Invasive species like teasel could use warmer hardiness zones to even greater advantage. (Beauty of Nature / Pixabay)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently released a new plant hardiness zone map, and significant swaths of the country — Chicago included — are now in warmer zones.

(Ana Krach / Pixabay)

The National Weather Service isn’t even trying to sugarcoat the forecast for Halloween. It’s all downhill from here.

Deronis Cooper works in his garden in Garfield Park. (WTTW News)

Deronis Cooper said getting his hands in the dirt helps him cope with the challenges of being a police officer. What started with four planters has grown into more than 50 plant species in his backyard.

Winner of the Front Garden award, Nestor Rodriguez, Avondale. (Chicago Bungalow Association)
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From planter boxes to koi ponds, these Chicago gardeners know how to create an oasis in the city. 

A past winner in the front garden category. (Chicago Bungalow Association)

Time to head to the polls once again, Chicagoans. Online voting is now open through Tuesday in the annual Bungalow Garden Contest.

The Chicago Excellence in Gardening Awards honor the city's green thumbs, wherever they garden, whether backyards, parkways, patio containers or urban farms. (Chicago Excellence in Gardening Awards)

Submissions are being accepted through July 1 for the 2022 awards, which will be judged in-person again after going virtual in 2020 and 2021. The contest is open to all Chicago residents; entry is free.

(Patty Wetli / WTTW News)

The North Side food pantry is teaming up with nonprofit Fresh Food Connect to launch a mobile app that will allow home and community gardeners to donate some of their fresh grown produce.

(HBH-MEDIA-photography / Pixabay)

All those green tomatoes still on the vine are in for a shock as November kicks off with a string of overnight temperatures dipping below freezing, according to the National Weather Service.

A young flower farmer creates a bouquet at Southside Blooms. (WTTW News)

A fresh floral arrangement is a quick way to brighten up a room, but those buds and blossoms likely came from farms hundreds or even thousands of miles away. A local organization is on a mission to change that.

Native plants are highly beneficial for the environment, but they often get mistaken for weeds. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)
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The creation of the Native and Pollinator Garden Registry means Chicago gardeners now have protection from overzealous ticket writers. And plants like milkweed can take their rightful place alongside other “flowers” instead of being mistaken for weeds.

West Lawn residents Mitzi and Gilberto Cantu won the window/planter box category in the Chicago Bungalow Association’s fifth annual garden contest. (Chicago Bungalow Association)

The Chicago Bungalow Association has announced the winners of its fifth annual garden contest, with winners spread across the city’s extensive bungalow belt.

Mushrooms popped up in a Chicago parkway after recent rains. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)

What’s up with the mushrooms that appear and then quickly disappear after wet weather? Where do they come from, and where do they go?

The 2020 winner in the front garden category. (Courtesy of Chicago Bungalow Association)

This year’s contest is sure to be more competitive than ever, with expanded eligibility and the doubling of winners’ cash prizes.

Nine species of echinacea are native to the U.S. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)

There are natives and then there are plants known as “nativars,” and wildlife can tell the difference.

Chrystal Whitfield gives us The Last Word. (WTTW News)

The creator of an Englewood community garden talks about the healing power of growing food as part of our ongoing series.

White clover lawns are a buffet for pollinators, especially bees. (zoosnow / Pixabay)

Clover was once commonly included in lawn seed mixes, but then gained a reputation as a weed. It’s time, horticulturalists say, to revisit clover’s environmental benefits.