The Day the Earth Burped: Solway Moss’s Dramatic Eruption of 1771

River Esk at Arthuret, near the location of the Battle of Solway Moss

This botanical history post was featured on The Daily Gardener podcast: Click here to see the complete show notes for this episode. November 17, 1771 On this day, nature unleashed a most peculiar and terrifying spectacle that would have made even the most stoic of gardeners tremble in their muddy boots. The ancient Solway Moss,…

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Solway Moss

Solway Moss

The Battle of Solway Moss November 17, 1771 On this day, heavy rains caused the ancient raised peat bog known as the Solway Moss to burst over its earthen banks and flow down into a valley and cover 400 acres of farmland. The next day, Solway Moss covered the surrounding land with 15 feet of…

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November 17, 2020 Ten Ways to Rewild, Solway Moss, William Barton, William Caparne, Archibald Lampman, The Garden Chef by Phaidon Editors, and Queen Charlotte

20200101 The Daily Gardener Album Cover

Today we remember the momentous bursting of a peat bog in Scotland. We’ll also learn about the botanist nephew of Benjamin Smith Barton. We’ll honor a British Iris enthusiast and painter. We salute the poet known as the Canadian Keats. We’ll Grow That Garden Libraryâ„¢ with a cookbook for gardeners. And then we’ll wrap things…

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