Tag - horticulture

Novel tree hunted by fictional Victorians

You can listen to an abridged version of this page as an audio file. The Plant Hunter* by TL Mogford, 2022. Welbeck Fiction Limited. I don’t really read novels (Amanda Prahl). It’s not that I have anything against that...

Cultivating interest in fruits

Taming fruit: How orchards have transformed the land, offered sanctuary, and inspired creativity, by Bernd Brunner, 2021. Greystone Books Ltd. One might tame lions, or dogs, or other animals, but, does one really tame...

This is a berry good book!

Berries by Victoria Dickenson 2020. Reaktion Books Ltd. Even though I’m a Botanist I’ve never had a great understanding of fruits and seeds. I am however, aware that the fruit botanically known as a berry has a very...

Mum’s the word* in new plant book

Chrysanthemum by Twigs Way 2020. Reaktion Books Ltd. Despite being a declared lover of plants, I didn’t include ‘mums’ – as chrysanthemums are commonly known – amongst the plants that I consider most interesting. It was...

Primroses and primulas aplenty

Primrose by Elizabeth Lawson, 2019. Reaktion Books Ltd. To the uninitiated, it may seem rather improbable that anybody can write 288 pages about the primrose. After all, whilst it may be understood that primrose is a...

Making more orchids

Making more orchids

Although micropropagation is a common method these days, much of the science behind regeneration of whole plants from tiny specks of plant tissue remains uncertain.