Dawn with the Iris King: Remembering William Rickatson Dykes

William Rickatson Dykes

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 4, 1877 Today we celebrate the birth of William Rickatson Dykes [RICK-et-sun DYKES], born in Bayswater, London. Though he began his career as a classics teacher at Charterhouse School, it was his…

Read More

Pansies, Painters, and Prestige: The Horticultural Reign of Denys Zirngiebel

Portrait of John Denys Zirngiebel, 1906

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 16, 1964 On this day, dear readers, we bid a fond farewell to Denys Zirngiebel, a Swiss-born naturalist whose green thumb left an indelible mark on American horticulture. Like a well-tended perennial,…

Read More

From Railroad to Orchard: The Remarkable Journey of Ivan Michurin

Michurin walking in the garden, 1934

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. June 7, 1935 On this day, dear cultivators of curiosity and admirers of horticultural ingenuity, we bid farewell to a true titan of the botanical world. Ivan Michurin, the Russian botanist and plant…

Read More

Remembering Jim Zampini and the Art and Joy of Growing Crab Apples

Nurseryman Jim Zampini

“If you want to plant a mini-orchard of Crabapple trees, space the saplings 6 to 15 feet apart. Group them on the closer end of that range if you are planting dwarf or more upright varieties.” April 14, 2017 On this day, the Beijing Crabapple Conference began.   Visitors toured the Crabapple Garden during the…

Read More

10,000 Acres of Experiments: Thomas Andrew Knight’s Garden Legacy

Thomas Andrew Knight

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. August 12, 1759 Dearest garden companions, it is with great delight that I share with you the birth of a most remarkable horticultural luminary. It’s the birthday of Thomas Andrew Knight, who blessed…

Read More

The Corn Professor’s Silent Fortune: George Shull’s Retirement

George Shull

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. July 9, 1942 On this day, dear readers, society columns and agricultural gazettes alike buzzed with news that would scarcely ruffle the petticoats of the fashionable set, yet sent tremors through America’s breadbasket.…

Read More

The Many Moods of Darwin Revealed Through His Letters

Charles Darwin 1868

“At present, I care for nothing in this wide world except the biology of seedling plants.” May 7, 1855 On this day, Darwin wrote to William Darwin Fox: I am rather low today about all my experiments — everything has been going wrong — the fan-tails have picked the feathers out of the Pouters in…

Read More

Reverend Engleheart: A Pastor with a Passion for Daffodils

White Lady Daffodil

“Great Daffodils like ‘Beersheba, ‘Lucifer, or ‘White Lady… are his floral legacy.” April 25, 1851 On this day, Daffodil breeder Reverend George Herbert Engleheart was born. George’s work with Daffodils was prolific and he produced over 700 varieties in his lifetime.   Fans of great Daffodils like ‘Beersheba,’ ‘Lucifer,’ or ‘White Lady,’ owe a debt…

Read More

The Corn Whisperer: George Harrison Shull’s Botanical Legacy

George Harrison Shull, colorized portrait

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: April 15, 1874 On this day, dear devotees of the garden and aficionados of agricultural innovation, we celebrate the birth of a true botanical revolutionary: George Harrison Shull. Born in 1874, this American botanist would grow to earn the illustrious title of “father of…

Read More