Joseph Priestley: The man who gave us air, electricity, and the garden’s first ecosystem experiment
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast:
March 24, 1733
Dearest reader,
On this day, we celebrate the birth of Joseph Priestley, a remarkable English chemist, polymath, author, and minister whose curiosity led him to many groundbreaking discoveries.
While tutoring the sons of American sympathizer William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, at Bowood House, Priestley conducted a profound yet straightforward experiment, placing a mouse and a mint plant inside a bell jar. The mouse without the mint perished, while the one with the plant thrived—an early glimpse into the delicate balance of ecosystems, a dance of life and breath that underpins all living things.
Beyond ecology, Priestley’s genius touched many fields: he wrote the first comprehensive history of electricity, invented carbonated water, discovered laughing gas, and even unveiled the practical use of vegetable gum as the first eraser, capable of removing pencil marks with ease.
His invention of carbonated water came about quite by accident in 1767, when he suspended a bowl of water over a fermenting beer vat in Leeds, England. Observing the “fixed air” or carbon dioxide rising from the beer, he found that the water absorbed the gas, creating a refreshing fizzy drink.
He described this as his “happiest” discovery, sharing it with friends as a cool novelty and laying the groundwork for modern sparkling water and the soft drink industry.
Imagine, dear reader, the spark of delight when Priestley took the first sip of that bubbling water, born of both natural fermentation and human ingenuity.
How many simple observations, fueled by wonder, have transformed our world?
Today, the effervescent bubbles dancing in a glass of soda trace their lineage back to Priestley’s lively experiments—reminders that curiosity, combined with courage, bubbles up into brilliant discoveries.
What curious experiment might you try in your own garden or kitchen?
How might the mysteries of nature and science intertwine in the quiet moments you cherish?
