My Favorite Plant: Writers and Gardeners on the Plants They Love

by Jamaica Kincaid

A delightful compendium of writing on plants.

The passion for gardening and the passion for words come together in this inspired anthology, a collection of essays on topics as diverse as beans and roses, by writers who garden and by gardeners who write. Among the contributors are Christopher Lloyd, on poppies; Marina Warner, who remembers the Guinée rose; and Henri Cole, who offers poems on the bearded iris and on peonies. There is also an explanation of the sexiness of castor beans from Michael Pollan and an essay from Maxine Kumin on how, as Henry David Thoreau put it, one "[makes] the earth say beans instead of grass."

Most of the essays are new in print, but Colette, Katharine S. White, D. H. Lawrence, and several other old favorites make appearances. Jamaica Kincaid, the much-admired writer and a passionate gardener herself, rounds up this diverse crew. A wonderful gift for green thumbs, My Favorite Plant is a happy collection of fresh takes on old friends.

Wayne Winterrowd / Meconopsis
Marina Warner / The Rayburn and the Rose
Michael Pollan / Consider the Castor Bean
Ken Druse / Desire under the Jacks
Duane Michals / The Vanishing Act
Colette / Lily
Christopher Lloyd / Poppies
Karel Capek / Buds
Colette / Hellebore
Daniel Hinkley / Hellebores
Katharine S. White / Irises
Henri Cole / Bearded Irises, Peonies
Michael Fox / My Grandmother and Her Peonies
Thomas C. Cooper / Hardy Geraniums
D. H. Lawrence / Sicilian Cyclamens
Nancy Goodwin / Cyclamen
Mary Keen / Auriculas
Maxine Kumin / Beans
F. Kingdon Ward / A Day on the Edge of the World
Tony Avent / Hostas
Hilton Als / Marigolds
Dan Chiasson / Ovid at Tomi
David Raffeld / Thirteen Roses
Graham Stuart Thomas / Old Clove Carnations
Steven A. Frowine / Tropical Lady's Slipper Orchids
Ernest Wilson / Honeypots and Silver Tree
Philip Levine / Wisteria
Thomas Fischer / Delphiniums
Geoffrey B. Charlesworth / A Favorite Plant
Frederick Seidel / Prayer
Katharine S. White / Gourds
Ian Frazier / Memories of a Press-Gang Gardener
William Carlos Williams / Queen-Ann's-Lace
D. H. Lawrence / Purple Anemones
Elaine Scarry / Columbine

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Essays, Plants, Nature, Anthologies, Environment

329 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1998

About the author

Jamaica Kincaid is an Antiguan-American novelist, essayist, gardener, and gardening writer. She was born in St. John's, Antigua (part of the twin-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda). She lives in North Bennington, Vermont (in the United States), during the summers, and is Professor of African and African American Studies in Residence at Harvard University during the academic year.

Reviews

[Diane Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Random essays on different plants all over the world. Very good bedtime reading.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whatever horrors are going on out there, guys [gestures broadly], it's nice to just be able to read about how some people love their plants.

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

It didn't bode well when the binding split the moment I lifted the front cover of this adorable little hardcover book. Then I found myself irritated by the overly precious font, with little loops sprinkled throughout. At some point these things ceased to matter. Like any collection of writings from various authors, some selections I loved, some I didn't. Overall my response to this book can be summed up in one word: covetousness. I want these plants, all of them, even the fussy ones. At the same time I marvel, incredulous, at the lengths some gardeners are willing to go for certain specimens. You repot them twice a season? Every year?? Really??? A plant who requires that much attention is doomed in my garden.

I wish castor beans were not so terribly poisonous. I would surely love to grow them.

When I first began this book, I compsed a small poem with which I intended to start this recap. I close with it instead:

Not to make a big production,
I've some issues with construction;

But this book is well worth a long look.

LOL.

[Jane Wolno · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of short stories and poems written by nutty gardeners!

[Cade · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn’t love all of the essays here, but it was a cozy little read. The world is burning down, but we still have plants.

