I just finished a massive volume on early American gardens, published by the Garden Club of America. The title says it all: The Golden Age of American Gardens: Proud Owners, Private Estates, 1890-1940. The authors Mac Griswold and Eleanor Weller…
It is the start of summer where we gardeners face our summer garden tasks. Well, since I now live in a condominium, my 1 1/2 acre garden has shrunk to about six containers on the balcony. The major issue however…
We all know that the story of tulips engraves forever in our memory the idea that the power of money can influence what we plant. At that time, the 1630s, people would pay anything for that most precious tulip. It…
You may wonder how plants from other cultures made the journey to your garden. Robert Fortune (1812-1880) was an English plant hunter who traveled the world in search of plants for the English garden. Mary and John Gribbin, in their…
After 1880 advertising in newspapers and magazines meant more than simply information about a product for sale. From that time advertising, through its illustrations, sought to motivate the buyer to make a purchase, and even to create a need for the…