Derek Jarman Archives

Why the Little Month of February has TWO Birth Flowers: the Violet and the Primrose; the Surprising Answer Along with Fun Facts

“Napoleon’s followers used the violet to weed out his detractors. They would ask strangers if they liked violets; a positive response was a sign of loyalty.” Even though roses are often associated with February, thanks to Valentine’s Day, February’s birth flower is not the rose. Instead, February has two birth flowers: the Violet and the…

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

Today we celebrate a woman who was insatiable when it came to plants, and she is remembered forever with the Portland Rose. We’ll also learn about a famous speech given at a Vermont botanical club about why botany wasn’t taught in schools – and the reasons were pretty spot on. We hear a story about…

April 2, 2020 Prospect Cottage, Pascua Florida, Maria Sibylla Merian, Job Baster, American Farmer, The Overstory by Richard Powers, and Max Ernst

Today we celebrate the discovery and naming of the state of Florida. We’ll also learn about one of the best botanical illustrators ever born as well as the man who introduced goldfish to Holland. We celebrate the publication of the first successful agricultural journal. Today’s Unearthed Words feature words about April. We Grow That Garden…

February 18, 2020 Sensitive Plant, Honey as a Root Stimulator, Valerius Cordus, Antoine Nicholas Duchesne, Adolphe-théodore Brongniart, the Lady’s Slipper, Winter Poetry, Beth Chatto’s Garden Notebook, Macrame 3-pack, and February Birth Flowers

Today we celebrate a man who wrote one of the most influential herbals in history and the French botanist who created the modern strawberry. We’ll learn about the Father of Paleobotany and the sweet little Orchid known as the moccasin flower. Today’s Unearthed Words feature words about winter. We Grow That Garden Library™ with the…

Remembering Derek Jarman and his Prospect Cottage Garden in Dungeness

“The wooden letters attached to Prospect Cottage spelled out verses from the beginning and end of John Donne’s poem “The Sun Rising.” It’s a poem that challenges the sun.” January 31, 1942 On this day, the English filmmaker, gay rights activist, painter, poet, and gardener, Derek Jarman, was born Born Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman,…