Sign up for the next American Horticultural Society Travel Study Program June 16 – 20, 2010, with AHS Host Katy Moss Warner.  Chicago was incorporated with the Latin words Urbs in Horto, meaning a “city in a garden,” a motto that has long inspired the people who live here.  This tour will highlight the innovative gardens that have contributed to the greening of chicago and influenced the horticultural heritage that distinguishes the surrounding communities.  Katy Moss Warner, president emeritus of the American Horticultural Society and a city judge for America in Bloom, invites you to join her on this excursion.

To experience the breadth of what Chicago has to offer, you will be staying downtown at the Raffaello Hotel, a four-star boutique hotel just steps away from Michigan Avenue in the heart of the Gold Coast.  You will see gardens that are in the heart of Chicago as well as the gardens in the surrounding area.  These range from modern gardens such as the Lurie Gardens in Chicago’s Millennium Park (below), to the world renowned Chicago Botanic Garden and Garfield Park Conservatory, which stems from the city’s early horticultural initiatives.  The tour will also take you to Rockford, Illinois, an award winning city of flowers and gardens that the residents have taken great pride in creating.  You will see private gardens and gain insight into Ball Horticultural Company’s international influence on ornamental horticulture.  Along the way you will feast on local cuisine (lunch, for instance, at Rick Bayless’s Frontera Grill, with a tour of Bayless’ organic garden)  and learn about the history of a city that has been a fountain of innovation.  Complete details are available at www.ahs.org.