Archives

• Gardening with Native Plants: Summer Vines July 1, 2019

  During July, many native species come into bloom in prairies, savannas, and wetlands. This diversity provides opportunities to learn plant families, practice identification skills, and… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Summer Begins May 30, 2019

  As June 2019 begins, cool wet spring conditions continue. June is Madison’s rainiest month; the long-term average monthly precipitation is 4.5 inches. The State Climatology Office… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: May Favorites April 29, 2019

  May brings dramatic growth, light greens deepening to dark greens, early flowers, and gardening tasks to fill the longer days. We are planting, weeding, and… Read more

• What's in Bloom? April 11, 2019

  This is a selective list of popular blooming horticultural plants in Longenecker Horticultural Gardens (LHG) and native plants in the Wisconsin Native Plant Garden (WNPG)… Read more

• Garden Tours: Grow Your Plant Knowledge March 20, 2019

  Spring blooming trees and shrubs, summer wildflowers, fall color and towering prairie grasses are only some of the delights to be found in the Arboretum’s… Read more

• John Curtis: The Original Restoration Ecologist March 6, 2019

  Bring up conservation in Wisconsin and you’ll often hear the name John Curtis, along with such innovators as Aldo Leopold. A professor of botany, Curtis was a… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Rain, Shade, and Wildlife Gardens January 31, 2019

  Winter holds on in February, but its grasp softens through the month as icy landscapes begin to subtly turn toward spring. Garden tasks include finalizing… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Winter Plans January 2, 2019

  As winter deeply settles in this month, gardeners dream about and plan for a new season. Outdoor tasks are pruning and clearing up storm damage. Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Gardener's Bookshelf November 29, 2018

  In quiet December, our gardens have short days, patterns in ice, drifted snow, bare branches, snow-capped bird nests, dried stalks, and hardy winter animals. Indoor… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Photography as a Garden Tool October 31, 2018

  In November, we may see frosty mornings and a few measurable early snowfalls. Leaves have mostly fallen and landscape colors are muted. Seed heads are… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Fall Changes and Winter Preparation September 30, 2018

  October brings rapid seasonal change: peak fall color and leaf drop, animals and insects going into dormancy, birds migrating from—or to—our area, seed dispersal, decreasing… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Summer Reflections August 30, 2018

  September takes the garden from summer to fall, with plants growing more slowly or dying back, late season flowering, color changes, fruits and seeds maturing,… Read more

• UW–Madison Arboretum Hosts Native Gardening Conference August 8, 2018

  Promoting Sustainable Gardening Practices and the Use of Native Plants in Home Landscapes The Arboretum will host its 2018 Native Gardening Conference, “Native by Design:… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Worts and Weeds, pt. 2 August 2, 2018

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

• Gardening with Native Plants: Worts and Weeds, pt. 1 June 28, 2018

  In July, the native plant garden shifts into summer. Plants reach full height, more species come into bloom, insects call, and fledging songbirds make short… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: The Bumble Bee Flight Season Begins May 1, 2018

  Memory of this year’s late slow spring may dim this month as warmer temperatures and new growth move across the landscape. Garden areas with prescribed… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Woodland Plants for Shaded Gardens April 2, 2018

  April in Wisconsin brings anticipation for spring and daily changes in plant emergence and bloom. In the prairie gardens, favorites like pasqueflower (Anemone patens) and… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Short Native Grasses and Forbs for Small Gardens February 28, 2018

  Our 4-acre Wisconsin Native Plant Garden includes a range of gardens inspired by plant communities found in nature, from sand prairie to maple-basswood forest. These… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Planning Spring Plantings January 31, 2018

  Even with only 28 days, somehow February can stretch from the depths of winter to very early signs of spring. In this month of contrasts,… Read more

• Gardening with Native Plants: Shrubs for the New Year January 3, 2018

  A typical January begins with cold temperatures, biting wind, and still-short days—and only the distant promise of a new gardening season. In the garden, there… Read more