Get Growing Blog
Connecting people with the wonder, beauty, and value of trees and plants.
Most Recent
May 26, 2022
Electronic Herbaria Data Applications, a Prelude to Study Eastern Redcedar Encroachment in the US Great Plains and Midwest
By Hector Ortiz , Postdoctoral Researcher
Talking about herbarium data is like entering a time machine that transports me back to a small room where I spent hours searching through plant specimens that were collected 100... more
May 20, 2022
A Helping Hand from the Community
By Nicholas Chilson, Gardener
With an upcoming project and a desperate need for cardboard we reached out to local businesses, and they delivered.Mulch can be a great tool for controlling weeds in the garden,... more
May 20, 2022
The Spring Ephemerals in Stebbins Gulch
By Sarah R. Carrino-Kyker, Postdoctoral Research Associate
For Mother’s Day this year, my 9-year-old daughter filled out a survey about me. One of the questions was “Why is your mom special?” She answered, “Because she knows almost... more
May 17, 2022
Blue false indigo & Clouded Sulphur
Blue false indigo (Baptisia australis) is a flowering plant in the pea family (Fabaceae). This plant grows upright and makes an excellent border plant for your pollinator garden. It’s deep blue... more
May 17, 2022
Prairie ironweed & American Lady
Prairie ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata) is a staple meadow plant, growing tall and blooming in late summer and fall. It is self-seeding as seeds fall to the ground at the end of... more
May 17, 2022
Dog violet & Orange Fritillary
Dog violet (Viola labradorica) is a low-growing perennial that blooms with vibrant purple flowers in the spring. If it weren’t for these showy flowers, many would likely walk right by this... more
May 17, 2022
Yellow false indigo & Wild Duskywing
Yellow false indigo (Baptisia sphaerocarpa) is a beautiful addition to any flower garden. During the summer, yellow, upright flowers bloom and attract a variety of insects – the “good kind” of... more
May 17, 2022
Sweetbay Magnolia & Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Sweetbay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana) is an elegant, small magnolia. It’s creamy white flowers bloom in late spring here in Northern Ohio and put on a show that delights your senses of... more
May 17, 2022
Shumard oak & Banded Hairstreak
Shumard oak (Quercus shumardii) is a large tree that grows well in both urban and natural settings. Like most oaks, Shumard oak has deeply lobed, characteristic “oak” leaves and produces acorns... more
May 17, 2022
New England aster & Pearl Crescent
New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) is a large, summer-blooming perennial. It’s characteristic aster flowerheads sport vibrant purple petals, with bright yellow flower centers. You’ll often see bees and butterflies of all... more
May 11, 2022
Euphorbias in flower
By Bernadette Gallagher, B.S. Wildlife Biology, ISA Certified Arborist, Gardner
Flowers are certainly not the first thing you may think of when you walk into our Madagascar Spiny Desert Biome. The first and most striking things you see are all... more
May 6, 2022
How to Clone a Tree
By Rachel Kappler, PhD, Great Lakes Basin Forest Health Collaborative (GLB FHC) Coordinator
Holden researchers use a technique called grafting to bring trees from the forest back to the lab for study. By Rachel Kappler & Anna Funk How do you study a... more
April 25, 2022
It’s the Tree’s Knees
By Lorinda Laughlin, Gardener
If you’ve recently visited the Arboretum, you may have noticed what appears, at first glance, to be a flash-mob of squirrels convening around Blueberry Pond. Thanks to some winter rejuvenation... more
April 21, 2022
New Research Collaboration Aims to Save Eastern Hemlocks
By Rachel Kappler, PhD, Great Lakes Basin Forest Health Collaborative (GLB FHC) Coordinator
By Rachel Kappler, Great Lakes Basin Forest Health Collaborative (GLB FHC) Coordinator Holden research launched a new initiative this year to help conserve eastern hemlocks. The Great Lakes Basin Forest... more
April 19, 2022
Holden Forests & Gardens Makes Commitment to Mitigate Detrimental Effects of Climate Change
Leading up to Earth Day 2022, Holden Forests & Gardens (HF&G) has adopted a climate change statement recognizing that climate change is real and providing facts and information about climate... more
April 15, 2022
When an Ecologist is a Lab Rat
By Sarah Kyker, PhD, Postdoctoral Research Associate
by: Sarah Kyker What does the soil ecology lab at Holden have in common with a crime lab? More than you might think! In the soil ecology lab, we rely... more
April 7, 2022
Behind-the-Scenes Spring Phenology Monitoring
By Emma Dawson-Glass, Research Specialist Spring is underway here in Northeast Ohio, meaning it’s time for the Stuble lab and our team of wonderful volunteers to get out in Bole... more
April 6, 2022
Get to know Tom Arbour: Curator of Living Collections
By Tom Arbour, Curator of Living Collections
I’m relatively new to the Holden Forests and Gardens. I started last September after a 20+ year career working for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. In the short time... more
April 6, 2022
Winter Work at the Holden Arboretum
By Lori Gogolin, Horticulturist
Whenever people ask me about my job as a horticulturist, the number one question is, “So what do you do in the winter?” Well, we do a lot of things. ... more
April 5, 2022
Holden Researchers Present at Society for Ecological Restoration Midwest-Great Lakes Chapter Meeting
This past weekend, Alexa Wagner, Emma Dawson-Glass, and Sam Harbol each presented at the annual chapter meeting for the Society for Ecological Restoration Midwest-Great Lakes Chapter. The presentations detailed current... more
March 22, 2022
Save Your Back and Save the Bugs! A No-mulch Approach at the Holden Arboretum
By Jessica Burns, Gardener
Though we’ve made it past the vernal equinox, the official start of Spring in the northern hemisphere, I’ve been around northeast Ohio long enough to know that Winter probably hasn’t... more
March 22, 2022
Houseplant Craze: Monsteras
By Sadie Smith, Glasshouse Horticulturist
If you’re familiar with the current houseplant craze, you’ve probably heard of variegated monsteras. These large leaved, white streaked beauties are in demand and carry hefty price tag. When learning... more
March 17, 2022
A short tale about hemlock trees, bacteria and a nasty insect
By David J. Burke, PhD, Vice President for Science and Conservation
By David Burke, PhD Many of us love our native hemlock trees (Tsuga canadensis). They are beautiful, but more than that, they serve an important ecological role in many of... more
March 14, 2022
Small Woodland Management Manual
This manual provides a shorthand guide to effectively manage your woodlands. more
March 9, 2022
Collections Crew & Excel TECC
By Rick Anielski, Arborist
Last week the Collections crew hosted the students from Excel TECC for a few hours of volunteer work. With their help we were able to clear both invasive plants and... more
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