Stay ConnectedThe Daily Gardener is a weekday podcast celebrating garden history, literature, and the small botanical stories that shape how we garden today.
Each episode follows an “on this day” format, uncovering the people, plants, books, and moments that have quietly influenced gardens across time.
New episodes are released Monday through Friday, and each show features a thoughtfully chosen garden book.
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Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Historical Events 1763 Birth of Jean-Paul Friedrich Richter, German Romantic writer. He's remembered for his humorous novels and stories. He once wrote, When one reads a poem in January, it is as lovely as when one goes for a walk in June. 1902 Birth of Harry Lutf Verne Fletcher, ("Luh-tf")(pen names John Garden and John Hereford), Engish writer. Harry wrote many books on gardening. In Purest Pleasure (1948), he wrote, Who has learned to garden who did not at the same time learn to be patient? 1917 Birth of Richard Henry Martin Robinson, gardener and professional horticultural photographer. He was regarded as one of the top gardeners of his generation. In 1955, Richard and his wife, Helen, began creating a spectacular garden at Hyde Hall set on 400 acres and nestled among the prairie wheat fields of Essex. Helen initially started gardening as a way to brighten up the place. Gardening at Hyde was hard. The landscape battles whipping winds and pitiful average yearly rainfalls. In summer, the clay soil is rock hard. In winter, whatever moisture there is, is locked in the suffocating clay. Early on, trees, pines, evergreens, and heathers were installed to provide structure and winter interest. Foxtail lilies and roses added color that the garden so desperately needed. Together, Richard and Helen transformed Hyde Hall into a garden masterpiece. In 1993, nearly forty years after the Robinsons bought Hyde Hall, the garden was gifted to the RHS. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation The Essentials of Garden Design by John Brookes This book came out in 2008, and it is a garden classic. John Brookes was a master garden designer who perfected his craft over five decades. And although John passed away in 2018, he is still regarded as one of the significant garden-makers of the late 20th century. John's books (like today's recommendation) continue to inspire and instruct gardeners with simple and timeless wisdom. John always began his design projects with his famous grid system. And in this book, The Essentials of Garden Design, he walks you through that process as well as everything you need - the tools, the techniques, the plants, the building materials - to create a garden that looks like it belongs in the landscape. So whether you're planning a large installation or just something small and functional, you can't go wrong with John as your guide. This book is 192 pages of garden design mastery from a man who firmly believed that gardens were about the people who lived in them. You can get a copy of The Essentials of Garden Design by John Brookes and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $2.51. Botanic Spark 1905 Birth of Phyllis McGinley, American poet, and writer of children's books. Her poems were often light-hearted and humorous, offering a clever examination of daily life in the suburbs. In 1961, Phyllis won the Pulitzer prize. She won a Pulitzer prize in 1961 for her book, Times Three, which featured seventy poems written over three decades in the mid-1900s. A gardener, Phyllis once wrote in The Province of the Heart (1959). The trouble with gardening is that it does not remain an avocation. It becomes an obsession. And here's a little poem Phyllis wrote called Daylight Savings Time. In spring when maple buds are red, We turn the clock an hour ahead; Which means each April that arrives, We lose an hour out of our lives. Who cares? When autumn birds in flocks Fly southward, back we turn the clocks, And so regain a lovely thing That missing hour we lost in spring. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden Meeting in Athens, Georgia Register Here Spring Break Next Week Hi there. The show is on spring break next week. New episodes will resume on March 21. Historical Events
1775 Birth of Pierre Jean François Turpin (books about this person), French botanist and illustrator.
Pierre was friends with the botanist, gardener, and botanical artist, Pierre Antoine Poiteau. And although we know that he learned a great deal about botany from his friend Poiteau, Pierre was self-taught when it came to his botanical illustrations. And Redouté's work was an obvious influence on him. Pierre created over 6,000 magnificent botanical watercolors. He was an expert on fruit trees, and his fruit prints are considered some of the best in the world.
There are two fascinating stories about Pierre I wanted to share with you today.
First, Pierre created a fictional plant for Goethe that was an amalgam of different angiosperms.
Goethe wanted an illustration to show the diversity of angiosperms, and when Goethe saw Pierre's drawing, he named it the Urplant.
Goethe wrote, The Urplant would be the most wondrous creation in the world, for which nature itself would envy me. With it, one could invent plants to infinity... The second Pierre story that I wanted to share with you is about his son, Pierre Jr.
No doubt Pierre taught his son how to draw. But tragically, Pierre Jr. died young, and his final drawing was of an Amaryllis.
After his death, Pierre made sure his son was credited for the work, and then he did something unusual for botanical illustrations: he made a little personal remark on his son's passing, writing: This original illustration was painted by Pierre John Frederick Eugene Turpin. The illustrator, who was 18 years and six days of age, ceased to live on the 21st of August in 1821.
Less than 20 years later, Pierre himself would die in Paris in 1840 at 65.
Now, speaking of Amaryllis, this is the time of year when gardeners get all kinds of questions about them. My neighbor Jan, up at the cabin returned from a trip to Las Vegas to find her Christmas gift, an Amaryllis, in full bloom - and she's utterly captivated by this gorgeous Amaryllis, but of course, she called me to say,
What do I do with it after it's done blooming?
And this is the question that's on everybody's mind because they're wrapping things up about now. So what are your options if you have an Amaryllis?
Well, number one, you can throw it away. You can simply be done with it. If you choose to, you could put it in the compost pile and so forth.
Or, if you're committed to trying to get your Amaryllis to bloom again next year, it is possible to do. You can force it to flower again next year.
Keep it on a sunny window inside until June when things warm up and then harden it off, the way you would any of the houseplants that you bring outside, take it outside for a few hours, and then bring it back in.
Gradually increase the amount of time it stays outside until it's out all day. Make sure that it's in a sunny spot.
And then, in the fall, you can bring it back indoors. This is the time when you're going to impose dormancy. Put the Amaryllis in a cold area. (If you have a dark cellar, that would be ideal). And remember that during dormancy, you don't want to water your Amaryllis. Think about your Amaryllis like a sleeping beauty that you'll wake up in time for the holidays.
