“You must visit my friend Mary; she’s a plantswoman.”
I’m a fairly placid sort of chap really. I do what I do and I’m largely happy for the world around me to just happen.
The word ‘plantsman’ or ‘plantswoman’, however, elicits a strong response from me; I’m never rude I hope, but if someone introduces themselves as a plantsperson then I do feel inclined to challenge them.
Apios americana is an American species grown gaining popularity in the UK
What is a plantsperson anyway?
It’s a word banded around fairly widely in the gardening world, but as far as I can see there is no actual definition.
In my experience ‘plantspeople’ fall into three categories:
1. People who have a large collection of plants.
2. People who have a large collection of opinions.
3. People who know a lot about plants.
Bistorta ‘White Eastfield’, a bistort I’m keen to recommend
Collections
‘Plant collections’ fall into two categories.
You have the botanical collections, where enthusiasts have gathered together a large number of plants with a common theme. This might be plants from a particular region or habitat, plants of a particular botanical family or genus, or even plants raised by a certain breeder or during a certain era. These collections are built by gardeners with specific interests, with the best ending up being important reference collections for us all.
A collection of asters would be a great thing to have for this time of the year…
Then we have the ‘credit card collections’, gatherings of plants brought together by someone who just likes having lots of plants. There’s no problem at all with gardeners having a lot of plants together, providing of course they work together to create a garden that is pleasing to the gardener. However, spending lots of money at the nursery doesn’t, or at least shouldn’t, imply any particular level of knowledge.
Opinions
It’s healthy to have opinions about plants and gardens. Sharing those opinions, however, can be risky.
An Aucuba or ‘spotted laurel’; just because it’s not fashionable doesn’t mean it’s not a great plant
As the old saying goes, “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all”; this would certainly be good advice for some in gardening circles. Having an opinion doesn’t mean you’re right, and lambasting someone else’s planting choices purely because you wouldn’t have done what they have done is nothing but rude and obnoxious.
Choysia ‘Sundance’; like many plants with yellow leaves it’s looked down on by some gardeners
There are those in ‘planty’ circles who have made themselves into gardening personalities purely by by being opinionated, and some are just unnecessarily rude. If a plant is grown to perfection by an enthusiastic gardener then it should be celebrated, at least publicly.
Knowledge
I love having plant knowledge. I hope I never use it to belittle other gardeners; that’s not what I’m about.
I get enormous enjoyment from being able to go into a garden and know what I’m looking at; it gives me a greater appreciation of the depth of what I’m seeing.
Those who don’t spend their time nerding out with plants will still enjoy garden visiting, although as with my recent Abbotsbury post I do wonder about those people who just march around everywhere; how do they see things?! I personally enjoy knowing about the plants and taking my time to personally appreciate them.
A wise gardener once imparted a very important piece of gardening wisdom to me: novice gardeners think they’ve got a good knowledge of all they need to know, while expert gardeners are those who appreciate the scale of how much they can never possibly grasp.
Some of the books in my library; so much knowledge shared on these pages
Certainly when I was a novice gardener I knew how to sow seeds and take cuttings. I knew how to plant trees and roses. As I’ve gained more experience I’ve had to come to terms with the fact that gardening knowledge is a lot more fluid and flexible than I’d originally thought. Some people will find this intimidating, others will find it exciting; it’s down to us as individuals.
I’ve had the privilege to meet some incredibly knowledgeable plant people in my life so far; these range from amazing ‘arch-nerds’ who know a everything about a small number of plants, right the way through to people who are knowledgeable about a wide range of topics. I respect and value all those people who have encouraged me to look outwards to learn new things.
Knowledge is a precious gift and should never be squandered.
Status
Inevitably there are always those who seek status in life. Some are regarded highly because they’re generous and kind, while others just try to put others down.
I’m not naïve; this is something that occurs everywhere in society, not just in gardening.
Camellias are popular garden plants with gardeners around the world, subject to the right conditions
Those who weaponise obnoxiousness should be ignored. There’s no need to belittle other gardeners. No good comes from putting people down, and just buying plants for your gardener doesn’t make you a ‘somebody’ (although the nursery will be glad to see you!).
I increasingly wonder about those gardeners who leave nurseries or plant fairs with cars full of plants; do they all have massive gardens, or do they kill lots of plants?
A Proper Plantsperson
Let’s leave our egos at the garden gate and come into the plant world with an open mind and an open heart. We don’t need to compete; there’s plenty of joy for all of us. We can all afford to share our love of plants and gardens.
Anthemis ‘E.C. Buxton’. Mr Buxton was a well-regarded British plantsman
It’s nice to share plants but that’s not always possible for all of us, yet sharing our experiences and knowledge with others, with the aim of helping other gardeners out, must surely be a noble aim.
This display of Dahlias is fabulous, whether the varieties are common or rare. This is what gardening is about…
To me the mark of a true plantsperson is their willingness to share their knowledge and passion with others. When we’re in the company of a plantsperson we should be excited by new possibilities and a new love for our gardens, not downtrodden because our plants aren’t rare or obscure enough.
*When I say ‘library’ I mean the chaotic arrangement of bookshelves hosting an assortment of gardening books in a bedroom.
In America, several states offer a bit of horticultural programming that results in a dubious title of “Master Gardener”. For me, those who declare themselves to be such have always proven to vastly overestimate their knowledge. Better to bestow a title like plantsperson to those whose knowledge we admire. But let’s hope even those folks have the modesty not to carry that weighty mantle.
So true
Thank you.
