Elizabeth Lawrence was a home gardener, author and a meticulous record keeper of what was happening in her garden and the gardens near her.
One of the most inspirational things about Ms. Lawrence is that she did much of her own work in the garden, so when we read about her garden and her plants, we feel that we might re-create some of what she did in our own gardens at home.
Elizabeth Lawrence lived from 1904-1985, a true southerner (born in Marietta, Georgia, and lived most of her life in North Carolina) and a bluestocking. She attended Barnard, followed by achieving a degree in Landscape Design from the University of North Carolina. She was the first woman to graduate from that program. Several of her books are compilations of her long-standing column in the Charlotte Observer, as she wrote over 700 columns during her lifetime. She lived in Raleigh, North Carolina before finally settling in Charlotte, where you can visit her garden. Thanks to the Friends of Elizabeth Lawrence, the garden and her house have been maintained and are available for viewing. Click here to visit the Friends of Elizabeth Lawrence website.
Elizabeth Lawrence's books and writings have had such a timeless appeal that a new book has come out just last February, Beautiful at all Seasons, published by Duke University Press. This book contains over 100 of her columns not yet released in book form. Ms. Lawrence's book A Southern Garden is a classic, and has been reprinted many times since its publication in 1942. It was most recently reprinted in 2001.
Reading Ms. Lawrence's books, it is easy to catch the contagion of her love for the plants that make up her garden. She read widely, communicated with other gardeners, and spent much deep observation about each variety available to her, reveling in trying new things. She was a keen observer of her plants, and those in gardens far and wide. Gardens that she could not visit, she took note of through her wide correspondence. Through the records of her observation, we can get a good picture of the succession of bloom in her garden, something that is a goal of many gardeners - to have something blooming year 'round.
Market Bulletins! These are weekly, bi weekly, or monthly publications by state agriculture departments that have ads for all sorts of things. What we are most intersested in are the listing for flowers - plants and seeds. But the entire publication can be pretty entertaining!
Click here to see an online version of the Georgia Department of Agriculture Market Bulletin and to subscribe to the print edition, which can be delivered to your home!
Here is a sample of an ad from the above, just to whet your appetite. "Hellebore, Lenten rose, already in bud, $10/2gallon, drought/deer proof, coming soon, double queen Hellebores, rare."
Click here for more links to more State Market Bulletin sites!
Have a look at our Garden Art page - click here!
The special charm of a Southern spring is its earliness; it is as long drawn out as it is sweet. First a few a few white hyacinths appear, and then the snowflakes and violets (if they have not already begun to bloom in January), and then the early daffodills and flowering trees and shrubs. -
from A Southern Garden see sources for more book information