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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Beautiful blues still blooming 2 days before Halloween in our wine barrel planter. #NativePlants Conoclinium coelestinum (Blue Mistflower) & non-native annual Heliotropium arborescens 'Deep Marine'.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Fluffy pale blue stringy cotton candy blooms and more buds coming.

Fluffy pale blue stringy cotton candy blooms.

Deep blue-purple tiny flowers in a beautiful cluster topping slightly purple-tinged thickly ridged foliage.

Deep blue-purple near black tiny flowers in a beautiful cluster topping thickly ridged foliage.

October 29, 2025 at 2:24 PM Everybody can reply

6 reposts 39 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

#NativePlants Iliamna remota (Kanakee Mallow) still trying to throw a few late blooms in my #UrbsInHorto #Chicago rain garden.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport 🌱

A soft pink unfurling bloom surrounded by a fluffy green new bud and fading grey-brown spent bloom.

October 28, 2025 at 6:00 PM Everybody can reply

2 reposts 25 likes

2 2 25

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Our #UrbsInHorto #Chicago Parkway is still looking gorgeous as November nearly creeps in, with tons of #NativePlants & carefully chosen other friends. We still have daily #birds plus #bees, #moths & other #inverts visiting & making winter plans under the leaves. #gardening #bloomscrolling #NoSpray 🌱

A riot of leaf colors and textures, plus purple and white asters, white snakeroot, yellow Solidagos, and papery hydrangea blooms.

October 27, 2025 at 3:59 PM Everybody can reply

20 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

While Mr. CMG was helping me take down the last of the peppers and tomatoes, #WeAreAllZoey was on #birds patrol, particularly the ones twittering in this obelisk full of tasty #NativePlants Lonicera sempervirens berries.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #GardenDogs #DogsOfBluesky #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A small grey and brown Cattle Dog sits glaring off to the right utterly fixated by birds moving in a tall obelisk covered in vines and berries while the sun shines through spent Holy Basil flowers and drying strawflowers in the foreground.

October 26, 2025 at 9:34 PM Everybody can reply

3 reposts 48 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Walking #WeAreAllZoey in alley today—never noticed ‘Green Alley’ stamp before (not very green because seems to be an early pilot model that did not include permeable concrete). Also checking progress as we’ve been watching this vine eat someone’s garage all summer. #gardening #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A stamp in the pavement reads “City of Chicago Green Alley—Richard M. Daley Mayor”

A white garage door slowly being overtaken by a vine that has climbed through the gutters, along the space above the door, across the door and wall on the right, and is dangling numerous vines down the door like braids.

October 25, 2025 at 7:06 PM Everybody can reply

1 reposts 9 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

#NativePlants are so hardcore. Lonicera sempervirens is still blooming as November is nearly knocking on our door. Been pushing out color since early May. Absolute champ!

#gardening #FlowersOnFriday #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A healthy green vibe dotted with clusters of long tubular red blooms.

October 24, 2025 at 8:32 PM Everybody can reply

2 reposts 52 likes 1 saves

2 52

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Poor little guy seems to have been taken by the cold night. Transition season is here but the eggs and nests of the new #ecosystem generation are already being tucked in as the leaves fall and the plants stand tall overwinter.

#gardening #inverts #NoSpray #LeaveTheLeaves #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A bright green Katydid frozen in time on the cold concrete. I moved him to a cozy mulched pot to contribute to the future garden.

October 24, 2025 at 2:00 PM Everybody can reply

1 reposts 23 likes 1 saves

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Other things (besides hot peppers) that I harvested yesterday as I worked through end-of-season veggie garden breakdown: four kinds of eggplants, a smattering of tomatoes, and some gorgeous shallots I forgot I grew. 👏

#gardening #KitchenGarden #GrowFood #NoSpray #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Piles of plump green/white and white-streak purple eggplants, long skinny apple green and deep purple-black eggplants, impressively sized rosy shallots, and a few clusters of random tomatoes. A basket of peppers that went on the pile after dumping the first overflowing basket and a few small onions sits in the foreground.

October 23, 2025 at 4:44 PM Everybody can reply

3 reposts 29 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Working outside meant communing with busy borbs who love our natural late season buffet of seed heads & fresh water in baths. I wish less common migratory ones stopped for photos/ID but they’re definitely less used to me moving around so much.

#gardening #birds #ecosystem #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Small round soft brown sparrow perches on the top of a dark drown metallic obelisk debating a bath nearby or a snack.

October 23, 2025 at 5:49 AM Everybody can reply

26 likes

26

brittyknows.bsky.social

@brittyknows.bsky.social

American kestrel — right here on the Brassy End of the Gold Coast! I watched the fellow perch for several minutes atop a nearby pole in my work-from-home view. I’d heard one a few weeks ago a couple blocks north, never expected to see one, though… Wowsers! #UrbsInHorto

October 22, 2025 at 8:45 PM Everybody can reply

4 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Another beautiful capture by Mr. CMG. Sulphurs have such good camouflage this time of year!

