Plant Talk: Who Is In Control Here, Anyway?

« Oranges? Really? | Main | Harvest Time »

October 08, 2009

Who Is In Control Here, Anyway?

Michael Pollan's fascinating book on plant/human dynamics is coming to PBS this month. Tune in to "The Botany of Desire" on October 28, 8 p.m. on Channel 9 to see Pollan's view of natural history brought to life.

"We don't give nearly enough credit to plants....they've been working on us, they've been using us for their own purposes," says Pollan. So who is in charge here on the planet anyway? See how the tulip, the potato, marijuana and the apple have tantalized and shaped human behavior for centuries. The special broadcast begins in Pollan's own garden, but roams the world from the potato fields of Peru to the tulip markets of Amsterdam.

Posted at 06:00 AM in apples, potatoes, tulips | Permalink

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a011168642488970c0120a61aac40970c

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Who Is In Control Here, Anyway?:

Comments

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

Love any show to do with botany and plants. Thanks for the tip. sparkles

Posted by: Terry Haugen (Sparkles) | October 08, 2009 at 03:59 PM

OOOh, thanks for the heads up!!

Posted by: Riz Reyes | October 08, 2009 at 09:56 PM

Verify your Comment

Previewing your Comment

Posted by: |

This is only a preview. Your comment has not yet been posted.

Your comment could not be posted. Error type:

Your comment has been posted. Post another comment

The letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. Please try again.

As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments.

Having trouble reading this image? View an alternate.

Bayview Farm and Garden

Swansons Nursery

B&D Lilies

Dig Nursery

Far Reaches Farm

Soil Science Products

Renee's Garden

New Book: Petal & Twig

Petal & Twig Made The New York Times!
From Anne Raver's review: "Valerie Easton, a Seattle-based garden writer, discusses the art of growing and arranging cut flowers in “Petal and Twig: Seasonal Bouquets With Blossoms, Branches and Grasses From Your Garden” (Sasquatch Books; $16.95). Written as an informal diary, with photographs of arrangements from her own garden, and tips on cutting and keeping flowers fresh, the book inspires ideas not only on what to grow but on how to combine (or not) those beauties inside. See review here: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/29/garden/new-books-on-growing-and-arranging-flowers.html?scp=1&sq=petal%20&%20twig%20anne%20raver&st=cse
The first reviews on the new book are in! From Publisher's Weekly:
"Open your eyes and keep it simple: those are two lessons Easton passes on from her own 40 years in the garden. When selecting and arranging flowers for bouquets, you needn’t spend a bundle buying a bundle of imported flowers.....The result will be unique, local, imaginative, and inexpensive. Color photos throughout illustrate and inspire."

In the News

Montreal Blogger Reviews "A Pattern Garden"
I was so pleased to find that "A Pattern Garden" is still being reviewed...check out Allan Becker's generous review on his Garden Guru blog.. I felt like Allan really understood what I was working towards in that book....he writes...."There is a delightful abstract quality to this publication. In it, the author takes good garden design to a higher, more spiritual level. Instead of discussing the aesthetic and scientific elements of design, as so many traditional garden design books do, she focuses on the role played in garden design by archetypal ideas - a.k.a. patterns - that reference the longings of human beings. These pleasure and comfort-rooted ideas are those that inspire designers to create gardens that are satisfying beyond their beauty." see more at http://allanbecker-gardenguru.squarespace.com/journal/valerie-easton
Planting art
Check out this interview with Val in the Chicago Tribune on using art in the garden...

About

The New Low Maintenance Garden

Reviews Are In....
"Over the years, countless books have espoused a low-maintenance approach to gardening. None have been as engaging, practical, or inspiring as this latest of Easton's contributions to the gardener's bookshelf,"
- Pacific Horticulture magazine, Jan/Feb/Mar 2010
"A handy guide to a garden you can raise without a corresponding increase in your blood pressure..handsome and informative...."
- Metropolitan Home, Dec. 2009
"This book is an invaluable addition to the garden library – destined to be a classic for many years to come."
- Garden Design Online

Val's Books

Photo Credits

The banner and portrait photos were taken by Jacqueline Koch; all other photos by Val Easton unless otherwise credited.

Plant Talk