1. Refugee-focused community garden celebrates its first year

    The garrden, a collaboration between Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County and Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum, has turned a previously unused, grass-covered space into a fertile, productive plot.

  2. A peony by any other name…

    A century after a medical school alumnus gifted U-M with a collection of herbaceous peonies, the garden finally bears his name (not to mention 350 varieties of the flower). Donor W.E. Upjohn considered these blooms his ‘salvation.’ This June, they’re making music.

  3. 17-year cicadas and tree damage: What to expect

    The cicadas can damage small trees and shrubs so the best defense is to cover vulnerable or smaller trees with mesh or netting; insecticides should not be used, experts say.

  4. 2020 peony bloom celebration canceled

    U-M’s historic peony garden, which has bloomed every spring for nearly 100 years, is closed to visitors this year. The risk from COVID-19 makes gathering at the garden impossible, but social media delivers virtual delights.

  5. Stalking immortality

    As late bloomers go, the American agave at U-M’s Matthaei Botanical Gardens was peerless. At age 80, the plant gained rockstar status, only to perish soon after. Or did it?

  6. Medicinal magic

    “Nature’s pharmacy” at Matthaei Botanical Gardens showcases healing power of plants in elaborate garden organized by systems of the body.