This pioneering study tells the story of the emergence of rural workers'
gardens during a period of unprecedented economic and social change in
the most dynamic and prosperous region of Scotland.
Much criticised as weed-infested, badly cultivated and disfigured by the
dung heap before the cottage door, eighteenth-century cottage gardens
produced only the most basic food crops. But the paradox is that
Scottish professional gardeners at this time were highly prized and
sought after all over the world. And by the eve of the First World War
Scottish cottage gardeners were raising flowers, fruit and a wide range
of vegetables, and celebrating their successes at innumerable flower
shows.
This book delves into the lives of farm servants, labourers, weavers,
miners and other workers living in the countryside, to discover not only
what vegetables, fruit and flowers they grew, and how they did it, but
also how poverty, insecurity and long and arduous working days shaped
their gardens. Workers' cottage gardens were also expected to comply
with the needs of landowners, farmers and employers and with their
expectations of the industrious cottager. But not all the gardens were
muddy cabbage and potato patches and not all the gardeners were ignorant
or unenthusiastic. The book also tells the stories of the keen gardeners
who revelled in their pretty plots, raised prize exhibits for village
shows and, in a few cases, found gardening to be a stepping-stone to
scientific exploration.
