Creating a Butterfly Garden
by Nadine Champlin, Landscape Designer, Owner of Prairie Place Designs, Sabetha, KS Design Consultant for Grimm’s Gardens, Hiawatha, KS Why have a butterfly garden? A Native American legend tells us: “If you have a secret wish, find a butterfly and whisper your wish to it. When you release the butterfly it will carry your wish […]
Beautiful Beneficials: Ambush Bugs
I love to look closely at flowers and plants when I am walking through the landscape. Over the years I have discovered some incredible things and taken some great photos. Each season, I discover new natives and new insects. One of the most interesting, but little thought of insect, is the ambush bug. This little […]
Natives Spotlight: Willowleaf Sunflower
In 2016, I was introduced to a new native sunflower, new to me anyways. Willowleaf sunflower (Helianthus salicifolius), was growing in the prairie ditches on my was to an event in Ft. Scott, KS. Back at Grimm’s, we ordered some ourselves and planted a few plants around the office. Let me tell you, this plant […]
Natives Spotlight: Aromatic Aster
The Nebraska Statewide Arboretum puts out its Great Plants for the Great Plains each year. In 2019, they selected Aromatic Aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) as its perennial of the year. This shrubby type aster is a wonderful addition to the garden or landscape. The native aromatic aster can be found across the Great Plains, Midwest and […]
Yarrow for Your Garden
Yarrow is a wonderful addition to any garden. With all the new varieties available, it is not difficult to find one that suits you. Many of the older varieties are nice too. Yarrow is a perennial plant with great foliage texture and blooms that are favored by many pollinators. Because the blooms that we see […]
Top Annuals for Northeast Kansas Gardens
Over the last 8 years, I have been planting and evaluating annual flowers in public and private gardens in Northeast Kansas. While K-State has its Prairie Star flower list, I make my own conclusions based on weather, performance, durability, and pest tolerance. The following annual flowers are the best for Northeast Kansas gardens, in 8 […]
2019 Perennial Plant of the Year: Stachys ‘Hummelo’
Every year, the Perennial Plant Association promotes a perennial of the year. In the past it has been butterfly milkweed, allium ‘Millenium’, switchgrass ‘Northwind’ and others, since starting the list in 1990. This year, the PPA has selected stachys ‘Hummelo’ as the perennial plant of the year. That is good news for us here in […]
Small Trees for Small Yards
One of the most common questions we get in the spring is do you have small trees? They do not mean trees that will get big, but rather trees that stay small. These kinds of trees can be difficult to find and even locate in a landscape. Small trees are often just shrubs that have […]
Author’s Garden: Flowers of the Year
Welcome to my garden! Once again I bring from the comfort of your living room or office directly to my garden. This year, I am dividing my tour into 2 parts-flowers & gardens. First on the agenda is my flowers. Despite the weather in much of the area, my gardens received adequate rainfall, though very […]