And then, at that point, you can resume watering, and your Amaryllis, with any luck, will flower again.
So there you go—a little Amaryllis care 101 inspired by the son of Pierre Turpin. 1811 Birth of Katherine Sophia Kane, Irish botanist, and horticulturist.
Orphaned as a little girl, Katherine was raised by her uncle, who fostered Kate's love for the outdoors and, ultimately, her focus on botany.
When Kate was 22, she anonymously published a book that became the first national flora of Ireland, called The Irish Flora Comprising the Phaenogamous Plants and Ferns (1833). Kate's book not only described all the Irish flowering plants but also ferns and other cryptograms.
Accurate and informative, Kate's book became a textbook for botany students at Trinity College in Dublin. Three years later, in recognition of her work, Kate became the first woman to be elected to the Botanical Society of Edinburgh.
The story of how Kate met her husband Robert is similar to how John Claudius Loudon met his wife, Jane Webb: through her book. In Kate's case, proofs of The Irish Flora had mistakenly landed on Robert's desk. Robert tracked down Kate's address and personally returned the proofs to her. The rest, as they say, was history. The two were married in 1838, and they went on to have ten children.
In 1846, Robert was knighted, and Kate became known as Lady Kane. An economist, a chemist, and a scientist, Robert was hired to serve as the President of Queens College. Although Kate was happy for her husband, she refused to move to Cork. She'd designed a magnificent garden with many exotics planted all around their home in Dublin, and she was reluctant to leave it.
And so, much to the school's dismay, Robert commuted to work until the College finally insisted he reside in Cork during the school year in 1858.
And here's a fun little side note about Kate and Robert: since they were both scientists, Kate and Robert would send messages to each other in Greek. 1877 Birth of Jean White-Haney, Australian botanist.
In 1912, as a young botanist, Jean was asked to deal with the non-native Prickly Pear problem in Australia. The plant had been introduced to Australia 100 years earlier, and it became invasive once it was established.
Tackling the Prickly Pear was a massive undertaking, and Jean's appointment marked the first time a woman held a scientific leadership position in the Australian government. Jean knew she would have to power through the hardships of the job to prove herself. She recalled the experience this way: [I lived] amid the thickest pear. A desolate little place where living was primitive. I was young then and still rather nervous, but I insisted on not being given any special privileges because of being a woman. ...Failures of women who can not rough it would naturally be magnified. I lived in the little public house there. [I] worked on my fascinating job with all the enthusiasm of those who see small beginnings to great ends. And the methods chosen for experiment were the introduction of suitable insects and poison.
Many gardeners are surprised to learn that the Prickly Pear is actually an excellent pollinator plant.
Charles Darwin noticed that the flowers of the Prickly Pear Cactus had thigmotactic anthers, which means the anthers curl over and drop their pollen when touched. And yes, the bees love it. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation Life in a French Country House by Cordelia de Castellane
This book came out in 2020, and the subtitle is Simple Ideas For Small Outdoor Spaces.
Cordelia is France's favorite host and the artistic director of Dior Home and Baby Dior.
This book is organized into four seasons - one of my favorite ways to organize a book that covers all the basics like at-home entertaining and decor. Cordelia shares her tips and secrets to imbuing your home with style and flowers. Architectural Digest's review of this book highlights Cordelia's five things every home needs: meaningful objects, books, flowers, scent, and children.
If you love French Country and want to know how to recreate the look in your own home and garden, you can't go wrong with Cordelia's guidance. Cordelia even includes some of her favorite recipes, flower arranging, and table setting tips.
This book is 240 pages of French Chic combined with Cordelia's eclectic but elegant vibe that has been refined to perfection over the past three decades.
1952 Birth of Douglas Noel Adams (books by this author), English writer, satirist, and dramatist.
He's remembered for his radio comedy The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which became a trilogy of five books. He was an environmentalist and a conservationist.
In his book, Last Chance to See, Douglas wrote, As zoologists and botanists explore new areas, scrabbling to record the mere existence of species before they become extinct, it is like someone hurrying through a burning library desperately trying to jot down some of the titles of books that will now never be read.
And in Richard Dawkins' best-seller The God Delusion, his dedication was to Douglas Adams in memoriam, and included this quote by Douglas, who was an atheist:
Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?
