Today we celebrate a Dutch botanist who helped advance the cause of medicine and botany in Austria. We’ll also learn about the Brontë sisters on the anniversary of their first published work. We hear an excerpt from Kurt Vonnegut on his thoughts on why there should really be six seasons. We Grow That Garden Library™ with a book about creating a home that is inspired by nature. And then we’ll wrap things up with the birthday of an Indian polymath and poet who won the Nobel Prize in Literature. Subscribe Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher | iHeart To listen to the show while you’re at home, 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 10 Gardening Trends Expected to Grow in 2021 | Bob Vila | Mark Wolfe 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 May 7, 1700 Today is the birthday of the Dutch botanist Gerard van Swieten. As Swieten turned 40 years old, Empress Maria Theresa inherited the Habsburg Empire. She had much to do to get her kingdom in shape. When it came to medicine, Austria was about 200 years behind its European neighbors. The Empress acted quickly, recruiting the best medical experts she could find; Gerard van Swieten was one of the most important people she brought on board. By May 1745, Swieten moved his family to Vienna and set the stage for world-class medical training in Austria. Swieten totally reorganized medicine at the University of Vienna, adding a botanical garden and a chemical laboratory, each headed by a professor. A student of the great Boerhaave, the father of physiology and clinical teaching. Swieten published, in Latin, five volumes on his teachings; those volumes influenced medical practice throughout Europe. It also contained the first description of episodic cluster headache. Swieten exchanged letters with Linnaeus on botanical matters for over a decade. He named his youngest daughter, Maria Theresia, after the Empress, who was also her godmother. His son Godfried would become famous in his own right as an Austrian ambassador and patron of great classical composers such as Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. The genus of mahogany, Swietenia, was named after Swieten. May 7, 1846 The first printed copies of “Poems” by Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë were published under the pseudonym of Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell. Just two copies were sold. To avoid prejudice as female writers, the sisters kept the first letter of their first names: Charlotte was Currer Bell, Emily became Ellis Bell, and Anne was Acton Bell, Emily’s older sister, by two years, was Charlotte. Her younger sister and closest friend was Anne. They were two peas in a pod. After the death of their mother and two older sisters, the four remaining Brontë children were exceptionally close: Charlotte, Emily, Anne, and Branwell. Emma Emmerson wrote a piece called the Brontë Garden. In it, she revealed: “The Brontës were not ardent gardeners, although… Emily and Anne treasured their currant bushes as ‘their own bit of fruit garden.’” Charlotte [once wrote:] “Emily wishes to know if the Sicilian Pea (Pisum sativum)and the Crimson cornflower are hardy flowers, or if they are delicate and should be sown in warm and sheltered situations.” The children’s father, Patrick Brontë, was a bit of a writer as well. He once wrote; Oh why, in the snow and storms of December, When the branches lie scattered and strewn, Do we oftest and clearest and dearest remember The sunshine and summer of June? Here’s an excerpt from a sad little poem Emily Brontë wrote called I know not how it falls on me: I know not how it falls on me, This summer evening, hushed and lone; Yet the faint wind comes soothingly With something of an olden tone. Forgive me if I’ve shunned so long Your gentle greeting, earth and air! But sorrow withers even the strong, And who can fight against despair? Unearthed Words One sort of optional thing you might do is to realize there are six seasons instead of four. The poetry of…