The Heart of Winter : Morton Arboretum Chamber Concert Series 2009-2010

Each year, The Morton Arboretum presents a fascinating series of chamber concerts. Imagine the opportunity to view the beautiful winter landscapes at the Arboretum while listening to fine music! Enjoy this remarkable season and delve into a diverse melange of performers, instruments and composers. Join us for our 2009-2010 season and revel in the performances of:

Sunday, November 1, 2009 – 2:15 p.m.
Members of the Chicago Philharmonic

Sunday, December 6, 2009 – 2:15 p.m.
Patrick Ball - The Christmas Rose

Sunday, January 10, 2010 – 2:15 p.m.

Cavatina Duo

Sunday, February 7, 2010 – 2:15 p.m.

Millar Brass Quintet

Sunday, March 7, 2010 – 2:15 p.m.
Quintuplex Woodwind Quintet

Originally held in the Sterling Morton Library, all concerts are now presented in the Auditorium of the Thornhill Education Center. After each performance, a reception in the adjoining Founder's Room offers the opportunity to enjoy conversations with the artists and fellow audience members in the splendor of the original library of the Arboretum's founder, Joy Morton.

Tickets:
Individual ticket:

$23.00 for Arboretum members and $28.00 for non-members
5-concert series ticket:

$105.00 for Arboretum members and $130.00 for non-members
Tickets are available at:
On-line at: http://www.mortonarb.org/calendar/article/15504/chamber-concert-series.html

In-person at The Arboretum’s Visitor Center

By phone at 630-725-2066 (Monday through Friday from 9-5)

Via snail mail

Celebrate the heart of winter at the Arboretum and attend an upcoming concert!

Darwin's Flowers Online...

Our current exhibit, Darwin's Flowers: Unlocking Natural Selection, can now be viewed online. Be sure to save it in your favorites as in the coming months, we will be posting additional content and resources to enhance and expand our exhibit in the library.

Darwin Exhibit in the Daily Herald

Cathy Maloney has written an interesting article in Neighbor section of the Monday, September 21, Daily Herald. You can read the story here:

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=322113

Darwin's Flowers: Unlocking Natural Selection continues in the library through January 30, 2010.

On the Origins of Bird Species

This Thursday, September 24th, we'll be having the 4th lecture in our year-long series in evolutionary biology, "Trees of Life." Dr. Trevor Price from the University of Chicago will be joining us to present a talk called "On the Origins of Bird Species," focusing on his work on speciation of birds in the Himalayas.
How do new species of birds originate? Trevor will discuss Darwin's theory of the origin of species through natural selection, and explain how our understanding of speciation has progressed since Darwin's books were published. He will also share highlights from his own research on the gradient of bird species diversity in the Himalayas and insights from his recent book, Speciation in Birds. The talk will be from 7 - 8:30 p.m. in Cudahy Auditorium at The Morton Arboretum.

Registration details for this event can be found at: http://www.mortonarb.org/education.html

Hope to see you at the lecture!

Articles of note in the Sterling Morton Library : September’s offerings

These are some recent articles that can be found within the journal collection of the Sterling Morton Library. Please visit the Library to discover the incredible botanical and horticultural resources that await you! If you are unable to visit the Library and interested in reviewing one of these articles, I would be delighted to help you at rhassert@mortonarb.org.

Elliott, Brent. Changes in the flowering times of garden plants over three centuries. Garden, n.s. v. 8, pt. 3, 154-160.

Analysis of the pocket guides of the 17th- and 18th-century gardeners.

Herkert, James R. and Francis M. Harty. In a place called Illinois : landscape restoration in Illinois. The Illinois Steward, v. 18, no. 2.
Discover these remarkable places and restoration projects:

• Cache River Wetlands
• Dixon Waterfowl Refuge: Hennepin and Hopper Lakes
• Emiquon Complex
• Illinois Ozarks
• Indian Boundary Prairies
• Kankakee Sands Macrosite
• Lost Mound/Hanover Bluff
• Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie
• Nachusa Grasslands
• Nygren Wetland Preserve
• Prairie Ridge State Natural Area

Martin, Frank Edgerton. Framing the tallgrass prairie. Landscape Architecture, v. 99, no. 9, p. 44-53.
A Missouri farmstead restores native flora.

Meier, C.L., Keyserling K. & Bowman, W.D. Fine root inputs to soil reduce growth of a neighbouring plant via distinct mechanisms dependent on root carbon chemistry. Journal of Ecology, v. 97, no. 5, p. 941-949.

Nelson, Gil. Deciduous native hollies. The American Gardener, v. 88, no. 5, p. 30-34.

The Artist as Explorer

Have you ever wondered how some of those fabulous botanical illustrations you see at antique shows and galleries came about? Well they may be considered fine art now, but their real purpose was to document the plants and other natural wonders discovered on scientific expeditions.
Register now to learn more about the origins of this fabulous art form.

The Artist as Explorer
Saturday, September 19, 2009, 1-4
Sterling Morton Library
Arlene Widrevitz, Freelance Artist & Rare Print Collection Staff, The Morton Arboretum
$36 (members $30)

Natural history artists have made a significant contribution to the exploration, discovery, and documentation of plants through the centuries. Learn how artists traveled the globe with scientific expeditions. The work of Ferdinand Bauer, Sydney Parkinson, Maria Sybilla Merian, and Maryann North will be discussed. Tea and goodies will be served.

Register for this class online or by phone (630) 719-2468.

Dazzling dragonflies and blue gentians!

Walking in the Schulenberg Prairie at The Morton Arboretum earlier this week, I was mesmerized by squadrons of dragonflies, a carpet of blue gentians, the scent of Sporobolus heterolepis (a.k.a. prairie dropseed) and lots of tall waving grasses. Rich with the whir of insect wings, flitting finches and the sound of the wind rushing through Indian grass, big bluestem and switchgrass, this area continues to amaze through all four seasons. The prairie is indeed looking very lush in these waning days of summer – a veritable feast for the spirit and soul!

Our collections within the Sterling Morton Library include resources on prairies and prairie plants. The collection ranges from John Weaver’s classic, North American Prairie to Claudia McGehee’s charming children’s book A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet to The Elemental Prairie featuring watercolors by George Olson. In addition to resources about these plants and this ecosystem, we also have resources about creatures the live in the prairie like Mitchell’s A Dazzle of Dragonflies and Johnsgard’s Prairie Birds : fragile splendor in the Great Plains. Wonder how Native Americans might have used prairie plants? Be sure to review Moerman’s Native American Ethnobotany and Kindscher’s Medicinal Wild Plants of the Prairie : an ethnobotanical guide. Interested in the folklore related to these native plants? Try skimming Gilmore’s Prairie Smoke : a collection of lore of the prairies.

Like the Schulenberg Prairie, the Sterling Morton Library is a rich resource to be savored and explored. The Library is open Tuesday-Friday from 9-5 and Saturday from 10-4. All are welcome and encouraged to use our collections! Arboretum members and active volunteers have borrowing privileges. Located in the Administration and Research Center on the Arboretum's east side, we're just a short walk from the Visitor Center.