[Nikki Breitner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful composition of essays and poetry. I now have a much finer appreciation for gardens and their gardeners. I am excited for one day in the future when I can own a space to dedicate to the beauty of gardening, just as these writers have

[Suzy Kopf · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was excited about this book but it never took off for me. I found the essays uneven in their style and frankly, power.

Favorite quotes:
"Memory is a gardener's real palette; memory as it summons up the past, memory as it shapes the present, memory as it dictates the future" foreword, Jamaica Kincaid

"Sometimes prettiness doesn't quite cut it. I suspect it was partly for this reason that the great eighteenth century landscape designers always made sure to include a note of morality in their compositions--a gothic ruin, a forbidding grotto, a scary chunk of statuary. They wanted the passing cloud of some momento mori to briefly darken the sweet pastoral scene, inducing a tinge of melancholy in the visitor and perhaps, rendering the pretty more poignant." Michael Pollan

[Miriam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't get much out of this. Grace Paley on the cover said this would be great for amateur gardeners as an introduction and inspiration. Not so much for me.

I should have read more about the list of authors. I really like Jamaica Kincaid's work, so I was hopeful about her as the editor. But most of these folks are gardener-world people rather than writers, and/or they write about gardening, which is not the kind of writing I was hoping for.

There are a few little gems, when you get a glimpse of a person's life and priorities and household based on their favorite plant, but mostly it was a lot of describing leaf shapes and growing conditions, which was boring to me.

(So really I didn't finish, which if you know me is unheard of. But I'm giving myself credit for it because I stuck it out through the gross marigold chapter and then ended up at the used bookstore and I told myself if they wanted it they could have it and it would be a sign that it was OK not to finish.)

[Leo W. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not completely disappointing, just mostly so.

[Rose Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful selection of essays about particular plants and about the love of gardening.

[Anu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always been an ambivalent gardener. All plants have a mind of their own; who are we, but measly mortals, to dictate where they shall grow? But, reading this book, I recognise that I also lack a vital attribute needed for a good gardener - the burning desire to possess. The gardeners in the book go to great lengths to acquire their plants and to see them in *their* garden gives them immense satisfaction. I’m not so ambitious. Chancing upon a golden poppy on the sidewalk gives me the same unalloyed joy if it were in my yard. I suppose I’ll never be a great gardener. 🤷🏽‍♀️

But it sure doesn’t stop me from enjoying this book of delights - an anthology of essays by gardeners writing about their favourite plant. Some with hushed tones of reverence, some with dulcet descriptions of their object of desire, some with prosaic lists of behaviour and habitat but a few that elevate their chosen ones to miracles of the universe. I particularly loved how this is an unillustrated book, each plant being only painted with words, allowing the reader to know the plant as intimately and languorously as one can only do with prose or poetry.

I cannot remember the last time I felt this kind of pleasure while reading a book. Even the mediocre essays were mere annoyances punctuating a sublime botanical harmony. Jamaica Kincaid, thank you for this compendium 💚

[Juta Kruusmäe · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I felt while reading? These short texts were like small love letters: 
Oh, dear flower, my plant, I put so much love and labour into you, but you treat me like this. Yet I love you so much, especially if I see you bloom only for a second.

“Auriculas make one greedy,” oh, yes, Auriculas are so pretty-pretty, best online images!!!

Columbine were darlings, too, in my search engine.

“William Blake would like my garden. It is a green mossy cabinet of floral curiosities where every ordinary bloom has a soul and is more bizarre than any black hole full of falling stars.” Duane Michals.

What I was thinking in the end of the book? I felt like this book does not acknowledge that climate change is happening, that we are facing multiple other environmental problems, and acting as if we do not understand why native plants are good for ecosystems. It was a strange world, and I do not know this world where you would fly to another country to get a specific plant. Trophy hunting

It is agood idea to cultivate environmental stewardship through hands-on gardening, but could we have a bit less of that trophy hunting?

WTF, daddy references?

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the idea of writers focusing short essays on a specific plant. It seems like the most beautiful way to get new perspective on nature.

