Exploding trees have taken the country by storm. Let’s separate fact from fiction.

With an extreme cold warning in effect and actual air temperatures below zero in Chicago on Friday morning, several of the city's major cultural institutions have announced closures to the public.

Ever seen a tree that looks like its leaves have sprouted warts or are suffering from a really bad rash? Welcome to the wild, wonderful world of plant oddities known as galls.

There are a number of local fall forecast resources that will point you in the direction of peak color.

Now in its third year, the Waterlily Weigh-Off has bulked up to more than 40 competitors across eight countries. The winner will be announced Aug. 28.

Thanks to a recent update to the arboretum’s website, gardeners will find it easier to broker a love connection between plants and pollinators.

If private landowners don’t remove invasives alongside natural areas, species like buckthorn will persist in forest preserves and parks, regardless of habitat restoration efforts.

Want to immerse yourself in the sculpture work of a World War II vet? What about a Scottish folk musician who decided watercolor was his medium of choice? That and more are available this weekend in Chicago.

The Chicago Park District is undertaking an inventory of its trees — counting their numbers and recording their health — in order to develop a management plan.

“This has been kind of an extreme and somewhat stressful year for a lot of plants,” said Tom Tiddens, supervisor of plant health care at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

This week’s “Pick Six” — our weekly roundup of outdoorsy recommendations in each of the Chicago region’s six counties — ranges from a cool glacial remnant to a theatrical production that doubles as a hike.

With their bulging red eyes and their alien-like mating sound, periodical cicadas can seem scary and weird enough. But some of them really are sex-crazed zombies on speed, hijacked by a super-sized fungus.

The Chicago Park District also received nearly $1.5 million to conduct an inventory. Morton Arboretum's Chicago Region Trees Initiative is administering the grants on behalf of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

CRTI connects organizations — public and private — across the seven-county Chicago area to promote the importance of trees and improve the quality of the region's tree canopy.

Young trees could be vulnerable to damage from the emergence of millions of periodical cicadas in Illinois this spring. Here are tips on how to protect your trees.

Experts said the pest’s eggs, which will hatch in spring, are able to withstand the recent arctic blast.