Finally, in his book Life, The Universe and Everything (1982), Arthur Dent's old friend Ford Prefect, says,
....I decided I was a lemon for a couple of weeks. I kept myself amused all that time jumping in and out of a gin and tonic....I found a small lake that thought it was a gin and tonic, and jumped in and out of that. At least, I think it thought it was a gin and tonic. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
March 11, 2022 Pierre Turpin, Katherine Sophia Kane, Jean White-Haney, Life in a French Country House by Cordelia de Castellane, and Douglas Adams
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden Meeting in Athens, Georgia Register Here Historical Events 1763 Birth of William Cobbett, English writer, Member of Parliament, and farmer. In Parliament, Wlliam fought for agrarian reform. He did this through his regular writings called Rural Rides, where he shared what he saw while taking horseback rides throughout rural England. William never forgot his rural roots, and he was a lifelong gardener. He once wrote, How much better during a long and dreary winter, for daughters, and even sons, to assist, or attend, their mother, in a green-house, than to be seated with her at cards, or, in the blubberings over a stupid novel, or at any other amusement that can possibly be conceived. And he also wrote, If well-managed, nothing is more beautiful than the kitchen garden. 1845 Birth of Wilhelm Friedrich Philipp Pfeffer, German botanist and plant physiologist. Wilhelm was born in his father's apothecary. He grew up and learned every aspect of the business, which had been in his family for generations. One of his childhood friends noted, In those days, it was not yet customary to obtain drugs in cut and powdered form; thus, he spent hours cutting roots and herbs and pulverizing dried drugs with a heavy pestle in a mortar. In addition to life at the A=apothecary, Wilhelm loved collecting plants in the Alps. His early study of plants and his natural curiosity set the stage for his in-depth plant experiments as an adult. In terms of plant physiology, he's remembered for the Pfeffer pot or pepper pot to measure osmotic pressure in plant cells. 1874 Birth of Karl Foerster, German plant breeder, writer, and garden designer. When Karl turned 18, he took over his family's Berlin nursery, which was a bit of a mess. Karl quickly streamlined the business by simplifying his plant inventory. Although Karl loved all plants, he was especially drawn to tough, low-maintenance, hardy perennials. Karl used three factors to determine whether a plant would be sold in his nursery: beauty, resilience, and endurance. Today, Karl is most remembered in Karl Foerster Grass. The story goes that Karl was on a train when he spied the grass growing along the tracks. Karl frantically pulled the emergency brake, stopped the train, and quickly collected the specimen that now bears his name. In 2001, Karl Foerster grass was the Perennial Plant of the Year. Karl's plant standards and his appreciation for low maintenance spaces with year-long seasonal interest helped shape the New German Garden Style of garden design. A Karl Foerster garden had some signature plants: grasses, delphinium, and phlox. Naturally, all of these plants were favorites in Karl's breeding work. Karl once wrote, Grasses are the hair of mother earth. And he also wrote, A garden without phlox is not only a sheer mistake but a sin against summer. Karl lived to the ripe old age of 96. And looking back, it's staggering to think that Karl spent nearly nine decades gardening, and it was Karl Foerster who said, In my next life, I'd like to be a gardener once again. The job was too big for just one lifetime. 1892 Birth of Vita Sackville-West, English author and garden designer. In 1930, Vita and her husband, the diplomat, and journalist Harold Nicolson, bought Sissinghurst Castle - at least what was left of it. Together, they restored the house and created the famous garden, which was given to the National Trust in 1967. Vita explored the depths of her own creativity as she shaped the gardens at Sissinghurst. When she came up with the idea for a Sunset Garden, she wrote, I used to call it the Sunset Garden in my own mind before I even planted it up. Vita's Sunset Garden included flowers with warm citrus colors, like the yellows, oranges, and reds of Dahlia's Salvias Canas and tulips. Vita also created a White Garden – one of the most difficult Gardens to design, maintain and pull off. Why is that? Well, the main reason is that, after flowering, most white blooms don't age well; they turn brown or yellow as they wither and die on the plant. But I have to say that ten years ago, I did help a friend install a white garden. And when it was in bloom, it really was spectacular. During World War II, there came a point when Vita and Harold were convinced that a German invasion of Britain was likely. Vita planted 11,000 daffodils, a message of defiance to the enemy. In 1955, Vita was honored with the Veitch Memorial Medal. She died seven years later in 1962. She once wrote, The waking bee, still drowsy on the wing, Will sense the opening of another year And blunder out to seek another spring. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation The Art of Edible Flowers by Rebecca Sullivan This book came out in 2018, and the subtitle is Recipes and ideas for floral salads, drinks, desserts, and more. This sweet little book is a fun little recipe book of the many ways flowers can be incorporated into drinks and edibles. Recipes include a Rose and Lavender Cocktail Syrup, a Jasmine and Green Tea Ice Cream, Lavender and Orange Cheesecake, Pumpkin Carpaccio with Mustard Flower Sauce, Artichoke Flower with Borage Butter, Fermented Elderflower Fizz and a soothing Poppy Milk. The recipes are simple, creative, and elegant. This book is 80 pages of edible, beautiful, tasty blossoms. You can get a copy of The Art of Edible Flowers by Rebecca Sullivan and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $12. Botanic Spark 1902 Birth of Luis Barragán, Mexican architect and engineer. In 1980, he won the Pritzker Prize, the highest award in architecture. In 1948 he designed and built his own home with cement after being inspired by local modernist architecture. In 2004, the Luis Barragan house was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In addition to architecture, Luis loved landscapes. He once wrote, I don't divide architecture, landscape and gardening; to me they are one. And he also wrote, A garden must combine the poetic and he mysterious with a feeling of serenity and joy. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Historical Events 1746 Birth of André Michaux (books about this person), French botanist and explorer. André grew up on a royal farm in Satory south of Versailles. His father trained both he and his brother in horticulture, and after his father died, André carried on at the farm. André married a prosperous farmer's daughter from a nearby farm named Cécile Claye. A month shy of their first wedding anniversary Cécile delivered a son, Francois-André. Later in life, André would name an oak in his son's honor. Tragically, Cécile died after the delivery. André battled through the next decade by studying horticulture. His friend, the naturalist Louis-Guillaume Le Monnier ("Lew-ee Ghee-ohm Lew-moh-nay"), urged him to focus on exotic plants, and the great botanist Bernard de Jussieu gave André a solid understanding of botany. The next step for André was travel. In 1786, André was asked to go to North America. As a single father, he brought François-Andre, then 15, along with him. André's mission was to establish a botanical garden in America. The goal was to set up a botanical clearinghouse of sorts and send seeds and specimens back to France. André established his nursery on the land where the Charleston Area National Airport exists today. In fact, at the Charleston airport, there is a stunning mural installed in 2016 that honors Andre and his son. In one panel, Andre-François and his father are depicted in the potager or kitchen garden. The central scene shows the rice fields along the Ashley River and the Charleston Harbor, where Michaux introduced one of the first Camellia plants. Native to Asia, Camellias are small, evergreen flowering trees or shrubs, and Camellias are in the Theaceae or tea family, which is why Camellias are commonly called tea plants. In Floriography ("FLOOR-EE-ah-grah-FEE") or the language of flowers, the Camellia represents love and loyalty. Camellia blossoms are beautiful and come in various colors, sizes, bloom times, and forms. And, best of all, Camellias are long-lived and can grow for 100 to 200 years. Finally, here are two fun facts about the Camellia: In California, Sacramento is nicknamed the Camellia City, and the Camellia is the state flower of Alabama. 1836 Birth of Sir Michael Foster, English physician, and iris breeder. He's regarded as the father of iris cultivation. In the late 1800s, Michael became the first person to crossbreed new varieties of Iris. He started his work with purple and yellow iris and made a beautiful blend by the third generation. Soon Michael had large wild iris specimens arriving from all over the world. He found that missionaries could be a great help to him. They sent Trojana, Cypriana, and Mesopotamica varieties from the Near East. In time, Michael's iris creations had bigger flowers and grew taller. He crossed Irises in every conceivable way, and he once wrote to the plant breeder William John Caparne, "In hybridizing, be bold." Michael once said, Nature is ever making signs to us; she is ever whispering to us the beginnings of her secrets. April 26, 1970, Elizabeth Lawrence (books by this author) reflected on the spring, writing, This spring, I was asked if I am bored. How can anyone ask that of a gardener? No Gardener could ever be bored, for ... Every season is new and different from all those that went before. There always is something new in bloom, something expected and something unexpected, something lost that is found, and there is always disappointment, but being sad is not the same thing as being bored. "It acts like spring, but I dare not hope," Carolyn Dorman wrote on Saint Valentine's Day. "It was about this time in 1899 that the temperature here in Northern Louisiana was 20 degrees below… God spare us, daffodils are beginning now, and Magnolia Alba Superba will soon be in bloom." It is the white form of Magnolia x soulangiana that Caroline calls "alba superba". She thinks it more beautiful than the Yulan. In my garden the Yulan (Magnolia denudata) and two of its hybrids M. x soulangiana and M. x veitschii, came into bloom together on March 8th. I can't think of when, if ever before, all three have bloomed at once when the weather was warm but not hot, when there was no frost and no rain, and when only a few petals were whipped off by wind. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation Private Gardens of Santa Barbara by Margie Grace This book came out in 2020, and the subtitle is The Art of Outdoor Living. Margie is a two-time-named International Landscape Designer of the Year. She has worked in the field for over three decades, and she is the perfect host to showcase these magnificent private gardens in Santa Barbara, which is often called the American Riviera. This book features eighteen gardens designed by Margie and representing a range of spaces from large estates to surf retreats. This is an elegant coffee table book - a total escape - to the lush spaces of Santa Barbara's private gardens, and they are water-smart, maintenance-smart, and fire-smart. This book is 256 pages of incredible private California gardens showcased by one of the country's top designers. You can get a copy of Private Gardens of Santa Barbara by Margie Grace and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $28. Botanic Spark 1897 Birth of Joseph Pla (books by this author), Spanish journalist and a popular author. His seminal work, The Gray Notebook, was a diary he wrote in 1918 during the onset of the Spanish flu pandemic. Joseph was a law student at the University at Barcelona, but when the school shut down, he was forced to return home to Palafrugell ("Pala-frew-yay") on the coast of Spain. Realizing he would rather be a writer than a lawyer, he kept a journal to improve his writing skills. It was Joseph Pla who once said, Cooking is the landscape in a saucepan. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden in Athens, Georgia Register Here Historical Events 1849 Birth of Luther Burbank (books about this person), American botanist and horticulturist. During his 55-year career, Luther developed over 800 varieties of plants. He is remembered for many plants, including the Shasta daisy and the white blackberry. A russet-colored variant of a Luther potato became the world's predominant potato in food processing and was called the Russet Burbank Potato. Luther hoped the potato would help revive Ireland's potato production after late blight destroyed potatoes all across Europe. Luther once said, Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine to the mind. 1858 On this day, Robert Fortune (books about this person) left for his fourth trip to China. Months earlier, he had sent thousands of tea seeds to the United States. The Americans didn't feel they required Fortune's oversight to cultivate the plants, although the distribution of the little seedlings wasn't very strategic. Most of the seeds and plants were distributed via members of congress from southern states who sent the plants home to their farming constituents. James Rion of South Carolina wrote, In the fall of 1859, I received from the Patent Office, Washington, a very tiny tea plant, which I placed in my flower garden as a curiosity. It has grown well, has always been free from any disease, has had full outdoor exposure, and attained a height of 5 feet, 8 inches There cannot be the least doubt but that the tea plant will flourish in South Carolina. Two years later, the start of the Civil War derailed those early hopes for tea production in the United States. 1865 On this day, Edmund Hope Verney received a letter. By this point, Edmund had been botanizing Vancouver Island for three years. All throughout his expedition, he was gobsmacked by the beauty of the landscape - especially during spring and had written, I cannot believe that any part of the world can show a greater variety and number of wildflowers than this. As much as he could, Edmund sent specimens back home to Claydon in England. Occasionally, he would get discouraged if he didn't hear back - sometimes not even a thank you. But on this day, 1865, Edmund's stepmother wrote with words of praise, Your seeds are excellent - just what we wanted - the Colony is celebrated for its Pines and Cypresses. The Bishop says bulbs, too. If [possible], perhaps you can bring some with you - all lilies are valuable. