Story E Archives

Goldenrod: Kentucky’s Misunderstood State Flower

A botanical illustration of European Goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea).

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 16, 1926 On this day, Kentucky officially adopted the goldenrod as its state floral emblem. This decision came after years of debate within gardening clubs, who felt that the previously recognized bluegrass…

Never Against Nature: Thomas Hanbury’s La Mortola

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 2, 1867 On this day, Thomas Hanbury, a man of discerning taste and boundless ambition, purchased a property that would become a testament to his love of nature and his desire to…

Garden Books Published on May Day Through the Years

Monet's Palate Cookbook by Aileen Bordman

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Well, it turns out that May 1st is a great day to release a brand new gardening book, and so I thought I’d wrap up today’s botanical history with three great garden books released on May 1st. 2001 The Himalayan Garden: Growing Plants from…

From Seeds to Stories: Henry Field’s Book of a Thousand Gardens

Henry Field with his display garden in the background.

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 25, 1911 On this day in the annals of gardening history, a most remarkable exchange took place between two devoted horticulturists. Harry Radlund, a persistent gardener from Kilbourn, Wisconsin, shared his triumphant…

Purple Serendipity: The Day James Bates Discovered Nature’s Violet Surprise

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 24, 1914 On this day in horticultural history, a serendipitous discovery graced the fields of Nebraska, forever altering the landscape of botanical intrigue. James M. Bates, a keen-eyed observer of nature’s whims,…

Pen and Prose: The Blooming Legacy of Shelby Foote

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 17, 1916 On this day, dear readers, we celebrate the birth of one Shelby Foote, a gentleman of letters whose passion for the written word rivaled only his devotion to the art…

Rose by Any Other Name: The Many Facets of Rosamund Marriott Watson

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 6, 1860 On this day, dear readers, we celebrate the birth of a most remarkable soul, Rosamund Marriott Watson, an English poet, nature writer, and critic of extraordinary talent. Known affectionately as…

Medieval Morsels: A Gardener’s Guide to Chaucer-Era Edibles

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 5, 2017 On this day, dear garden enthusiasts and history aficionados, a most intriguing tome graced the shelves of our literary world. Liza Picard’s Chaucer’s People: Everyday Lives in Medieval England burst forth…

The White Rose: Sophie Scholl and the Garden of Resistance

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 9, 1921 On this day, dear cultivators of freedom and beauty, we commemorate the birth of a most extraordinary bloom in the garden of human courage: Sophia Magdalena Scholl. Books about this…

The Rebel’s Garden: Mirei Shigemori’s Horticultural Revolution

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 6, 1925 On this day, dear cultivators of beauty and tradition, we celebrate a pivotal moment in the annals of garden history. Picture, if you will, a young man of 29, standing…

Peacock Pie and wildflower seeds: Walter de la Mare’s poetic gardens

Portrait of Walter de la Mare from a 1937 lithographic cigarette card (colorized and enhanced).

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 25, 1873 Dearest reader, On this day, we remember the birth of Walter de la Mare, a poet whose whimsical verse has long enchanted the hearts of children and adults alike. An…

Seeds aren’t stupid: Midas Dekkers on nature’s patient wisdom

Portrait of Midas Dekker (colorized and enhanced).

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 22, 1946 Dearest reader, On this day, we celebrate the birth of Midas Dekkers, a remarkable Dutch biologist and author known for his sharp wit and curious mind. Born in Haarlem, Dekkers…

Ayn Rand in Bloom: The Life, Philosophy, and Floral Farewell of Alice O’Connor

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. March 2, 1905 Dearest reader, On this day, Alice O’Connor was born—though the world knows her better by the pen name Ayn Rand (“Eye-n Rand”), the Russian-American writer and philosopher who sparked passionate…

In Praise of Fallen Leaves: Cyril Connolly’s Garden Wisdom

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 10, 1903 On this day, dear readers of the garden and admirers of literary wit, we celebrate the birth of Cyril Connolly, whose sharp pen and keener eye would forever change how…