4, 2025

  November quiets the garden. Growth stops, seeds scatter, dormancy begins or continues. By month’s end, we may see snow that sticks. At the Arboretum, we… Read more

• Fall Color, Weather, and Forecasts October 1, 2025

  As fall begins and day length gradually shortens, trees are being cued that winter is approaching. In response, deciduous trees (those that lose… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Falling Leaves, Seeds, and Temperatures October 1, 2025

  October in the garden can be warm and colorful or frosty and drab as leaves fall, dry, and blow into drifts and seeds disperse on… Read more

• Appreciating Student Staff September 17, 2025

  The Arboretum hires more than a dozen college students a year, for summer seasonal roles as outdoor educators and assistant staff in land care and… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Fungi in the Gardens September 4, 2025

  This summer, the Native Plant Garden was full of flowers, growth, animals, people, and learning. UW–Madison students Holly and Kate joined me and dozens of… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: “Weeds” and Weeds July 31, 2025

  In the native plant garden, August is a transition month between mid-summer growth and the colors, flowers, and seed heads of the fall season. Garden… Read more

• People Caring for the Land: Volunteers, Communities, and Connection July 31, 2025

  Spring brought abundant blossoms, greening of the prairie, songs of migratory birds, and many volunteer groups active on the land. In just thirteen… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Garden Animals June 2, 2025

  June brings the longest day lengths, warm temperatures, and usually ample precipitation. Plants grow rapidly and summer blooms begin. This month, garden tasks… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Sun to Shade May 1, 2025

  Wisconsin spring is in full swing in May and change is everywhere – budding, germination, decomposition, emergence, migration, fresh new growth, and warmth. Read more

• What's in Bloom? April 7, 2025

  This page offers bloom updates for popular trees and shrubs in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens and native plants in the Wisconsin Native Plant Garden and natural areas. Read more

• A Big Year for Volunteers and the Arboretum April 3, 2025

  What can a small group of committed individuals accomplish? A lot! What can a large group accomplish? Even more! When the group is 970 people… Read more

• Longenecker Horticultural Gardens Celebrates Ninety Years April 3, 2025

  The Longenecker Horticultural Gardens are the UW–Madison Arboretum’s arboretum, containing the largest and most diverse collection of woody plants in the state. On… Read more

• Taking the Next Step for Pollinators: Musings of a People and Nature Researcher April 3, 2025

  February 13, 2025. I traversed a snowy Arboretum with arcing trees layered in glittery white piping to attend the morning Winter Enrichment lecture… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Helping Pollinators April 3, 2025

  Wisconsin’s spring continues in April, the first month of the year when average minimum temperatures are above freezing. Total April precipitation (on average)… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Shrubs with Early Blooms February 27, 2025

  March often brings the end of winter, the beginning of spring, or simply the variability of this seasonal transition. Longer days, increasing sun… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Plants for a Garden Full of Life February 4, 2025

  During February, winter’s grip begins to loosen. Although Madison’s average daily temperature for the month is in the mid-20s, the average high temperature… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Planning for Pollinators January 7, 2025

  In our Wisconsin climate, January is an unlikely month for actual gardening, but seeding and planning for the new season is underway at the Arboretum. Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Autumn Care and Reflections November 4, 2024

  Late fall arrives in November, with colder days, possible frosts, shifting winds, shorter daylength, and neutral colors. Plants go into dormancy; some still hold seeds. Read more

• Art on View: Good Intentions October 22, 2024

  “Good Intentions,” an interactive outdoor sculpture by UW–Madison art student Mariah Skenandore, is on view in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens October 21 through November 18, 2024. Read more

• Longenecker Horticultural Garden Intern Digs into Garden Operations October 2, 2024

  As summer fades into fall, we are saying goodbye to Longenecker Horticultural Gardens’ (LHG) dynamic intern Jacinda Goldsby. Hailing from Marshall, Wisconsin, Jacinda contacted the… Read more