Every year since 1998, the Missouri Botanical Garden has partnered with other regional horticultural institutions to select Plants of Merit. Plants of Merit are chosen for outstanding quality and dependable performance in Missouri, southern and central Illinois, and the Kansas City metro area. To qualify as a Plant of Merit, the plants must be easy…
Flora, Fauna, and Fortune: Looking for Luck in Nature
For centuries, people have looked to nature for symbols of good fortune. Now the Blues are on the brink of making history, and fans across St. Louis are doing whatever they can to bring a little luck our way. It’s in honor of these noble efforts that we offer this brief history of a few…
Shaw Nature Reserve and Route 66
Almost immediately after it opened to traffic, Garden leaders looked to put their own stamp on Route 66.
World’s Smallest Water Lily Debuts in Garden Pools
Nymphaea thermarum isn’t just tiny, it’s also incredibly rare.
St. Louis Plants
First opening its gates in 1859, the Missouri Botanical Garden has a rich history of connecting St. Louis with plants. But did you know St. Louis’ ties to plants also include multiple cultivars bearing its name? The following are stories of three cultivars linked to the Gateway to the West. Nymphaea ‘St. Louis’ Nymphaea ‘St….
Cajun Cooking, Chubby Cheeks, and Dumbledore: The Iris Name Game
Everybody knows to stop and smell the roses, but do you stop to read the signs? Peak Iris bloom is expected to hit around the second week of May, and if you read the name plates, you’ll notice something unusual in the Goodman Iris Garden: the flower names. Among the Irises, you’ll see names like…
Spotlight on Science: Olga Martha Montiel
Olga Martha MontielVice President, Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development Olga Martha Montiel is not a scientist by training. In fact, Montiel, who co-authored the Flora de Nicaragua and heads the Missouri Botanical Garden’s Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development(CCSD), actually holds a master’s degree in photography. She intended to pursue a career in documentary…
Have Ewe Herd? The Sheep Are on the Move
For the first time in over a decade, the Garden’s scientists have noted a change in the behavior of that famous flock of sheep. They have now migrated to a fresh new grazing patch 20 feet from their original location. Anyone who knows the Garden knows the sheep sculptures just as well. A familiar staple…
Turning Special Interests into a Career: Horticulture and Autism
Horticulture, botany, conservation, and education are all fields people on the autism spectrum often have interest in, and in which they can excel.
From the Library: Rebuilding the Bateman Book (Part 7)
Conservation work on the Peter H. Raven Library’s copy of The Orchidaceae of Mexico and Guatemala is underwayhas! Follow along as we document this painstaking restoration of one of the largest and grandest volumes in the Garden’s rare book collection. As of March 2019, Bateman’s Orchidaceae of Mexico and Guatemala had been surface cleaned, mended, filled…
Collection Connection: John Muir
Through the plants Muir collected, we can catch a glimpse of the Yosemite he first experienced more than a century ago.
Grow a Reusable Bag Habit This Earth Day
Reusable bags are beautiful, functional, and a really impactful way to help halt plastic pollution. So why don’t we all use ‘em? The EarthWays Center staff poses this question whenever we educate companies, classes, or visitors about recycling. The #1 answer we hear is: I can’t remember to take my bags when I go to…
