Like most novice gardeners, when I first took an interest in growing things, I didn't know what I didn't know. As I gathered bits of advice at the nursery and from friends, I also gathered stories. I discovered the delightful value of reading gardeners' memoirs.
Tottering in My Garden by Midge Ellis Keeble was the first book in this genre to come my way. Billed as "a romp through 40 years of gardening," this Canadian actress, broadcaster and teacher describes the six gardens she has established in the various places she has lived. She conquers many challenges, including clay, sand, shade and tired soil.
I learned two important lessons from this book. First, that every gardener has more than one garden within. And second, that gardening is an endeavor worth sharing through story.
Tottering in My Garden by Midge Ellis Keeble was the first book in this genre to come my way. Billed as "a romp through 40 years of gardening," this Canadian actress, broadcaster and teacher describes the six gardens she has established in the various places she has lived. She conquers many challenges, including clay, sand, shade and tired soil.
I learned two important lessons from this book. First, that every gardener has more than one garden within. And second, that gardening is an endeavor worth sharing through story.
During the time I was building my current – and fourth – garden, I picked up Elizabeth's Garden: Elizabeth Smart on the Art of Gardening at a book swap. "During the last years of her life, Canadian author Elizabeth Smart devoted herself to creating a magnificent garden around her cottage in Suffolk, England. She documented her gardening in a series of eleven journals and twenty notebooks," says Google Books' thumbnail sketch of the title: The resulting book, edited by Alice Van Wart, includes excerpts from Smart's writings from 1967 to 1984, and "describes the evolution of her garden, and herself as a gardener."
This last observation – the evolution of the gardener – is the reason I love gardening memoir. I am always curious about the motivations and passions of the people who create gardens. These stories remind us that gardens thrive on imagination as much as they do on compost.
This last observation – the evolution of the gardener – is the reason I love gardening memoir. I am always curious about the motivations and passions of the people who create gardens. These stories remind us that gardens thrive on imagination as much as they do on compost.
Rose | Photo: moguerfile.com hese stories also tell us as much about the gardeners as they do about the gardens. In recounting the autumn catastrophe of hunting hounds pounding through her lovingly-created pond and the sad job of re-establishing it, Elizabeth Smart observes, "You have to abandon pride along with sightly fingernails when you take up gardening."
Sadly, Elizabeth Smart's book may be difficult to track down I suggest making a request at your public library if you want to read it.
Just this week, a colleague shared Alexander Chee's story, The Rosary, published in The New Yorker (April 18, 2018). It's a rather improbable account of establishing a rose garden in the ruined yard of a Brooklyn apartment. It's a story of blind faith and rambling rugosas that strikes at the heart of garden memoir. It made me smile.
If you need a break from watching the snow melt or your tomato seedlings stretch toward the light, I highly recommend stories shared by other gardeners. They will cheer you. They will encourage you for the season ahead.
Sadly, Elizabeth Smart's book may be difficult to track down I suggest making a request at your public library if you want to read it.
Just this week, a colleague shared Alexander Chee's story, The Rosary, published in The New Yorker (April 18, 2018). It's a rather improbable account of establishing a rose garden in the ruined yard of a Brooklyn apartment. It's a story of blind faith and rambling rugosas that strikes at the heart of garden memoir. It made me smile.
If you need a break from watching the snow melt or your tomato seedlings stretch toward the light, I highly recommend stories shared by other gardeners. They will cheer you. They will encourage you for the season ahead.
A little more detail...
Elizabeth Smart (1913-1986) was a Canadian poet and novelist. Her novel, By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept, detailed her romance with the English poet George Barker. Published in 1945. her book is widely considered to be a classic of the prose poetry genre.
Midge Ellis Keeble (1913-2011) was an actress, author and broadcasting pioneer who worked in the early days of CBC. Her obituary in the Globe & Mail.
Elizabeth Smart (1913-1986) was a Canadian poet and novelist. Her novel, By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept, detailed her romance with the English poet George Barker. Published in 1945. her book is widely considered to be a classic of the prose poetry genre.
Midge Ellis Keeble (1913-2011) was an actress, author and broadcasting pioneer who worked in the early days of CBC. Her obituary in the Globe & Mail.
