The Hidden Horticulturists: The Untold Story of the Men who Shaped Britain’s Gardens

by Fiona Davison

In 2012, whilst working at the Royal Horticultural Society's library, Fiona Davison unearthed a book of handwritten notes that dated back to 1822. The notes, each carefully set out in neat copperplate writing, had been written by young gardeners in support of their application to be received into the Society's Garden. Amongst them was an entry from the young Joseph Paxton, who would go on to become one of Britain's best-known gardeners and architects. But he was far from alone in shaping the way we garden today and now, for the first time, the stories of the young, working-class men who also played a central role in the history of British horticulture can be told.
Using their notes, Fiona Davison traces the stories of a selection of these forgotten gardeners whose lives would take divergent paths to create a unique history of gardening. The trail took her from Chiswick to Bolivia and uncovered tales of fraud, scandal and madness - and, of course, a large number of fabulous plants and gardens. This is a celebration of the unsung heroes of horticulture whose achievements reflect a golden moment in British gardening, and continue to influence how we garden today.

Genres: Nonfiction, Gardening, History, Nature

368 pages, Hardcover

First published April 4, 2019

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read for all interested in gardening and the history of gardening (in the UK). I enjoyed the focus on 'simple' gardening men, the ones doing the actual work instead of the Lords whose names usually pop up in history books. Some of the stories that the author puzzled together were simply great/terrifying/mesmerizing. On a macro level, she didn't shy away from pointing out inequalities, between the elite and regular people, but also about the topic of colonization and the attitudes that go with that.

Sometimes however, it was hard to read the book because it was so dense with information (this person of this family born then living then on this estate until he moved to the estate of this Sir born then of this family bla... oof you survived three lines of info).

A definitive negative for me was the conjecture, which got worse the closer we got to the end. Whole paragraphs were spent on it, and it wasn't always framed properly. For example, the author spent quite a few pages trying to shed another, more positive light on an infamous gardener, but the defense was weak and it was rather annoying to read the whole thing. It made you wonder if this book is about actual research or something else?

But yes, it's about actual research, and it's a great research project at that. The mix of gardening, stories about people and societal analysis was very enjoyable. I learned a lot and won't forget about this book soon.

[Rob Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised at how interesting all of the stories selected for this book were. A very localised history of gardeners trained in the Chiswick Horticultural Society's garden in a very specific period had a far broader scope than I expected. A tremendously quick and engaging read.

[Misha F · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very nice book about a very niche subject.

[Neil · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

While working for the Royal Horticultural Society, Fiona Davison started researching the gardeners whose names are included in 'The Handwriting of Under-Gardeners and Labourer's' book, a collection of mini biographies which were written by young gardeners when they started working in the society's garden. This book is the result of her research.

Davison has been commendably thorough in her research, and she writes well. It is refreshing to see a book which looks beyond the 'big name' gardeners such as Paxton and Loudon and which attempts to shed some light on the lives of 'ordinary' gardeners of the 1800s. However, the very fact that these gardeners were not 'big names' means that it is hard to discover much about them - especially if one is attempting to write an entire book about them. The paucity of information available means that Davison has inevitably had to use a great deal of 'padding' about things which are not terribly relevant to her topic, just to make the book long enough. It's all good stuff - I just feel that billing the whole book as being about 'The working-class men who shaped Britain's gardens' is somewhat inaccurate. It might have been better either to have written a more general book about gardening in the 1800s, or to have kept the focus on the working class in a series of short articles. There just isn't enough information to fill a whole book.

[Ashley J · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book which is incredibly well researched (which is to be expected given the author's role at the rhs). I am a keen gardening enthusiast and have a real interest in reading about the history of gardening, botany, horticulture etc. This book was engaging and easy to read. Although full of historical detail, the writing is not overwhelming meaning it is easy enough to read, even if you only have a passing interest in horticulture. I'd definitely recommend this book as it is such a lovely topic.

[Naturegirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book inspired me to visit Chatsworth on a recent visit to England to see the gardens. The history in the book is fascinating and presented in such an interesting way. I really had no idea how many of the plants across the world were brought to England, but stories of ships and foreign lands and wealthy estates racing to see who could propagate the first water lily brought the whole time period to life. This book gave a deeper meaning to being at Kew and Chatsworth and all the history of the plants in those places and the men who risked life and limb for the sake of horticulture.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book for the book club that I lead as part of my job. There is a great deal of interesting information and I learned a lot. The way that Davison organized the book made sense, and I liked that she divided chapters by themes and connections between the gardeners, rather than going in chronological order. I do wish that there were more photos, illustrations, and other visuals included in the book, but the ones that are within are good choices!