Breaking Ground: Ellen Biddle Shipman’s Garden Legacy

Ellen Shipman (colorized) c. 1890, Streeter collection

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 5, 1869 Today we celebrate the birth of Ellen Biddle Shipman, a woman who found her voice in the whispers of flowers and her strength in the structure of garden walls. Ellen…

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George Elwanger: The Nurseryman Who Made Rochester a “City in a Forest”

George Ellwanger (1816-1906), a German immigrant who co-founded the Ellwanger & Barry Nursery in Rochester, New York, in 1840.

Flower City Co-Founder November 26, 1906  Today is the anniversary of the death of the German-American horticulturist and nurseryman George Ellwanger (“El-WANG-ur”). In the mid-1800s, George Ellwanger and his Irish business partner and experienced nurseryman, Patrick Barry, claimed their Rochester, New York nursery was the largest in the world. Built on 650 acres along Mount…

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Cultivating Beauty: The Life and Work of David Darrell

David F. Darrell

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 10, 1946 On this day, dear readers, we celebrate the birth of a true artist of the earth, landscape architect David Darrell. Like a well-planned garden, Darrell’s life was a harmonious blend…

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