JB Design

If you love older homes, or new homes in a beautiful and thriving historic neighborhood, this tour never disappoints!

Highlights from the Lafayette Square Home and Garden Tour-2026 - Lafayette Square-St. Louis, Mo Lafayette Square is a historic St. Louis neighborhood known for its beautiful park and grand homes. Maintaining the park and the neighborhood is an expensive, never-ending task, but a top priority for the residents since the neighborhood’s rebirth in the early 1970.....

After a two-year hiatus, the Open Days Tour is back in St. Louis in 2026! Enjoy this glimpse into a few of the top gardens of St. Louis!

https://garden-lou.com/highlights-from-the-garden-conservancy-open-days-tour/

Highlights from the Garden Conservancy Open Days Tour - St. Louis, MO The mission of the Garden Conservancy is to preserve, share, and celebrate America’s gardens and diverse gardening traditions for the education and inspiration of the public. The nationwide non-profit organization has been hosting its Open Days program as a major fundraiser since 199...

Oh, the stories this guy could tell...

May Tree of the Month-American Chestnut - The American chestnut, Castanea dentata, is a tree with incredible stories to tell. Tales of diverse forests full of their ancestors soaring 75-100’ high. Tales full of Native Americans who coexisted with those giants, tending the landscapes where they grew in return for the nutritious nuts. Long ...

WARNING=WILL EAT YOUR GARAGE

May Vine of the Month-Climbing Hydrangea - I haven’t seen my garage in over three years. The door still works, yes, but when open, my “garage” resembles a somewhat rectangular green monster that eats cars and grows larger and hungrier by the day. By next year, it might look like we have one of those cool garages with a game room or ser...

The Belle of the Ball at last week's Native Plant tour!

May Perennial of the Month-Foxglove Beardtongue - “Elegant” is seldom a word you hear used to describe a native prairie plant. When it comes to Penstemon digitalis, commonly called foxglove beardtongue, I don’t think there is a more elegant perennial coming from such humble origins. Penstemon can look just as beautiful and quite at home, than...

First tour of the season!!!

Highlights from the St. Louis Native Plant Tour - Sunday, May 17th, 2026 The Wild Ones St. Louis chapter and Bring Conservation Home partnered to present the annual St. Louis Native Plant Garden Tour once again last Sunday. The self-guided tour featured eight private gardens in and around Olivette and Ladue including the Price Road Prairie Project....

When your favorite client turns 100!!! We should all be so lucky...

With a Fantasy Forest, disc golf, and over 2,500 plants, Leila Arboretum in Battle Creek, Michigan blurs the line between fun public park, and serious arboretum!

Road Trip Garden-Leila Arboretum - Battle Creek, Michigan Leila Arboretum began like many arboretums and public gardens. Leila Post Montgomery (widow of cereal magnate C.W. Post) envisioned a cultural center amid the beautiful rolling hills just outside Battle Creek, Michigan. Formerly the Battle Creek County Club, Leila donated the....

Fancy a game of Conkers, Mate?

April Tree of the Month-Horse chestnut - Wanna play a game of conkers? IF you grew up in the UK, you probably have fond memories of collecting conkers to battle your mates with. The shiny mahogany-colored nuts collected in fall from the horse chestnut, Aesculus hippocastanum, were drilled in the middle and then threaded with a string.  Th...

After the April Fool's prank Shrub of the Month, it's time to get serious...as in DEADLY serious...

April Perennial of the Month-Lily of the Valley - Lily of the valley, Convallaria majalis, with its charming white flowers and intoxicating fragrance, has held symbolic meaning for centuries in Europe and Asia, where the plant is native. It’s also beloved on this side of the pond, where it has naturalized throughout much of the Eastern and northe...