What I loved: The curation absolutely excels at diverse writing styles and voices. The first essay probably is my favorite of the whole bunch. But so many of them flow with gorgeous prose and vivid imagery. It sparked a desire within me to maybe dabble in my own short essays on my favorite plants.

What I didn’t love: Not all the essays inspired me. Some of the poetry was a little too out there for me to enjoy. I also wished Kincaid offered an essay of their own on a favorite plant.

Bottom line: I’d recommend to anyone who loves plants and especially gardening.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really mixed bag. The worst of these read like how-to garden-catalog annotations. And some were so loosely tied to a flower as to produce a "Huh?" The best were mostly memoir - Marina Warner's essay on the Guinee Rose; Ian Frazier's Ohio suburban reverie, and Michael Fox's ode to his grandmother and her peonies. Maxine Kumin and Katherine White were eloquent about beans and gourds, and F. Kingdon-Ward was enthusiastic about exploration in northern India/Nepal. But that was a mere six essays/poems of 34. To say Kincaid makes odd choices here is a bit of an understatement. I much preferred her memoir of traveling in the Himalaya.

[Zuska · Rating 3 out of 5]

An uneven collection that was nevertheless entertaining. The conceit is that the collected essays each represent one of Kincaid's favorite plants. My least favorite essays were the ones that were long recitations of "...and this species blooms at x time of year in a stunning shade of mauve with a yellow eye, and the umbels..." Still there are enough really interesting pieces to make it worth it and I got introduced to some writers I hadn't previously read, so overall a fun read.

[Aberdeen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these essays were lovely and had me grabbing my phone to look up pictures of the plants they were describing. Others were just collections of paragraphs to get through. The unevenness in style and quality of the entries pulled the rating down for me, but overall it was a lovely look into a world I have little experience with.

[idiotwithasword · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book in a morning. It made me long for a world that was gone before I was born. I loved this book. Except the guy on the expedition. I didn't like you, sir, sorry. HUGE Himalayan Blue Poppy representation.

[RuBisCO Reviews · Rating 2 out of 5]

The collection doesn't feel intentional and is mainly just a lot of random writings. Nothing of interest but mostly just "I like this plant and this is what it looks like". The majority of boring essays don't make up for the few excellent ones here.

[Annie Oosterwyk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not brilliant. I was hoping for more.

[Peyton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the essays Beans and Memories of a Press-Gang Gardener.

[Bibliomama · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved most of the selections in this book. But several almost put me off of poetry forever.

[Annabelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely read over morning tea.

[Laura Hyatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

not how I would have curated it

[Carla Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with many essay collections, this is uneven. Some essays were tedious, a few were delightful.

[Zozan Baran · Rating 3 out of 5]

I needed a visual guide to this book...

[Phil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as amazing as the title.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when I lived in New Hampshire after meeting the Author.It was a lovely old Strawberry Farm,kinda misty,cloudy overcast day as I sat listening to Jamaica readings!Being an Herb&Flower Gardener,I was amazed by the relationships of certain plants and their caretakers.This is a lovely,Sunday morning read,moving,stirs the heart!I concluded that "The MorningGlory"is my favorite plant!What is your's?I no longer live in beautiful New Hampshire_but the memory is like yesterday for a few hours spent in the middle of a Strawberry Farm on a misty mid-morning contemplating_what is my favorite plant?

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book as a gift, I think, and I enjoyed paging throughout, reading about various writers' favorite plants. Some were essays, some were memoirs, others were poems, but each brought a flash of color and life into this otherwise grey spring. My favorites were the funny ones--the man who'd been trained to garden by his grandmother, e.g.--and the philosophical. Now that I've finished, I'm ready to garden myself. Hurry up, spring!

[Sarah Sattin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll admit I didn't read all the essays/poems. Some writers didn't speak to me and frankly the whole thing was a little too long. Still more than a few great pieces and writers who I will come back to, I'm sure.

[Gail Kennon]

particularly liked the excerpt 'buds' from karel capek's book "the gardener's year".