January Archives

John Henry Corner

The Life of Plants January 12, 1906 Today is the birthday of the brilliant botanist, conservationist, and mycologist, Edred John Henry Corner. As a young boy, John developed a stutter – something he battled all of his life, and it was the main reason he never pursued teaching or lecturing as a career. Sadly, John…

Jean Jules Linden

Appreciation for Orchids January 12, 1898 Today is the anniversary of the death of the 19th-century Belgian botanist, explorer, horticulturist, rare orchid hunter, and businessman Jean Jules Linden. Before he reached 20, Jean began collecting rare orchids in South America. In 1844, Jean discovered the Dendrophylax lindenii or the Ghost orchid in Cuba. But there…

Wintersweet

by Rosemary Verey One day 27 years ago, long before I became an enthusiastic gardener, my husband came home with a bush of wintersweet, given to him by an old lady from her garden. [The woman] said it would not flower for seven years and then forever after would do so generously. She was right.…

Joseph Charles Arthur

Vive Purdue January 11, 1850 Today is the birthday of the American pioneer botanist, plant pathologist, and mycologist, Joseph Charles Arthur. Known for his work with a group of plant fungus known as rusts, Joseph became the first department chair for Botany and Plant Pathology at Purdue University. Joseph held the chair position for half…

William Curtis

Flora Londiniensis January 11, 1746 Today is the birthday of the botanist, entomologist, and founder of the influential Curtis Botanical Magazine, William Curtis. William had started life as an apothecary, but in short order, he discovered that it could not hold his interest. Sir James Edward Smith recalled that William loved being a naturalist more…

January in the Victory Garden

by Ministry of Agriculture, “Dig For Victory” Pamphlet, January 1945 January is a time when you should be thinking and planning, ordering your seed potatoes, vegetable seeds, fertilizers, and so on, and making sure that your tools are in good order and that you are ready to begin gardening in real earnest next month, or…

Walter Tennyson Swingle

The Citrange January 8, 1892 Today is the birthday of the agricultural botanist and plant wizard Walter Tennyson Swingle. Walter was a very popular botanist during his lifetime. Walter introduced the Date Palm to California, and he created many new citruses through hybridizing. In 1897, Walter made the first man-made cross of a Bowen Grapefruit…

Eliza Ridgely

The Hampton House Garden January 8, 1828 On this day, Eliza Ridgely married her fifth cousin and son of a Maryland Governor, John Carnan Ridgely. The couple lived on the Hampton Plantation built by John’s great-uncle Charles Ridgely III in 1790. After construction, it was the largest private residence in the United States. Eliza was…

January 8, 2021 The Three Friends of Winter, Eliza Ridgely, Walter Tennyson Swingle, Dig For Victory January Advice, A Place For Us by Harriet Evans, and Herb Wagner of Wagner Tree Fame

Today we celebrate the avid gardener who transformed the gardens at what was once the largest private residence in the United States. We’ll also learn about the man who created many new citruses through hybridizing. We’ll hear some January advice from a Dig For Victory brochure from WWII. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a…

Vivi Laurent-Täckholm

Swedish Ivy January 7, 1898 Today is the birthday of the Swedish botanist and children’s book author Vivi Laurent-Täckholm. During World War II, Vivi started a flower club that offered rare and exotic plants to Swedish housewives. Vivi’s club debuted several popular houseplants, including pothos and two types of Plectranthus, green-leafed and variegated. As Plectranthus…

Louise Imogen Guiney

The Pinckney Street Poet January 7, 1861 Today is the birthday of the American poet, essayist, and editor Louise Imogen Guiney. Louise was the daughter of a Tipperary-born Civil War General named Patrick Guiney. And after living in constant pain from his war injuries, Louise’s father died when she was 16. But her dad’s bravery…

Syd Barrett

Pink Floyd January 6, 1946 Today is the birthday of the guitarist, singer, songwriter, and co-founder of Pink Floyd, Syd Barrett. After his immense success with Pink Floyd, Syd released two solo LPs and then disappeared into a self-imposed 30-year exile where he spent most of his time painting and gardening. Before his life with…

Kaspar Maria von Sternberg

The Father of Paleobotany January 6, 1761 Today is the birthday of the Bohemian theologian, mineralogist, geognost, entomologist, and botanist Kaspar Maria von Sternberg. Remembered as one of the most important natural scientists of the first half of the 19th century, Kaspar is regarded as the “Father of Paleobotany.” In 1818, Kaspar founded the National…

Robert More

The Morea January 5, 1780 Today is the anniversary of the death of the English academic, attorney, politician, and gardener, who sat in the House of Commons, Robert More. A passionate amateur botanist, the botanist Philip Miller, named the plant genus Morea (“Mor-AY-ah”) in honor of Robert More. But later, Carl Linnaeus altered the spelling…