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #NativePlants #butterflies #inverts #pollinators #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A yellow-green butterflies pauses to feed on a bright purple aster surrounded by yellowing leaves and browning grasses. Taken by Mr. CMG and edited by me.

October 13, 2025 at 3:15 PM Everybody can reply

4 reposts 50 likes

1 4 50

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Superstars of #February2Frost still blooming today on our dry urban Parkway: Eupatorium hyssopifolium, Liatris aspera, Symphyotrichum oblongifolium, & Ageratina altissima.

#gardening #NativePlants #FlowerReport #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Fine white blooms of Eupatorium hyssopifolium.

Fluffy purple flowers of Liatris aspera.

Clusters of purple blooms on arching stems of Symphyotrichum oblongifolium.

Fluffy larger white blooms in clusters of Ageratina altissima.

October 12, 2025 at 4:02 PM Everybody can reply

1 reposts 36 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Just an absolute forest of Solidago caesia on the Parkway right now and I couldn’t be prouder!

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #NativePlants #UrbsInHorto #Chicago #February2Frost 🌱

Hundreds of stems of green foliage dotted with clusters of tiny yellow blooms all along each one.

October 9, 2025 at 6:44 PM Everybody can reply

23 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Found even more blooming Elephantopus carolinianus from seed that have reached their moment of glory today. I’m really excited about this tiny wonder proving to be so happy on our tough dry part shade urban parkway.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #NativePlants #FantasticFoliage #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A wide shot showing the beautifully outlined and symmetrical veins of the basal leaves that are as lovely as the tiny purple blooms.

October 4, 2025 at 8:49 PM Everybody can reply

1 reposts 34 likes 1 saves

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Pushing record highs around 89F today again. Out early to refresh the water dishes (each with enough depth for #birds splashing and enough large river rocks for #inverts to safely visit).

#gardening #pollinators #wasps #ecosystem #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

A beautiful Bald-Faced Hornet rests on the rim of the water dish.

Closeup of a beautiful Bald-Faced Hornet showing the incredible detail of their mask-like coloring.

October 4, 2025 at 8:43 PM Everybody can reply

2 reposts 48 likes 1 saves

2 48

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Your garden is petering out? Plant more late season #NativePlants! Two different asters and a solidago are exuberantly feeding #pollinators in this little patch of the front walk as we speak.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #UrbsInHorto #Chicago #ecosystem 🌱

Clouds of pale asters blue asters fill the background while large whitish asters and spikes of golden solidago fill I. The shorter space in front.

October 2, 2025 at 3:03 PM Everybody can reply

5 reposts 48 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

The Aster party continues. Bee there or bee square! 🤓

#gardening #NativePlants #bees #pollinators #inverts #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Electric magenta asters call to hungry bumblebees like the one visiting the center bloom.

September 30, 2025 at 1:49 PM Everybody can reply

7 reposts 64 likes 1 saves

1 7 64

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

The birds will be gorging soon as #NativePlants Aralia racemosa berries hang heavy and begin turning from green to deep burgundy.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FantasticFoliage #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Huge clusters of berries in various shades of green and burgundy dance through large rugose matte textured foliage.

September 30, 2025 at 1:44 PM Everybody can reply

2 reposts 38 likes

2 2 38

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

A beautiful late season bloom moment of #NativePlants Gentiana andrewsii in our Rain Garden with the recent addition of Jamesianthus alabamensis which favors similar conditions.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #UrbsInHorto #Chicago

Deep blue closed bottle Gentiana flowers in clusters along the stems with a bright yellow Jamesianthus bloom in the center with more buds to come.

September 30, 2025 at 1:40 PM Everybody can reply

10 reposts 1 quotes 68 likes

10 68

City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

Solidago party on the Parkway right now—3 different varieties in bloom today!

#gardening #bloomscrolling #Nativeplants #ecosystem #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱

Solidago nemoralis with its heavy cluster of bloom making the top heavy stem dip over.

Solidago caesia with its flower buds ready to pop all along the length of the stem with skinny pointed foliage.

Young Solidago flexicaulis first bloom with wide serrated leaves.

September 28, 2025 at 3:50 PM Everybody can reply

37 likes

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City Mouse Garden

@citymousegarden.bsky.social

New late-blooming #NativePlants friend unlocked. Grown from seed and first time blooming, please enjoy the impossibly precious little flowers of Elephantopus carolinianus.

#gardening #bloomscrolling #FlowerReport #UrbsInHorto #Chicago 🌱