Ferns Archives

A Victorian Ode to May: Phebe Holder’s Botanical Poetry

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 1, 1890 On this day in horticultural history, the enchanting poem “A Song of May” by the esteemed New England poet and gardener Phebe Holder graced the pages of newspapers, captivating readers…

Deoban’s Secret: India’s Groundbreaking Garden of Cryptogams

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. July 11, 2021 On this day, dear horticultural enthusiasts, we find ourselves transported to the lush, misty heights of the Deoban area in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Here, nestled at a breathtaking altitude of 9,000…

English Gardener and Writer Frances Perry and her Thoughts on Ferns

“Sure enough, there was a baby fern growing inside. The spores can survive in their millions until conditions for growth are right.” April 21, 1985 On this day, the garden writer Frances Perry shared a charming article in her regular gardening column in The Observer about how to grow a fern spore. She wrote: My father-in-law,…

April 21, 2021 Seven Top Indoor Herbs, John Muir, Benjamin Maund, Spring in Paris, Kinship of Clover by Ellen Meeropol, and Frances Perry on Ferns

Today we celebrate a man who found all the answers to life in nature, and we still learn from his profound observations today. We’ll also learn about a botanist and publisher who found fame and forged meaningful connections with top botanical illustrators and horticulturists of his time. We’ll hear an excerpt about spring in Paris…

Remembering Fern Specialist and Botanist Warren “Herb” Wagner, Jr.

“Deer in the winter are nature’s closest thing to actual zombies.” January 8, 2000 Today is the anniversary of the death of a leading botanist in the study of ferns, Warren “Herb” Wagner, Jr. Herb was the founder of modern systematics for plants and animals. Biologists still use “Wagner trees” to classify plants and animals…

How to Know the Ferns by Frances Theodora Parsons

As Heard on The Daily Gardener Podcast: How to Know the Ferns by Frances Theodora Parsons Frances Parsons was an American naturalist and author. She is best remembered for her book on American Wildflowers, but this book is a favorite of mine. One of the reasons I’m a huge Parsons fan is because of her…