I’m always wary of using the word ‘expert’ in relation to gardening; I don’t mind saying that I have a pretty good gardening knowledge, but I could easily be sideswiped by a question about something I’m less expert on. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I will never know it all.
Modesty has been an admirable trait in the people I personally regard as plantspeople; sure they have impressive careers and know an enormous amount about plants, but they’ve all been far more interested in sharing that knowledge rather than making themselves look and feel important.
And then there are the armchair splitter taxonomists…
Well it’s good to have a hobby…
A good way to deal with such people I’ve found is to suggest the splitting of Acer; you could put all the Acers with big leaves into one genus, the ‘palmatum-types’ into another, then another genus for the evergreens and then genera for single species like Acer carpinifolium.
The way they recoil in horror at the suggestion that such an iconic genus could be chopped around so much tells you all you need to know. By all means anyone can put forward a theory about lumping and splitting, but the rest of us don’t have to agree with that theory!
“The possession of a quantity of plants, however good the plants may be themselves and however ample their number, does not make a garden; it only makes a collection. Having got the plants, the great thing is to use them with careful selection and definite intention.”
Gertrude Jekyll
Wise words indeed.
I should have added ‘rare plant collectors’ to the mix, the “I don’t care what it is as long as it’s rare” lot. The idea that someone would turn their back on a plant that performs reliably just because other people like it, and it’s liked enough to get it into widespread cultivation, is ridiculous.
I once knew someone who prided himself on growing things which were not in the Plant Finder.
An accolade that applies to a surprisingly large number of plants.
I would add a fourth, broader category: a person who likes and appreciates plants. A lot.
That love of plants really is the cornerstone, isn’t it. I might suggest that the love of plants is the driving force behind the quest for knowledge.
Love, love, love this article.
Thank you very much.
In the US, plantman can also refer to a commercial grower.
Interesting to know, thank you.
As someone who has a know-it-all streak and is a “credit card collector” in recovery, this was a great read. I hope you continue to write articles about gardening culture.
I will *attempt* to justify my hodgepodge garden by saying that as a newer gardener, it can pay off to simply try many different things and see what works for your conditions and the care you give. I’ve killed my fair share of plants, but I’ve also found some unusual successes. Nowadays I’m taking a more measured approach and repeating things that have worked, but a handful of my favorite plants are ones I wouldn’t have discovered without my initial shotgun approach. Thankfully, most of the casualties along the way were grown from seed, and seeds are relatively cheap!
The question for me is have you killed enough plants, and had enough unusual successes, to be able to share that knowledge with other gardeners?
I too have killed far too many plants. I mean seriously, it’s a good thing they don’t send you to prison for killing plants! I try to learn why a plant has died, although sometimes it’s just one of those things, and I hope that I’m picking up a reasonable impression of how certain plants perform.
The term “Master Gardener” bestowed on those of us lucky enough to have had the 66 hours of classroom training (the Oregon standard anyway) is perhaps misleading and unfortunate, but the training emphasizes learning how to research and find answers to the public’s questions and leads to countless hours of volunteering on various gardening projects big and small where the real learning takes place. The gardeners I’ve met in and through this program are generous and fun to be with. The other state Master Gardener program with which I’m familiar, North Carolina’s, was also rigorous, offering far more than “a bit of horticultural programming.”
Interesting that you say that the training emphasises learning how to research…
As I said in my article, and as I suspect you’re accutely aware yourself, gardening is an absolutely vast subject. No one person could ever realistically know everything. It’s long been a criticism of mine about horticultural education here in the UK that students leave their courses thinking they know their subjects, only to find that even a degree level they know the tiniest amount of what’s out there. I’m sure there are reasons why students are spoon-fed their information, but given the vastness of horticulture I think it’s a huge failing that students here aren’t being taught how to research and evaluate evidence.
Hello Kathleen, thank you for countering the negativity with which this column began. As a recipient of some very helpful advice and indeed knowledge from our wonderful, friendly, knowledgeable Denver-area Master Gardeners, I very much appreciate their generosity in GIVING their time.
I’m not sure if there’s some form of mild poisoning in the water Ben drinks, but his cynical, supposedly witty, wry commentary Just Turns Me Off.
Thank you again, Kathleen.
Thank you for your reply.
I assure you that I have nothing against the US ‘Master Gardeners’. I find Kathleen’s comment interesting; the idea that gardeners learn the skills they need to teach themselves, as opposed to learning a series of things to pass an exam and receive a certificate, is one that I think would be good to adopt in the UK as well. I’m delighted that people who have undergone this training are sharing their knowledge with others.
I love your definition of ‘Library’!
It’s a very informal affair I assure you.
Plantsmen are defined by having a broad knowledge of plants and by liking to grow plants that are new to themselves. It may be correlated with snobbery, but that’s not a necessary part of the definition, and it’s unhelpful to conflate them. By doing so, you’re stigmatizing self-identified “plantsmen” unnecessarily.
Interesting, and yes I would agree.
But where is this ‘definition’? And how does this apply to those whose only expression of the plants that they value is to deride things that they deem beneath them?
I agree with the definition of knowledge and enthusiasm as core tenets of ‘plantsmanship’, but there are too many for whom ‘plantsmanship’ is a false status.
Thank you, Kevin. More negativity from Ben, even in a reply. Spare us, please.
I assure you that I have no interest in being ‘negative’.
Kevin suggests that there is a definition of a ‘plantsperson’, and I was curious to know if this definition has been covered by a publication or by a special interest group. I certainly don’t write for GardenRant with the aim of introducing negativity or cynicism; I write about ideas that interest me.