Today plant hunters still travel the world looking for plants that will find a home in American gardens. The American grower Proven Winners tests plants from sixty breeders around the world. The company trials them and if they are worthwhile,…
Today we take the sales catalog for granted. In our house several arrive in the mail each month, selling everything from flour to clothes. In the nineteenth century the American seed and nursery industries pioneered the use of the mail…
Gardening resembles clothing as a cultural symbol. It represents what is in fashion at the moment. In nineteenth century England plant collecting made varieties of plants from Africa, Asia, and the Americas available to gardeners who had never seen them before.…
In the spring time one of my favorite public gardens to visit is Blithewold in Bristol, Rhode Island. In the bosquet area, near the house, thousands of spring bulbs will bloom for the next several weeks. American gardeners owe the…
The question of advertising the garden continues to haunt me. How is it that we covet the plants and garden products that become heavily advertised? In some way advertising gives legitimacy to a product. If it's advertised, it must be…