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Gardening

Scarification: The simple seed-starting trick that helps tough-coated seeds sprout faster

By JESSICA DAMIANO
Feb 24, 2026 6:14 pm - The hard coating on some seeds makes it difficult for them to sprout. Scarification can help to get them started.
Early March is a good time for pruning fruit trees

By Tim Johnson, Chicago Botanic Garden
Feb 24, 2026 4:42 pm - Prune fruit trees in our area between late February and early March before the buds begin to swell. The branching habits are easy to see, and the weather is generally more conducive to outdoor work.
Home & garden calendar, Feb. 23 to March 7

Feb 24, 2026 2:38 pm - Upcoming gardening club meetings and events in the Chicago suburbs, covering topics like the cultural history of birds, Ikebana, designing with color, and more.
Home & garden calendar, Feb. 18-28

Feb 17, 2026 6:19 pm - Upcoming gardening club meetings and events in the Chicago suburbs, covering topics like resilient landscapes, native pollinators, warblers, and more.
A kaleidoscope of oddball tomatoes to try as seed-starting season nears

By JESSICA DAMIANO
Feb 17, 2026 4:55 pm - Seed-starting time is right around the corner, and that means it’s time to think about tomatoes. There’s a whole kaleidoscope of tomatoes you can grow in your garden.
Tips on composting to improve garden soil and starting seeds for annuals

By Tim Johnson, Chicago Botanic Garden
Feb 17, 2026 2:21 pm - Chicago Botanic Garden director Tim Johnson shares tips on composting to improve garden soil and starting seeds for slow-growing annuals.
How to choose and care for cut flowers

By Tim Johnson, Chicago Botanic Garden
Feb 10, 2026 4:07 pm - Valentine’s Day is coming, and cut flowers make a great gift for your special person.
‘Everyone’s tired of winter’: Chicago Botanic Garden’s annual orchid show offers a colorful escape

By ERIN HOOLEY
Feb 10, 2026 3:52 pm - Outside it’s cold, but it’s warm — and colorful — inside at the Chicago Botanic Garden’s 12th annual orchid show. This year’s theme is “Feelin’ Groovy.”
Home & garden calendar, Feb. 15-22

Feb 10, 2026 3:03 pm - Upcoming gardening club meetings and events in the Chicago suburbs, covering topics like houseplants, nature journaling, and more.
The first bloom of the year is here, even if it’s buried in snow

By Ashley Stimpson
Feb 10, 2026 1:23 pm - The first wildflower of the year is already blooming — even if it is still covered in snow. The spiky shoots of the eastern skunk cabbage poke through the mud in mid-January, months before other plants begin to wake up.

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