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation The Art and Science of William Bartram by Judith Magee This book came out in 2007, and it's one of the best authoritative books on William Bartram. William was an eminent artist and naturalist, and he was one of the first people to explore the flora and fauna of the American Southeast between 1773 and 1777. Bartram's work was sent to his patron back in London, and today the London Natural History Museum houses most of William Bartram's drawings. Judith's book showcased for the first time all sixty-eight Bartram drawings from the Natural History Museum, along with other pieces from his contemporaries. This book also shares some of Bartram's writings and letters, proving that Bartram was influential during his lifetime and a beacon for the next generation of American naturalists. Bartram's work had an impact beyond the world of science. Wordsworth, Coleridge, and other writers found in the significance of Bartram's drawings and writing a source of inspiration. Bartram accomplished so much during his lifetime, especially because he was entirely self-taught. Bartram's humility and compassion made it possible for him to spend time with Native Americans during his explorations. He became an authority on the birds of North America. In 1773, William collected and propagated seeds from the Franklinia or the Franklin tree. The tree survives today, thanks to William Bartram. This book is 276 pages of William Bartram's life and contributions in the context of modern scientific thinking. You can get a copy of The Art and Science of William Bartram by Judith Magee and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $46. Botanic Spark 2001 On this day, The Baltimore Sun shared a story called Maryland's Mr. Grass Plantsman: Kurt Bluemel ("Blu-MEL") by Nancy Taylor Robson. Nurseryman and landscaper Kurt Bluemel had dealt with groundhogs, rabbits, and rapacious deer. But nothing in his career prepared him for the destructive powers of elephants and giraffes. "They are like organic lawnmowers!" he [said]. Kurt Bluemel (the company) is one of the largest, most extensive wholesale growers of ornamental grasses in the nation, which is why six years ago the Disney company asked him to help design, supply and plant the 125 acres of Savanna at its new Animal Kingdom in Florida. He assumed the animals would graze the landscape, so he was careful to avoid poisonous plants. But, he was unprepared for their voraciousness. "We planted acacias they have very long thorns as part of the permanent landscape, but the giraffes ate them down to the ground. Thorns and all!" Another surprise was the soil or lack of it. "Florida only has sand," he says. "It's like hydroponic growing. As soon as you stop giving things water and fertilizer, they stop growing. But with food and water, in three months, the vegetation was unbelievable! We miscalculated planting distances as a result." Kurt died of cancer in 2014 at the age of 81. He was known as Mr. Grass and The King of Grasses after a lifetime spent championing ornamental grasses and perennials to bring nature, movement, and vibrancy to the landscape. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden Meeting in Athens Georgia Register Here Historical Events 1810 Birth of William Griffith, English botanist and naturalist. By the time a young William arrived at the botanical garden in Calcutta, he was eager to make his mark. But he clashed with the old ways of running the garden established by Nathaniel Wallich. When Nathaniel departed to tend to his deteriorating health, William was put in charge of the garden. In his youth and inexperience, he acted in haste and he executed a complete renovation of the garden. For instance, there was an avenue of gorgeous Cycas trees that was a signature element of the garden and beloved by visitors, but William had the entire avenue removed. And in his singular focus on organizing plants by classification, he sacrificed beauty and common sense. Plants that were happy under the canopy of established trees and shrubs were suddenly exposed to the harsh Indian sun, and they burned and perished out in the open. In a little over two years, the garden bore no resemblance of its former glory. In September of 1844, William married his brother's wife's sister - Emily Henderson. By the end of the year, William quit his post and left the Calcutta botanical garden for good. Together, William and Emily returned to Malacca in Southwestern Malaysia, but William got sick on the voyage. He had languished for ten days and then died from hepatitis. He was 34. Meanwhile, back at the Calcutta Botanical Garden, it's hard not to imagine the shock Nathaniel Wallich experienced when he returned to the garden in the summer of 1844 and saw the complete devastation in every bed and every planting in every corner of the garden. Nothing was untouched - it had all been changed. Nathaniel shared his grief in a letter to his old friend William Hooker: Where is the stately, matchless garden that I left in 1842? Is this the same as that? Can it be? No–no–no! Day is not more different from night that the state of the garden as it was from its present utterly ruined condition. But no more on this. My heart bleeds at what I am impelled daily – hourly to witness. And yet I am chained to the spot, and the chain, in some respects, is of my own making. I will not be driven away. Lies, calumnies, every attempt... to ruin my character – publicly and privately... are still employed – they may make my life miserable and wretched, they may break my heart: but so so long as my conscience acquits me... so long will I not budge one inch from my post. 1847 Birth of Henry Frederick Conrad Sander, German-English orchidologist and nurseryman. When he was 20, Conrad met the Czech plant collector Benedict Roezl. The two men struck up an idea for a business that left Benedict free to explore and collect plants and Conrad focused on selling the specimens. Conrad set up shop in St. Albans, and Benedict was soon sending shipments of orchids from Central and South America. After his successful arrangement with Benedict, Conrad expanded his operations. He soon had over twenty collectors gathering specimens and was growing orchids in over sixty greenhouses. Europe's top collectors and even royalty stopped by to examine Conrad's inventory. Soon known as the King of Orchids, Conrad wrote a two-volume masterpiece on every variety of orchid. He named his book Reichenbachia in honor of the legendary orchidologist Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach. In return, Reichenbach honored Sanders by naming the "Queen of Philippine Orchids" Vanda Sanderiana, which the locals called the waling-waling orchid. The waling-waling is considered one of the rarest, most beautiful, and most expensive orchids, and it is also one of the largest species of orchids in the world. Orchids are some of the world's oldest flowering plants, producing the world's tiniest seeds. A single Orchid seedpod can contain three million seeds! Orchids are also the largest family of flowering plants in the world. With over 25,000 species, Orchids represent about ten percent of all plant species on earth, and there are more orchids on earth than mammals and birds! Now, once they are germinated, Orchids can take five to seven years to produce a flower. And if you look at the orchid bloom closely, you'll see that the blossom, like the human face, is perfectly symmetrical, which only adds to their visual beauty. And, by the time you are buying that Orchid at Trader Joe's, it is likely already decades old. But never fear, Orchids are long-lived and can reach their 100th birthday. The vastness and complexity of orchids can be frustrating. Charles Darwin grew so discouraged writing his book about orchids that he wrote to a friend, I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything. 