As threatened, I mean promised in the last post, here's more on the Spring Fling visit to the Chicago Botanic Garden. The statue of Linnaeus, which was the subject of the first photo of the last post, watches over the Heritage Garden, where plants are grown grouped in their genera.
I was particularly impressed with the Ranunculus in the troughs.
After lunch, my little group wandered over to the English Walled Garden, which was designed by John Brookes, who literally wrote "The Book of Garden Design." Annaliese of Cobrahead Blog volunteered to provide a human scale of comparison for this massive Hosta.
I just love these big, purple Alliums.
Bloody Lupines! They always remind me of Monty Python's "Dennis Moore" sketch.
More Ranunculus with Weigela. The overcast skies showed off the soft pink of the Weigela's blooms in the sunken garden.
Leaving the English Walled Garden, we encountered the sight which was probably the most photographed of the day, the hillside full of 'Champagne Bubbles' Poppies (Papaver nudicaule).
I just had to be different and take my photo of the Poppies growing on the other side of the path.
Just beyond the Poppies were more Alliums.
On the other side of the hill is one of my favorite areas of the garden, the Waterfall Garden. The sound of the rushing water dominates, while the spray of the water refreshes on hot days. (Friday was not one of them.)
I haven't been to the Botanic Garden in a couple of years because of the interminable road construction on Lake Cook Road. There's always some on it somewhere, and it seems as if there's always some going on in Northbrook. There have been some changes to the Botanic Garden in my absence, including the addition of this fellow.
What is he doing with his hand? And why is he not properly dressed for gardening? He should be wearing a hat at least!I had to make a pilgrimage to the Native Plant Garden before heading home, to see all my favorite plants, including the Shooting Stars (Dodecatheon media) pictured below.
I must admit, I've never been fond of this statue, which used to be at the entrance to the garden. It's not the style, it's the subject matter; why glorify overgrown, aquatic pigeons?The weather turned windy, blowing storm clouds and rain to the garden.
Time to go, even though there was so much more I would have liked to have visited: the Bulb Garden, the Junior Railroad, the Japanese Garden, the Plant Evaluation Garden, Spider Island, the Sensory Garden, and Ryerson Woods. I'll have to go back to see them over the summer.Part I of Spring Fling is here, Part II here, Part IV here, and Part V is here.