Ikebana on Halsted - Ohara School of Ikebana Chicago Class

09/06/2026

Wow, Mikiko’s Hana Isho with “sausage” cattail! We cannot help notice the high fashion of chrysanthemum gloves on her hands. All kids’ favorite ikebana accessory!

09/06/2026

Welcome back, Christian! Another great practice is Hana Isho!

09/06/2026

Donna’s Hana Isho tall vase with cattail.

09/06/2026

Sharon’s upright Moribana with cattail. Very naturalistic!

09/06/2026

Norb’s Hana Kanade with cattail

09/06/2026

Not all cattails are the same. The St. Louis River Estuary is home to native broad-leaved cattails, invasive narrow-leaved cattails, and hybrids of the two. Once you know what to look for, you can start noticing the differences.

Native broad-leaved cattails generally have wider leaves and little or no gap between the upper and lower portions of the flower spike. They also tend to grow alongside a variety of other wetland plants.

Narrow-leaved cattails have slimmer leaves and usually have a noticeable gap in the flower spike. They can grow in much denser stands.

Hybrid cattails can be especially vigorous, growing tall and dense enough to crowd out other wetland vegetation.

Why does that matter? A wetland with a variety of plants creates very different habitat than one dominated almost entirely by cattails. Join us on Thursday, August 20 from 5-6:30 p.m. (food served at 4:30 p.m. at the Superior Public Library to learn how to tell these cattails apart, what their presence can tell us about a wetland, and what restoration work is underway in Allouez Bay.

Free, all ages, with sandwiches and snacks provided.

Learn more: https://www.stlouisriver.org/events/restoring-wetlands-in-allouez-bay-cattail-talk-weaving

09/04/2026

Japan's seven flowers of autumn (aki no nanakusa, 秋の七草), not as well known as the seven spring herbs, originate from a poem by Yamanoue no Okura (660-733) in an eighth century poetry collection. The seven flowers of autumn are:

💮 Hagi (bush clovers)
💮 Bellflowers/platycodon (kikyou)
💮 East Asian arrowroot (kuzu)
💮 Fujibakama (thoroughwort/Eupatorium fortunei)
💮 Ominaeshi (Eastern valerian or golden lace)
💮 Susuki/obana Japanese pampas grass
💮 Nadeshiko (fringe pink/dianthus).

These seven autumn flowers provide visual enjoyment, admired for their simplicity and beautiful colours. 💐

📷: Modified from IllustAC

09/01/2026

08/30/2026

Ikebana in the Park! https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/events/ikebana-all-lincoln-1
Date and Time: Sep 26, 2026
Saturday, 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Location Lincoln Park - Cultural Center
2045 North Lincoln Park West Chicago, IL 60614

08/30/2026

Led a wildflower walk in the Lincoln Park’s historical Lily Pool. Even butterfly stopped by! Sumacs and Joe Pye Weeds witnessed it!