The Weedpatch Gazette

Welcome! My favorite part of this blog is the interactive aspect of it. Click on the blue titles to view the full article. This page is where you can pin, tweet, share, and best of all, COMMENT! I like comments! ~ Rommy Lopat

CHICAGO PLANTS, LANDSCAPES, PARKS & PRESERVES

~ and the people that create them ~

UP in the Garden, UP in the Prairie, UP in the Lake

It's the end of March and the weather has been down (a horrible cold blustery day last Sunday, March 29) and UP (today is 60 and sunny). I heard a radio report that ships won't be able to get to Burns Harbor, IN for another two weeks because the Lakes are still too frozen. But out in the the gardens, it's fun to notice hints of color popping UP thru the soil. And yesterday was, "Drop Everything Day! It's perfect for the prairie!" so off we went to the farm to be pyromaniacs. Fire...

Reading Up on Land Use Political History

This has nothing to do with anything "gardening", but if you want to read an interesting historical story, check this Lincoln photograph archive article out...Fascinating "garage sale" yarn. Hmm, I guess it is a "conservation"-related story... Which brings me to this "conservation" insight. I have decided to read every book available on the politics and history of land conservation. Right now I am simultaneously reading The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the...

This Scene Will Be Here Soon. Really.

To cheer you up on this gray Chicago day, a scene that will be here soon. Really.#

Migrations North

During Monday's blizzard (!), I glanced outside and a flash of orange caught my eye. There were two Robins, poor dears, hunkered down in the Honeylocust tree closest to the bird feeders. This reminded me of the day, several years ago, when I looked out at the Christmas-green-filled containers on our front terrace where dozens (and I do mean, dozens) of Robins were feasting on the shrivelled Winterberry [Ilex verticillata] berries. The next day, we had a terrible...

“We Say What You Think”

Having recently spent a month bouncing around the Lower Keys (we rented a place via VRBO. Don't get me started on horrible landlords; then again, the sunset from the porch was awesome), I was intrigued to read this essay about Naples, Everglades, sugar plantations, and the Keys. Lucia does "say what I think" (her motto). In fact, she does a better job thinking through what I think than I think I could ever think. Read Lucia's Symposium #31: Old Florida and The...

Here’s a great deal!

Weedpatch Subscribers: I hope we have 100% participation in this lovely offer from Kay MacNeil to receive Milkweed seeds. Just send her $2 and a SASE. (I just did. And I will find a great spot along a roadway or park to toss the seed. This is my 'suburban guerrilla' planting for pollinators campaign.) But I digress. Here' s Kay's offer: "Hi, Rommy. I am the chairman of the Garden Clubs of Illinois President's Project, Milkweed For Monarchs. This is an effort to educate...

Re-Blogging the Ultimate Pollinator & Native Plant Gardening Guide

Benjamin Vogt, a Nebraska landscape designer, has a blog that I recently added to Favorite Places: The Deep Middle. His post on March 17 was a Resource Guide to information about pollinators and native plants. The Ultimate Pollinator & Native Plant Gardening Guide I'm [Benjamin Vogt] celebrating 2 years of Milk the Weed with the nerdiest, awesome-ist list of links on butterfly and pollinator gardening I can come up with. It's certainly not a complete list, but I...

Harbinger of Spring

Pat Hill posted this article recently on her terrific blog, Pat Hill's Natural Midwest Garden. She and I seemed to be thinking similar thoughts about spring that day... Enjoy! rl Harbingers of Spring I wonder if the sap is stirring yet, If wintry birds are dreaming of a mate, If frozen snowdrops feel as yet the sun And crocus fires are kindling one by one: sing robin, sing; I am sore in doubt concerning Spring. Christina Rossetti Spring Begins March is the drabbest...

A New Way to Look at the World

Sometimes those forwarded emails are just too good to pass up and need to be shared. When I received a forwarded email about World Maps, I tracked down what might be the original source, at a blog called "The Story Reading Ape". The Ape shares some unusual ways to look at the world: You will find a link to this blog post on my Cool Links page. Curious about where in the world they drive on the left hand side? How about how many countries have McDonalds? See the original blog...

In Your Garden, Choose Plants that Help the Environment

Required reading (use this link to read the article) from Doug Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home , via the NY Times. If the plants (that includes trees and shrubs) in your garden don't help feed beneficial insects and animals, it's time to re-think your choices. Which means a visit to the garden center, always a highlight of my week! A Quote from Doug Tallamy: "To me the choice is clear. The costs of increasing the percentage and biomass of natives in our suburban...

MISSION

The Weedpatch Gazette is written for people who believe that beautiful landscapes should emphasize diversity and richness in plant material and be especially sensitive to landforms, ecology, economy, wildlife, and the wise use of land, water and soil. TWG aims to present information succinctly, with candor, detail, and humor. Submissions of content, well-reasoned criticism, and ideas for stories about landscape and the people who make and appreciate them are always welcome.