Alabama Archives

December 14, 1819: Alabama Picks the Camellia as the State Flower

The Beautiful Camellia December 14, 1819 On this day, Alabama became the 22nd state to join the Union. Forty years later, the Camellia (“kah-MEE-lee-ah”) became the official state flower of Alabama. Before that, Alabama’s state flower was the Goldenrod. Camellia is an evergreen plant in the tea family. The flower size of Camellias can range…

December 14, 2020 New Apple Variety in Wiltshire, John Claudius Loudon, Richard Hale Goodwin, John Bannister Tabb, Alchemy of Herbs by Rosalee De La Foret and the State Flower of Alabama

Today we celebrate the English garden writer who fell in love with one of the world’s first science fiction writers – and she turned out to be a woman. We’ll also learn about the Connecticut botanist and conservations who created a new undergraduate degree program he called Human Ecology. We’ll hear a delightful interview with…

July 20, 2020 Thomas Rainer’s Garden Tips, David Nelson, Gregor Mendel, Daylilies, Brian Shaw, Katharine White, The Garden as Sanctuary, Shrubs by Andy McIndoe, and Katharine White

Today we remember the beloved botanist who served on Captain Cook’s third South Seas trip. We’ll also learn about the Austrian botanist and monk who pioneered the study of heredity. We celebrate the usefulness of daylilies. We also honor the life of a young man who was killed paying his florist bill and the life…

Charles Theodore Mohr

‘Bama Botanist Today is the anniversary of the death of botanist Charles Theodore Mohr. Although he was born in Germany and educated in Stuttgart, Charles became one of Alabama’s first botanists. He emigrated to the United States in 1848. A trained pharmacist, Charles traveled the world before settling in Alabama, and he especially enjoyed collecting…

July 17, 2020 A Hot Tip for Hydrangeas, the B-Line Network for Pollinators, Charles Theodore Mohr, George William Russell, Arthur Koehler, Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe, Dog Days Poetry, How to Make a Plant Love You by Summer Rayne Oakes, and Poppy Art at the Tower of London

Today we celebrate one of Alabama’s first botanists and the poet who went by the pseudonym AE. We’ll also learn about Wood Expert and xylotomist (“xy·lot·o·mist”) who solved the crime of the century. We celebrate one of the 20th century’s leading landscape architects. We also celebrate the Dog Days of summer through poetry. We Grow…

The Shasta Snow-Wreath: A California Rare Plant Discovered in 1992

“Before 1992, researchers studying Lake Shasta salamanders were familiar with the plant, but they didn’t know it was a rare plant or that it had not yet been discovered.” December 11, 1992 On this day, California newspapers reported that botanists had discovered a new plant in California with a delightfully charming common name – the…

December 11, 2019 Chinese Witch Hazel, Oca & Mashua Tubers, College Glen, Martin Sesse, Jacob Schneck, Victor Lemoine, Fiorello LaGuardia, Countertop Gardens by Shelley Levis, Galison Butterfly Puzzle, and the Shasta Snow-Wreath

Today we celebrate the Spanish botanist who tackled the area known as New Spain and the man who discovered the Schneck Oak. We’ll learn about the French botanist who made many of our blooms bigger and better and the mayor who was known as the Little Flower. We’ll hear some thoughts about Winter and how…

Andre Michaux

First Glance of a River Plant On this day in 1788, Andre Michaux made his way from Georgia into South Carolina by crossing the Tugalo River. In his journal, Michaux wrote: “At dawn, I went to look at the banks of the river and I recognized the yellow root, [a new species of rhododendron], mountain…

December 4, 2019 Central Park Arborists, Dahlias at Bramble Garden, Saving Junipers, Andre Michaux, Theodore Vogel, John Tyndall, Edna Walling, Baron von Mueller, Starting & Saving Seeds by Julie Thompson Adolf, Plant Labels, and the Davenport Women’s Club

Today we celebrate one of the first botanists to explore South Carolina and a German botanist who met his end during the 1841 Expedition to Niger. We’ll learn about the man who discovered why the sky is blue, and one of Australia’s top garden designers, in addition to the monument to one of Australia’s greatest…

John N. Darby

Tension in the Botany World Today is the anniversary of the death of the botanist and chemist John N. Darby, who died on this day in 1877. In 1841, Darby wrote one of the earliest floras, and he focused on the southeastern United States. His flora was practical and regional, so it’s no surprise that…

September 18, 2019 The Secret Garden, Bernard McMahon, John M. Darby, Abel Aken Hunter, Prose on Autumn Denis Mackail, Straw Bale Gardens Complete by Joel Karsten, Winterizing Strawberry Beds, and the Mary Statue in South Natick

Last night I shared the trailer for The Secret Garden remake, which just dropped. It is a visual feast for lovers of gardens everywhere. The new adaptation of the children’s classic stars Colin Firth and Julie Walters and is set for release in April (2020). It looks fantastic. The Secret Garden is a children’s novel…

August 26, 2019 Top Four No-Fail Fall Perennials, Stephen McCormick, Edward Beard Budding, the State Flower of Alabama, Dame Helen Gwynne-Vaughan, Victor Nekrasov, Rachel Carson by Linda Lear, Peony Sarah Bernhardt, and Helen Sharsmith

If your garden looks a little sad right now, it could probably benefit from the addition of some no-fail fantastic fall perennials. Here are some of my favorites: If you have a sunny, wet area, Joe-Pye weed is a perfect choice. The blooms are super tall and a favorite with pollinators. The Latin name is…

Charles Theodore Mohr

An Alabama Botanist Today is the anniversary of the death of botanist Charles Theodore Mohr who died on this day in 1901. Charles Mohr was one of Alabama’s first botanists. He was born in Germany and educated in Stuttgart – he was a trained pharmacist. Mohr traveled the world before settling in Alabama. He collected…

July 17, 2019 Daylilies, John McMahan, Charles Theodore Mohr, George William Francis, Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe, Niels Mogens Bodecker, A Year in Trees by JC Raulston and Kim Tripp, Calendarize Garden Chores, and the Night-blooming Cereus

The Daylilies are blooming their little hearts out right now. Daylilies are in the genus Hemerocallis which has about 15 species of daylilies. They are not part of the Lilium genus, which is the genus for true lilies. The name Hemerocallis comes from the Greek words ἡμέρα (Hemera) “day” and καλός (Kalos) “beautiful.” In China,…