The illustrated classic of an inspired woman and her flower garden on
Appledore Island.
Celia Thaxter's small garden with hollyhocks and poppies and scarlet
flax was much admired by friends, neighbors, and visitors to the island
off the coast of Portland, Maine. There, she wrote this collection of
remembrances and gardening advice that was originally published in 1894,
shortly before her death. It has never been out of print since.
In vivid prose, Thaxter captures the stretching stems and blossoming
flowers in moods ranging from bitter defeat--delivered by unrelenting
slugs--to the exultant triumph of birdsong and bursting blooms. Any
gardener will understand and take heart from Thaxter's philosophical
outlook. "I am fully and intensely aware," she writes, "that plants are
conscious of love and respond to it as they do to nothing else."
Many artists found inspiration in Celia Thaxter's garden including the
American impressionist, Childe Hassam, who provided this enduring book's
many full-page paintings and chapter head decorations. This book is
perfect for anyone passionate about flowers and the many trials and
triumphs of gardening.