Today we celebrate a young botanist that wrote the first flora of Ireland at the age of 22. We’ll also learn about the Father of Serbian botany. We hear words about the birds of winter – creatures that entertain us at our bird feeders and fly freely over our winter gardens. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book that has a charming title and it’s all about something called Everlastings – or dried flowers. And then we’ll wrap things up with a play about Australia’s top gardener, and it’s called Edna for the Garden. Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart To listen to the show while you’re at home, just ask Alexa or Google to “Play the latest episode of The Daily Gardener Podcast.” And she will. It’s just that easy. The Daily Gardener Friday Newsletter Sign up for the FREE Friday Newsletter featuring:
A personal update from me Garden-related items for your calendar The Grow That Garden Library™ featured books for the week Gardener gift ideas Garden-inspired recipes Exclusive updates regarding the show Plus, each week, one lucky subscriber wins a book from the Grow That Garden Library™ bookshelf. Gardener Greetings Send your garden pics, stories, birthday wishes, and so forth to Jennifer@theDailyGardener.org Curated News Our Garden Editor Clare Foster On The Big Gardening Trends For 2021 | House & Garden | Clare Foster Facebook Group If you’d like to check out my curated news articles and original blog posts for yourself, you’re in luck. I share all of it with the Listener Community in the Free Facebook Group – The Daily Gardener Community. So, there’s no need to take notes or search for links. The next time you’re on Facebook, search for Daily Gardener Community, where you’d search for a friend… and request to join. I’d love to meet you in the group. Important Events February 25, 1856 Today is the anniversary of the Irish botanist and horticulturist Katherine Sophia Kane. Orphaned as a little girl, Katherine was taken in by her father’s older brother – her uncle – Matthias O’Kelly, and she grew up alongside her cousins. A naturalist, Uncle Matthias fostered Kate’s love for the outdoors and, ultimately, her focus on botany. When Kate was 22 years old, she anonymously published a book that became the first national flora of Ireland, and it was called The Irish Flora Comprising the Phaenogamous Plants and Ferns. With the help of the National Botanic Garden’s John White, Kate’s little book was released in 1833, and it described not only all the Irish flowering plants but also ferns and other cryptograms. Accurate and informative, Kate’s book became a textbook for botany students at Trinity College in Dublin. Three years later, in recognition of her work, Kate became the first woman to be elected to the Botanical Society of Edinburgh. The story of how Kate met her husband Robert is similar to how John Claudius Loudon met his wife, Jane Webb: through her book. In Kate’s case, proofs of The Irish Flora had mistakenly made their way to Robert’s desk. Curious about the work, Robert tracked down Kate’s address and personally returned the proofs to her. The two were married in 1838, and they went on to have ten children. In 1846, Robert was knighted, and Kate became known as Lady Kane. An economist, a chemist, and a scientist, Robert was hired to serve as the President of Queens College. And although Kate was happy for her husband, she put her foot down and refused to move to Cork. Apparently, Kate had designed a magnificent garden with many exotics planted all around their home in Dublin, and she was loath to leave it. And so, much to the school’s dismay, Robert commuted to work until the College insisted he live in Cork during the schoolyear in 1858. And here’s a fun little story about Kate and Robert: as they were both scientists, Kate and Robert would send notes to each other in Greek. February 25, 1888 Today is the anniversary of the death of the famous Serbian botanist, Josif Pančić (“pahn-Cheetz”) In 1874, Josif discovered the Ramonda serbica, commonly known as the Serbian phoenix flower. Like the peace lily, this flower is an excellent indicator plant and flops quite severely when dehydrated. At the same time, it has incredible abilities to revive itself with watering. In Serbia, the flower of the Ramonda serbica is associated with peace after it became a symbol of Armistice Day, which marked the end of WWI. As for Josif, he became known as the father of Serbian botany. Late in his career, Josif came up with the idea for a botanical garden in Belgrade. Built in 1874, the garden proved to be a bit of a disappointment. In no time, it was apparent that the location was poorly sited because it flooded very quickly and damaged most of the various botanical specimens. Sadly Josif never saw the new, lovelier location for the garden. Perfectly situated in the heart of Belgrade, the land was donated by the Serbian King Milan…