Synopses & Reviews
From baby blue eyes to silver bells, from abelia to zinnia, every flower tells a story. Gardening writer and historian Diana Wells knows them all. Here she presents one hundred well-known garden favorites and the not-so-well-known stories behind their names. Not for gardeners only, these flower stories tell of human striving stories of ambitious explorers, clever hucksters, arbitrary monarchs, and patient scientists. To compile 100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names, Diana Wells delved deep into horticultural history, etymology, and lore to uncover myths, legends, folk beliefs, and stories of the intrepid botanists who searched the world's far corners for new and unusual flowers.
Review
"This is a delightful book for browsing when it's too cold to be out in the garden." George Cohen, Booklist
Synopsis
Illustrations by Ippy Patterson. From Baby Blue Eyes to Silver Bells, from Abelia to Zinnia, every flower tells a story. Gardening writer Diana Wells knows them all. Here she presents one hundred well-known garden favorites and the not-so-well-known stories behind their names. Not for gardeners only, this is a book for anyone interested not just in the blossoms, but in the roots, too.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 235-240) and index.
About the Author
Diana Wells is the author of 100 Birds and How They Got Their Names and 100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names, has written for Friends Journal, and is contributing editor of the journal Greenprints. Born in Jerusalem, she has lived in England and Italy and holds an honors degree in history from Oxford University. She now lives with her husband on a farm in Pennsylvania.