Posts Tagged ‘plant exploration’
The Father of American Dendrology: Remembering Humphry Marshall
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 5, 1801 On this day, America lost one of its pioneering botanists, Humphry Marshall. His legacy as the “Father of American Dendrology” continues to influence our understanding of native trees and shrubs…
Read MoreJohn Bradby Blake: The Young Botanist Who Bridged East and West
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 4, 1745 On this day, we celebrate the birth of the English botanist John Bradby Blake [BRAD-bee BLAKE]. Though he lived a tragically short life – dying at just twelve days after…
Read MoreThe Walking Botanist: Celebrating Charles Wright
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 29, 1811 Today we celebrate the birthday of Charles Wright born on this day in Wethersfield, Connecticut. Wright embodied the spirit of botanical exploration in early America, becoming one of the most…
Read MoreA Count’s Legacy: The Botanical Adventures of Hippolyte François Jaubert
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 28, 1798 Today we celebrate Count Hippolyte François Jaubert [ee-po-LEET frahn-SWAH zho-BEAR], a fascinating figure who bridged the worlds of politics and botany in 19th century France. Though his heart yearned for…
Read MoreMarianne North: The Victorian Artist Who Painted the World’s Flora
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 24, 1830 And it was on this day, my dear friend, that one of the most extraordinary botanical artists ever to wield a brush drew her first breath in Hastings, England. I…
Read MoreThe Tree That Kept Time: Ludwig Leichhardt’s Last Garden
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. October 23, 1813 It was on this day in 1813, as autumn leaves were turning in Prussia, that Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt was born. And oh, what a reminder his story is of…
Read MoreFrom Altar to Arbor: The Fruitful Union of David and Marian Fairchild
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 25, 1905 On this most auspicious day, dear garden enthusiasts, we celebrate the union of two extraordinary souls: the eminent botanist David Fairchild and his beloved Marian Graham Bell, daughter of the…
Read MoreBlooms Across the Pacific: Ernest H. Wilson’s Azalea Diplomacy
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. April 24, 1919 On this day, dear garden enthusiasts, a horticultural treasure trove arrived at the hallowed grounds of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University. Ernest H. Wilson, that intrepid plant explorer and…
Read MoreBlooming Against the Odds: Ellsworth Jerome Hill’s Botanical Triumph
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. December 1, 1833 On this day, dear friends of the garden and admirers of human perseverance, a most remarkable individual drew his first breath. Ellsworth Jerome Hill, destined to become a Presbyterian minister,…
Read MoreFrom Meyer Lemons to Asian Treasures: The Extraordinary Life of Frank Nicholas Meyer
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 30, 1875 On this day in horticultural history, Frank Nicholas Meyer, the intrepid Dutch-American plant explorer, entered the world. His birth heralded the arrival of a man whose passion for plants would…
Read MoreThe Widowmaker’s Namesake: Thomas Coulter’s Botanical Legacy
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 28, 1793 Dearest fellow enthusiasts of botanical exploration, today we commemorate the birth of that most intrepid Irish plant hunter, Thomas Coulter, whose legacy blooms eternal in the flora of California. Imagine,…
Read MoreFirst Lady of Mount Kinabalu: The Remarkable Legacy of Lilian Gibbs
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. September 10, 1870 On this day in horticultural history, we find ourselves transported to an era when botanical discovery required more than merely consulting The Garden magazine or ordering from the latest nursery…
Read MoreFrom Yangtze to Your Garden: The Extraordinary Life of Frank Nicholas Meyer
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. May 28, 1918 On this day, the intrepid Dutch-American botanist and USDA Plant Explorer, Frank Nicholas Meyer, embarked upon his final journey. With a heavy heart and weary bones, Frank boarded a steamer…
Read MoreFrom Foreign Soils to American Gardens: The Legacy of Seed Importation
This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. June 28, 1939 On this day, dear readers, we find ourselves transported to a time when the very seeds of agricultural innovation were being sown across our fair nation. It was precisely a…
Read More