February 11, 2021 Gardening for Health, Margaret Cavendish Bentinck, Should Botany Be Taught In Schools, Saving the Sakura, Darwin’s Most Wonderful Plants by Ken Thompson, and Garden-Inspired Verses About Love
Subscribe
Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart
Support The Daily Gardener
Connect for FREE!
The Friday Newsletter | Daily Gardener Community
Curated News
Botanical History On This Day
1715 Birth of Margaret Cavendish Bentinck, Duchess of Portland, British aristocrat, botanist, and avid naturalist collector. Known as Maria, she amassed a vast collection of natural history treasures with the help of botanists John Lightfoot and Daniel Solander. Her passion for plants and botanical art led her to acquire over 300 paintings by Georg Dionysius Ehret and to collaborate with the renowned botanical artist Mary Delany. The crimson repeat-blooming Portland Rose was named in her honor, linking her legacy forever to the world of horticulture.
1896 At a Vermont botanical club meeting, Reverend JA Bates gave a notable address on “How Should Botany be Taught in Schools?”, pointing out that only one in forty students studied botany. He blamed poorly prepared teachers and botanists themselves for hiding botany’s charm behind long Latin names, a concern still relevant today.
Unearthed Words
In today’s excerpt, Naoko Abe recounts how the English plant collector Cherry Ingram managed to acquire cuttings of a rare, double mauve-pink-blossomed tree near the Osakabe Hotel in Japan. Using a remembered connection to a one-legged hotel owner and a small payment for postage, Ingram arranged to bring the Sakura variety scions to England, thus preserving and spreading the beloved cherry blossom legacy.
Grow That Garden Library™
Read my review of Darwin's Most Wonderful Plants by Ken Thompson. This book reveals Charles Darwin as a pioneering botanist fascinated by plant movement, carnivory, and pollination. With keen insights and up-to-date science, Ken Thompson presents Darwin’s botanical side—his curious experiments and observations at his Kent home—bringing the iconic naturalist to life for modern readers.
Buy the book on Amazon: Darwin's Most Wonderful Plants by Ken Thompson
Today's Botanic Spark
In honor of Valentine’s Day, enjoy these garden-inspired verses about love.
Poet and gardener Derek Jarman playfully notes,
“Violet has the shortest wavelength of the spectrum... Roses are Red, Violets are Blue. Poor violet, violated for a rhyme.”
Other verses remind us that love persists despite all changes, with Alfred Austin’s “winter rose” and Russell Page’s “Green fingers are the extension of a verdant heart,” stirring the gardener’s soul.
Thanks for listening to The Daily Gardener
And remember: For a happy, healthy life, garden every day.
Featured Book
Ways to Connect with The Daily Gardener
What Listeners Say
KIND WORDS FROM LOVELY LISTENERS
"I just discovered you!
I googled garden podcasts and
I'm so glad I found the show.
I start every day with The Daily Gardener!"
"I love gardening.
I been gardening for over 40 years.
A friend got me started on listening to gardening podcasts and yours just popped up.
I am all the richer for it!"
"I've been a Still Growing podcast listener for years.
You are so welcoming and your voice is so soothing!
I love The Daily Gardener because it's different. I can't imagine how much work it is to make a show like this but I thank you for it."
SI HORTUM IN HORTORIA PODCASTA IN BIBLIOTEHCA HABES, NIHIL DEERIT.