Virtual Orchid Show

Most years, the Missouri Botanical Garden Orchid Show offers visitors the chance to see the Garden’s expansive orchid collection while it is at its most dazzling—right now is the time of year that many orchids bloom. This year, the Orchid Show is on hold while construction of the new Jack C. Taylor Visitor Center is…

5 Ways the Garden is Protecting Biodiversity at Home and Around the World

Protecting and conserving plants and their ecosystems has always been the heart of the Missouri Botanical Garden’s work, and with plant diversity disappearing at an alarming rate, that work has never been more important.  Environmental protection takes many forms; here are just a few of the ways the Garden works to preserve biodiversity here at…

Stop and Smell the Anthuriums

Instead of stopping to smell the roses, maybe it’s time to appreciate the aroma of anthuriums. Anthurium is a genus of plants in the aroid family, Araceae. You’ve probably seen one before, and may even have one in your house. Commercially available Anthurium are often sold as houseplants—noted for their colorful spathe, long-lasting bloom, and…

Plant Profile: Holly

It’s a plant perhaps best known for decking the halls, but holly goes far beyond holiday decorations.

Our Magnificent Trees

Fall is the best time of year to view one of the Garden’s oldest, yet often overlooked collections. In a display that ranges from bright golden yellow to muted copper to deep scarlet, our trees and their fantastic fall foliage take center stage every October. In celebration of our colorful canopy, the Garden is kicking…

Plant Profile: Avocado

What is an avocado? Persea americana is an evergreen tree, native to Mexico, Central America and South America. It belongs to Lauraceae, the plant family that also includes cinnamon trees. Avocado trees produce green-skinned, round or pear-shaped fruit containing a single large pit (seed). Botanically speaking, avocado is actually a berry. Its yellow flesh is…

Spotlight on Science: Tom Croat

A monthly look at the people behind plant science at the Missouri Botanical Garden Dr. Tom Croat P.A. Schulze Curator of Botany Tom Croat has been called the Indiana Jones of botany, and when you hear him describe his collecting journeys to the Tropics, it fits. Croat, 80, has spent about a third of his…

Butterfly House Collections Pair Plants with Pollinators

The Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House is known as a pollinators’ paradise, but it is also an extension of the Missouri Botanical Garden’s focus on innovative horticulture and beautiful displays. Two types of butterfly gardens were created over the course of the Butterfly House’s existence, the Conservatory and the Native Butterfly Garden, with the aim…