1949 On this day, the Santa Cruz Sentinel out of California, published a lovely story about an upcoming Arbor Day celebration that would plant trees to honor Luther Burbank. In a bittersweet gesture, Nurseryman Joe Badger was personally planting a flowering plum tree. Joe's plum tree will be planted in Mrs. Burbank's garden at Santa Rosa, Calif, near the spot where her husband is buried. Burbank's widow said, "No, there will be no wreath-laying on Luther Burbank's grave... Laying a wreath is only a ceremony... It doesn't make things grow." she said. Instead, she and Nurseryman Joe Badger, who as a youngster stole plums from the Burbank experimental gardens, will plant a flowering plum tree adjoining the Redwood highway, where passersby can enjoy it. The flowering plum was developed by her husband. He gained world fame with his Burbank potato, his spineless cactus, and many other horticultural achievements. Her husband now lies buried under a huge Cedar of Lebanon tree in a simple unmarked grave. Beside him lies his white dog, Bonita, who was his constant companion until Burbank died in 1926. Burbank requested that no marking be placed above his burial place. Instead, he was buried beneath his Cedar of Lebanon. He, himself, had planted the seed sent by a friend in Palestine. He had said, "When I go, don't raise a monument to me; plant a tree." Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation The Art of Outdoor Living by Scott Shrader This book came out in 2019, and the subtitle is Gardens for Entertaining Family and Friends. For anyone who wants to live well in their garden, here is a guide to creating stylish and livable outdoor spaces--for entertaining, playing, and relaxing. Scott Shrader is a California landscape designer who has an intuitive ability to connect his outdoor landscape creations with the heart of the home. His designs are known for their sense of flow, style, and serenity. Scott's specialty is creating lush outdoor rooms where meals and company can be enjoyed at your leisure. Scott's blending of the indoors and the outdoors can be seen in these twelve gorgeous properties highlighted in this book. Scott also shares his tips for keeping guests happy outdoors and he breaks down how planning ahead makes outdoor spaces comfortable, inviting places you don't want to leave. This book also features some essays where Scott shares in-depth observations on all aspects of outdoor living and gardens including topics like sustainability, lifestyle, and paths. This book is 240 pages of making outdoor spaces comfortable places for cooking, entertaining, playing, and relaxing. You can get a copy of The Art of Outdoor Living by Scott Shrader and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $26. Botanic Spark 1862 Birth of Norman Rowland Gale, English poet, storyteller, and reviewer. His best-known poem is The Country Faith, which ends with this verse: God comes down in the rain, And the crop grows tall— This is the country faith, And the best of all! In his book A Merry-Go-Round of Song, there is a poem about fairies. Norman wrote, If you could pierce with magic eyes The secrets of the lavender, You'd find a thousand Fairylings A-perching there, with folded wings. And pouring sweetness into her. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden Meeting in Athens Georgia Register Here Historical Events 1606 Birth of Edmund Waller (books about this person), English poet, and politician who was one of the longest-serving members in the English House of Commons. Edmund is remembered for his carpe diem or "seize the day" poem, Go, Lovely Rose (1645), in which the rose must relay an urgent message: that time is short, that she is beautiful and that he loves her. Go, lovely rose! Tell her that wastes her time and me, That now she knows, When I resemble her to thee, How sweet and fair she seems to be. 1616 Birth Mathias de l'Obel ("ma-TEE-us dew Lew-bell"), Flemish physician and botanist. Mathias practiced medicine in England, and he was the first botanist to recognize the difference between monocots and dicots. Today we remember Mathias de l'Obel ("LEW-bell") with the Lobelia plant. Before researching Mathias, I pronounced obelia as "LOW- beel- ya." But now, knowing the French pronunciation of his name, I will say it "LEW-beel-ya." It's a subtle little change (LOW vs. LEW), but after all, the plant is named in Mathias's honor. Now, for as lovely as the Lobelia is, the common names for Lobelia are terribly unattractive. They include names like Asthma Weed, Bladderpod, Gagroot, Pukeweed, etc. Vomit Wort, and Wild Tobacco. These common names for Lobelia reflect that Lobelia is very toxic to eat. Despite its toxicity, Lobelia is one of the sweetest-looking plants for your summer containers. This dainty annual comes in pink, light blue, and royal blue. Personally, every year, I buy two flats of light blue Lobelias. But no matter the color you choose, lobelias are a favorite of pollinators. The delicate blossoms frequently host bees, butterflies, and moths, which only adds to their charm. 1880 Birth Muriel Wheldale Onslow (books by this author), English biochemist. She researched flower color inheritance and pigment molecule biochemistry. Muriel married a fellow biochemist named Victor Onslow. Victor was actually the son of royalty - his dad was the fourth Earl of Onslow. When Victor was a student at Cambridge, he was paralyzed from the waist down after diving off a cliff into a lake. Victor's physical limitations did not stop Muriel from loving him. Even though they were married for only a little over three years before Victor's untimely death, Victor and Muriel's love story was one of mutual admiration and respect. When Muriel recorded her memoir of Victor, she wrote that he was a man of amazing courage and mental vitality; and that he was an inspiration to their peers in biochemistry. Muriel worked with snapdragons, which come in a range of flower colors including green, red, orange, yellow, white, purple, and pink - and now even bicolor and speckled. The snapdragon was the perfect subject for Murial's work. Muriel's coloration research resulted in four major papers on snapdragon color inheritance and worldwide recognition. In 2010, the Royal Institution in England sponsored a play about four female biochemists - including Muriel Onslow. The play was called Blooming Snapdragons. Snapdragons or Antirrhinum majus ("ant-er-EYE-num MAY-jus") are beloved cottage garden flowers. They are a cousin to the foxglove. Snapdragons are happiest when planted early, in cool weather. They will bloom their hearts out all summer long. Then, if you cut them back in August, you will get a second flush of color in the fall. 1899 Birth of Yury Karlovich Olesha (books by this author), Russian and Soviet novelist. He was part of the Odessa School of Writers and is considered one of the greatest Russian novelists of the 20th century. Here's an excerpt from his book, Envy (1927): "Once he raised his arm to show his friends the back of his hand, where the veins were laid out in the shape of a tree, and he broke out in the following improvisation: "Here," he said, "is the tree of life. Here is a tree that tells me more about life and death than the flowering and fading of tree gardens. I don't remember when exactly I discovered that my wrist was blooming like a tree…but it must have been during that wonderful time when the flowering and fading of trees still spoke to me not of life and death but of the end and beginning of the school year! It was blue then, this tree, blue and slender, ...and turned my metacarpus's entire landscape into a Japanese watercolor… "The years passed, I changed, and the tree changed, too. "I remember a splendid time; the tree was spreading. The pride I felt, seeing its inexorable flowering! It became gnarled and reddish-brown—and therein lay its strength! ...But now, my friends! How decrepit it is, how rotten! "The branches seem to be breaking off, cavities have appeared… It's sclerosis, my friends! And the fact that the skin is getting glassy, and the tissue beneath it is squishy — isn't this a fog settling on the tree of my life, the fog that will soon envelop all of me?" Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation Terrain by Greg Lehmkuhl This book came out in 2018, and the subtitle is Ideas and Inspiration for Decorating the Home and Garden. And yes, in case you're wondering, this is the same Terrain as in the historic nursery set in southeast Pennsylvania. Terrain is a nationally renowned garden, home, and lifestyle brand with its own signature approach to living with nature. It's an approach that bridges the gap between home and garden, the indoors and the outdoors. An approach that embraces decorating with plants and inviting the garden into every living space. That blurring of the outdoors and the indoors makes this book such a delight for gardeners. The book is loaded with gorgeous photos of ideas, projects, tips, and applications. There are tons of ideas for flower arranging beyond simple bouquets. You'll learn to use branches and wild natural elements like a pro. There are beautiful container gardens, wreaths for all seasons, preservation tips with glycerin, forcing branches, decorating with natural elements, and so many doable gorgeous ideas for every season of the year. This book is a whopping 400 pages of a master class on decorating with nature and bringing the best of the garden indoors. You can get a copy of Terrain by Greg Lehmkuhl and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $10. Botanic Spark 1878 Birth of Edward Thomas (books by this author), British Poet. Edward's mentor was Robert Frost, and a trip to see Frost inspired his most famous poem, October. Like Henry David Thoreau, Edward loved simplicity in his work and life. There are two verses I wanted to share with you today. The first is from his poem Cherry Trees. The cherry trees bend over and are shedding On the old road where all that passed are dead, Their petals, strewing the grass as for a wedding This early May morn when there is none to wed. The second is an excerpt from his poem, The Manor Farm (1878) Over the land freckled with snow half-thawed The speculating rooks at their nests cawed And saw from elm tops, delicate as flowers of grass, What we below could not see, Winter pass. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden Meeting in Athens Georgia Register Here Historical Events 1779 Birth of the physician, botanist, and American statesman, Joel Roberts Poinsett. In the 1820s, President John Quincy Adams appointed Joel to serve as a US ambassador in Mexico. Joel was introduced to a beautiful plant that the Aztecs called the cuetlaxochitl ("qwet-la-SHO-chee-til"), but today it's better known as the Poinsettia (books about this topic). Like most euphorbias, the Poinsettia has a white sap that the Aztecs used to treat wounds and skin issues, which is how it got the common name "Skin Flower." In 1825, when Joel Poinsett sent clippings back home to South Carolina, botanists had new common names for the plant: "the Mexican Fire Plant" or "the Painted Leaf." The botanist Karl Wilenow ("Vill-ah-no") named the Poinsettia the Euphorbia pulcherrima. Pulcherrima means "very beautiful." By 1836, English newspapers were reporting on the Poinsettia in great detail: Poinsettia Pulcherrima.. are of the most brilliant rosy-crimson color, the splendor of which is quite dazzling. Few, if any of the most highly valued beauties of our gardens, can vie with this. Every year, we celebrate National Poinsettia Day on December 12th, the day Joel Poinsett died. 1859 Birth of Solomon Naumovich Rabinovich, better known under his pen name Sholem Aleichem ("Sholl-em A-LEK-em") (books about this person), Yiddish author and playwright. The musical Fiddler on the Roof (1964), was based on his stories. Sholom Aleichem wrote, It's as my mother says: If you want to learn how to grow cabbages, ask the gardener, not the goat. 1905 Birth of Geoffrey Grigson ("Jeffrey") (books about this person), British poet, and naturalist. Before publishing his own poems, Geoffrey edited a poetry magazine called New Verse. He once wrote: We do not feel, as Humphry Repton, the landscape gardener, felt in his epitaph, that our dust is going to turn into roses. Dust we believe simply to be dust. 1905 Birth of Alice O'Connor, Russian-American writer, and philosopher. Her pen name was Ayn Rand ("Eye-n Rand") (books about this person). She developed a philosophy called Objectivism. Her work The Fountainhead brought fame, but her 1957 novel Atlas Shrugged is considered her magnum opus. Ayn supported laissez-faire capitalism, and when she died in 1982, a 6-foot-tall dollar-sign floral arrangement was placed by her casket. 1887 On this day, Charles E. Bessey (books about this person), an American botanist and University of Nebraska botany professor. He helped pass the Hatch Act. The Act provides $15,000 for state land-grant colleges and universities in every state to establish experiment stations. Named for Congressman William Hatch, the experiment stations were the forerunner to state Cooperative Extension Services. Today, Hatch Act funding accounts for roughly ten percent of total funds for each experiment station. Nearly all Master Gardener programs in America offer training through a state land-grant university and its Cooperative Extension Service. Charles is remembered as America's greatest developer of botany education. His motto was, Science with Practice. Charles enjoyed plant science, but he never intended to become a botanist. He wanted to be a civil engineer and surveyor. But he agreed to pursue botany at the urging of his professors, and when he told the President of his school about his decision, he commented, Well, Bessey, I am glad of it, but you'll never be rich. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation By Any Other Name by Simon Morley This book came out late in 2021, and the subtitle is A Cultural History of the Rose. Simon Morley is a British artist and art historian. He's now Assistant Professor of Fine Art at Dankook University, Republic of Korea. He is also a keen rose gardener. I've watched a number of interviews with Simon. He does a wonderful job of helping us understand the significance of the rose in our world - socially, politically, and religiously - and how we celebrate the rose in our writing and art. Originating in the middle east and Asia, roses were associated with Venus or Aphrodite, the goddess of love in ancient times. This early association with love is why roses are the flower of Valentine's day. In Western society, roses were bred in the early 1800s in France and then in the late 1800s in England. Both countries have a long and royal history with the rose. Today, the rose is the national flower for many countries, including America, Iran, Bulgaria, Ecuador, Iraq, Maldives, Romania, Slovakia, and England. Simon Morley's quest for a deeper understanding of the rose lead him to appreciate the duality in the meaning and symbolism of