The Poetry of Pollinators: Neltje Blanchan’s Garden Revolution

On This Day
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast:

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October 23, 1865

Today we also remember the birth of Neltje Blanchan, and oh my dears, if Annie Lorrain Smith taught us to see the microscopic world of lichens, Blanchan taught an entire generation to see the drama unfolding in their own backyards.

You know, darlings, in an era when most nature writers were cataloging specimens with all the warmth of a tax accountant, Blanchan dared to write about wildflowers as if they were characters in a novel. Her work reminds me of what Virginia Woolf would later write:

I walk along the garden path to think of nothing. I see the first leaf fall of autumn, the green becomes the brilliant yellow, it falls slowly revolving in the space.

Now, picture if you will, America in the 1890s.

The Industrial Revolution is in full swing, cities are expanding, and the natural world is rapidly retreating. Into this moment steps Neltje Blanchan, writing under her pen name because, heaven forbid, a society woman should admit to scrambling through meadows studying plant-pollinator relationships!

But here's what makes Blanchan truly revolutionary - she was one of the first to write about ecological relationships in a way ordinary gardeners could understand.

Her 1900 book Nature's Garden wasn't just about identifying wildflowers; it was about understanding their roles in what we now call ecosystem services.

Speaking of which, dear friends, this is the perfect moment to evaluate the ecological relationships in your own gardens.

As you do your autumn cleanup, ask yourself: Which plants attracted the most pollinators this year?

Which supported birds through the seasons?

Blanchan would want us to think beyond mere aesthetics.

Let me share one of her most practical observations about butterfly gardens, which remains remarkably relevant today.

She wrote:

These winged flower-lovers, like the equally specialized bees, possess long tongues... Therefore tubes, rather than flat platformed flowers, are necessary to their happiness.

So, as you plan next year's garden, consider incorporating some of these tubular flowers:

  • Penstemon
  • Foxgloves
  • Salvias
  • Native honeysuckle

And remember, Blanchan would insist you plant them in clusters.

As she noted,

A single flower is as useless to attract pollinators as a single vote is to win an election.

What I find particularly fascinating is how Blanchan's work bridged the gap between scientific observation and popular understanding. Her book Bird Neighbors (1897) did something unprecedented - it organized birds by color and size rather than scientific classification.

Imagine! Making nature accessible to ordinary people! The audacity!

This time of year, as our gardens move from autumn glory to winter rest, I'm reminded of Blanchan's observations about seasonal changes. She wrote extensively about the importance of leaving seedheads standing for winter birds.

So before you deadhead those coneflowers and black-eyed susans, consider this your permission slip from Neltje Blanchan herself to embrace a little wildness in your winter garden.

You know, in many ways, Blanchan was ahead of her time in promoting native plants.

She understood that local flora and fauna had evolved together in an intricate dance.

As we face climate change and habitat loss, her messages about ecological relationships become even more relevant.

Here's something I've learned from studying Blanchan's work: keep a garden journal the way she did.

Note not just what's blooming, but what's visiting your flowers.

Which plants do the bumblebees prefer in morning light?

Which attract moths at dusk?

These observations, just like Blanchan's, become more valuable with each passing season.

Neltje once wrote,

Every flower in the garden is a soul blossoming in nature.

Isn't that a lovely thought to carry with us as we tend our plots?

That each plant we nurture is not just growing, but blossoming into its full potential, playing its unique role in the grand tapestry of nature.

Neltje Blanchan
Neltje Blanchan
Neltje Blanchan memorial marker
Neltje Blanchan memorial marker
Nature's Garden by Neltje Blanchan, 1900 1st ed
Nature's Garden by Neltje Blanchan, 1900 1st ed
Birds Every Child Should Know by Neltje Blanchan
Birds Every Child Should Know by Neltje Blanchan

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