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…
Tag: living collections
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…
Scroll Through Spring: Tulips
Scroll through spring with these photographs of the 2020 tulips at the Garden.
Cherry Blossoms at the Garden
The best cherry blossom display in the midwest is in St. Louis, right here at the Missouri Botanical Garden.
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…
Moon Trees and Space Gums
From moon trees to shuttle gums, trees are tied to the history of space exploration.
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…
From Collection to Conservation: The Botanical Data Driving the Garden’s Mission
After looking at it closely, horticulturists Jared Chauncey and Dave Gunn have determined that the plant in front of them is, in fact, Quercus arkansana. They collect several different plant parts—branches, leaves, and acorns. A few of them will be pressed, dried, and mounted to create two herbarium vouchers—one for the National Arboretum and one…
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…