the rose. The rose offers incredible beauty and fragrance, but the prickles or thorns mean the rose can bring pain. This complexity of pleasure and pain gives the rose enhanced significance throughout history. This book is 304 pages of an examination and a celebration of the rose. You can get a copy of By Any Other Name by Simon Morley and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $21. Botanic Spark 1942 Birth of John Winslow Irving (books about this person), American-Canadian novelist and screenwriter. John wrote The World According to Garp (1978). Since then, he has continued to write best-sellers like The Cider House Rules (1985), A Prayer for Owen Meany (1989), and A Widow for One Year (1998). Here's an excerpt from A Prayer For Owen Meany: And if she wore cocktail dresses when she labored in her rose garden, they were cocktail dresses that she no longer intended to wear to cocktail parties. Even in her rose garden, she did not want to be seen underdressed. If the dresses got too dirty from gardening, she threw them out. When my mother suggested to her that she might have them cleaned, my grandmother said, 'What? And have those people at the cleaners wonder what I was doing in a dress to make it that dirty?' From my grandmother, I learned that logic is relative. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart Support The Daily Gardener Buy Me A Coffee Connect for FREE! The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community Friends of the Garden Meeting in Athens Georgia Register Here Historical Events 1717 Birth of Catharina Helena Dörrien ("Durr-ee-in"), German botanist, writer, and artist. After the death of her parents, Catharina became a governess for the Erath ("AIR-rit") family in Dillenburg. Sophie Erath was a childhood friend of Catharina's, and Anton Erath was an attorney; they became Catharina's second family. While teaching the Erath children, Catharina turned to nature to teach almost every subject. Catharina even wrote her own textbooks, heavily focused on botany and the natural world. As the Erath children grew, Catharina focused on her botanical work. Anton helped her gain membership to the Botanical Society of Florence - something unheard of for women of her time. Catharina would go on to be a member of the Berlin Society of Friends of Nature Research and the Regensburg Botanical Society in Germany. When Catharina was alive, Dillenburg was part of the Orange-Nassau principality. And Catharine's 496-page flora called Flora for Orange-Nassau was published in 1777. Catharina not only used the Linnaean system to organize and name each specimen, but she also named two new fungi ("funj-eye") - two little lichens - she named major Doerrieni ("Durr-ee-en-ee") and minor Doerrieni- an extraordinary accomplishment for a woman during the 1700s. As for her botanical illustrations, Catharina created over 1,400 illustrations of local flora and fauna. Yet, these masterpieces never made it into her flora. Instead, Catharina's botanical art became an heirloom passed down through the generations of the Erath family. In 1875 a few pieces of Catharina's work were shown at an exhibition. However, fifteen years later, a large collection of paintings by Johann Philipp Sandberger was bought by the Museum of Wiesbaden. Johann was a dear friend of Anton Erath's, and today, his work is considered to be copies of Catharine's original watercolor masterpieces. Still, Sandberger's pieces are precious because they give us a glimpse of Catharine's breadth and depth of talent. Without Sandberger, all would be lost because the bulk of Catharine's work has been lost to time. The curator Friedrich von Heinbeck once said that the precision of Catharine's brush strokes was like that of an embroiderer who stitched with only the finest of thread. 1848 Birth of Augustus Saint Gaudens ("gaw-dens") (books about this person), American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation. He is remembered for his stunning Civil War monuments, including a work called Abraham Lincoln: The Man. In Augustus Saint Gaudens, biography, Reminiscences, he wrote, What garlic is to salad, insanity is to art. The Frick museum has a medallion carved by Augustus. He was a fan of Robert Louis Stephenson, and the two met toward the end of Stephenson's life. The medallion has an inscription: Stevenson's poem Underwoods (1887), which reads: Youth now flees on feathered foot Faint and fainter sounds the flute … Where hath fleeting beauty led? To the doorway of the dead Life is over, life was gay We have come the primrose way. 1877 Birth of Lenore Elizabeth Mulets, children's author, poet, and teacher Born Nora Mulertz in Kansas, Lenore's mother died when she was ten, and so she was raised by her uncle. In addition to teaching, Lenore was a marvelous children's author. Her books were always charming, and her titles include Stories of Birds, Flower Stories, Insect Stories, and Tree Stories, just to name a few. In the preface to Flower Stories, Lenore wrote, When the flowers of the field and garden lift their bright faces to you, can you call them by name and greet them as old acquaintances? Or, having passed them a hundred times, are they still strangers to you? And in her book Stories of Birds, Lenore wrote: Such a twittering and fluttering there was when this news came. Grow That Garden Library™ Book Recommendation Stylish Succulent Designs by Jessica Cain This book came out in 2019, and the subtitle is & Other Botanical Crafts. Jessica wants to teach you how to elevate your succulent creations and learn the tricks you need to know to create professional-quality succulent arrangements made simple! Jessica is the creator and owner of "In Succulent Love." She is a native of San Diego, the succulent capital of the world, and she fell in love with making succulent arrangements after working with succulents with her grandmother. Jessica's DIY guide teaches how to makeover forty creative projects using many varieties of succulents, air plants, and other easy-care botanicals. This book is 176 pages of creating beautiful and lush succulent designs that are simple to make and will last for months. You can get a copy of Stylish Succulent Designs by Jessica Cain and support the show using the Amazon link in today's show notes for $2. Botanic Spark 1958 On this day, The New Yorker published gardener and garden writer Katharine White's (books about this person)review of garden catalogs. It was the first time a garden catalog received a published review, and it was an immediate hit. Readers wrote in to request the name of the author since Katharine had signed off with only her initials, KSW. Katherine was married to EB White - the author of Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little. But the garden writer Elizabeth Lawrence (books about this person) figured out that KSW was Katherine, and she sent her a letter a month later. The two women would exchange correspondence about gardening for the rest of their lives. Here's an excerpt from Elizabeth's letter: I asked Mrs. Lamm if you were Mrs. E. B. White, and she said you were. So please tell Mr. E. B. that he has three generations of devoted readers in this family... Have you the charming Barnhaven catalogs? (Gresham, Oregon). You should, even if you don't want rare primroses. And do you know Harry E. Saier? Dimondale, Michigan. I subscribe to his Garden Magazine too. Used to be free, now a dollar a year ...comes four times a year, if it comes. Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
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