The Father of Newfoundland Botany: Merritt Lyndon Fernald’s Enduring Impact
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast:
October 5, 1873
On this day, dear readers, we celebrate the birth of a true luminary in the world of botany, Merritt Lyndon Fernald. This American botanist, whose prolific pen produced over 800 papers, left an indelible mark on our understanding of the plant kingdom.
In a delightful twist of fate, he co-authored Edible Wild Plants of Eastern North America (1919-1920) with none other than Alfred Kinsey, who would later gain fame as a sexologist. One can only imagine the fascinating conversations that must have transpired between these two great minds!
Fernald's passion for flora extended beyond mere scientific observation. On one of his herbarium sheets, he penned a charming quatrain about the Rhodora, that pink-blooming azalea that graces the Northeastern United States with its presence:
The gay Rhodora long the margin stands,
Forerunner of the summer's fairer Rose;
Yet coming as she does to ope spring's lands,
She brightens every mood wherein she blows.
Such poetic musings from a scientist!
It's no wonder Fernald is remembered as the Father of Newfoundland Botany, his legacy blooming as vibrantly as the flowers he studied.
In honor of this botanical virtuoso, the New England Botanical Club bestows the Merritt Lyndon Fernald Award annually.
This prestigious accolade, accompanied by a handsome sum of $1,000 and a certificate, recognizes the finest paper published in each volume of Rhodora that utilizes herbarium specimens or involves fieldwork. The award is typically presented at the May meeting of the club, a veritable gala for the botanically inclined.
The most recent recipients, in 2019, were McDonough MacKenzi, Kevin Berend, and Kristen Haynes, who enlightened us with their insights on creating common garden experiments. As McDonough so aptly put it:
We wrote the paper that we all wished we could have read at the beginning of our graduate projects - a review of common garden research in the Northeast.
Now, my dear garden enthusiasts, let us turn our gaze from the annals of botany to our own horticultural endeavors.
If you were to chronicle your garden discoveries this year, what tales would you tell?
Perhaps a top 5 list of lessons learned would be more palatable than a full academic treatise?
Allow me to share my own reflections, as one gardener to another:
- The flame weeder, once a daunting tool, has become a trusted ally in the war against unwanted vegetation.
- A strategic approach to mulch orders, consolidating deliveries, and anticipating supply chain hiccups has proven invaluable.
- The pursuit of reforestation continues apace, with a mini-forest and orchard taking root at my rustic cabin retreat.
- My outdoor potting bench area remains a stalwart companion, a true workhorse in the garden's ecosystem.
- As the nest empties, so too does the garden transform, shifting from ornamental splendor to a more subdued, shrub-centric landscape that whispers of wisdom and maturity.
And what of you, dear readers?
What horticultural revelations have graced your gardens this year?
Have you discovered a plant as captivating as Fernald's beloved Rhodora?
Or perhaps you've stumbled upon a method of cultivation that would make even the most seasoned botanist green with envy?
As we honor Merritt Lyndon Fernald's legacy, let us also celebrate our own botanical journeys.
For in each garden, no matter how humble, lies the potential for discovery, beauty, and the pure joy of nurturing life from the soil.
May your gardens continue to flourish, and may you find poetry in every petal and leaf that graces your domain.