Onward and Upward in the Garden

A collection of articles Katherine S. White wrote for the New Yorker in the 1950s and 1960s. Most are reviews of seed catalogs, while the end chapters focus on reviews of nature and garden books being published at that time. If you like to read about gardens and flowers, reader beware. This is FULL of books you will want to look at and read, and with the ease of the internet now, it is all to easy to find yourself clicking away and ordering books mentioned here. I bought two. I count myself restrained.

White has a straightforward way of discussing both the good and the bad in the garden books. She doesn't hesitate to tell you her preferences and opinions in flower arrangement and garden blooms. At the same time, I felt as though I were show more sitting with my grandmother discussing the various seed catalogs and possibilities for the garden. She is both charming and literary, well spoken and firm in her ideas. She weaves in history, lore and childhood memories in the most natural way.

At the end of the book, there is a large section with seed and plant nurseries which were still operating at the time of this publication, 1979. There is also an introduction by E. B. White. Very charming line drawings of plants and flowers at the beginning and end of each chapter of the book. show less

A compilation of Katharine S. White's essays on gardening, collected into a single volume after her death and published with a gem of an introduction by her husband, one E.B. White. Who, other than Katharine White, would have thought to review seed and flower catalogs for The New Yorker? Her lively, opinionated prose makes for wonderfully enjoyable reading, even if the annual reviews which make up the first part of the book do get ever-so-slightly repetitive. The more thematic essays in the second half (on roses, house plants, winter gardening, and on horticultural books generally) are excellent.

Utterly charming from start to finish, and the introduction is worth a read all on its own.

This gardening book is a compilation of articles originally written as a column for The New Yorker magazine. It took me by surprise. The individual essays are not actually about gardening per se, but are for the most part, reviews of seed catalogs. I have done this once myself, so I was a bit intrigued. It turns out Mrs. White is quite opinionated about gardening and the development of new plant varieties- especially how showier flowers and bigger produce seem to be all the seedsmen are aiming for- at least that was her take on it. She disparages a lot of trends in the seed catalogs, which makes for some amusing reading. Here and there she mentions her own experiences with certain plants, which were the parts I really enjoyed. She show more doesn't just talk about plants, though. She criticizes (or praises where it was merited) the paper quality, choice of typography and clarity of photos in the seed catalogs. Later in the book are a few reviews of different types of publications regarding plants- field guides to wildflowers and oversized gardening books meant to be decorative (I call them "coffee table" books). I admit I was totally uninterested in the two chapters about books on formal flower arranging, styles in flower arrangement, and flower shows. I kind of skimmed through that. I puzzled a bit at how often she made a point of telling which supplier had what particular variety of a species, until I recalled the publication date: there was no internet back then. You couldn't just do a search and find where to buy the rose your grandmother used to grow or anything. So of course she made notes on which seeds suppliers grew, developed and sold what particular strains of plants. Specializing in roses, or azaleas, or herbs, etc. Helpfully, in the back of the book is a listing of all the catalogs and suppliers mentioned, with brief notes if they are still in business or have changed their focus. Only the last two chapters review gardening books of the kind I like to read- and here I did note down a few titles that sound particularly good. And on a different note, the introduction is written by her husband, a lovely portrait of Mrs. White and some of her gardening habits.

from the Dogear Diary show less

A passionate, engaging book about gardening. Katharine S White writes about gardening in Maine and other gardening topics with an exquisite sensibility and a compelling voice. I was very surprised by how engaging this book was, all due to the author and her skills.

I will admit this book is not for everyone and if you are not passionate about flowers and flower gardening or reading about a woman living in the 50's then just skip this book but I found it to be a treasure. I did take my time reading it, I think this is the longest I have ever taken to finish a book! I chose to pick it up at different times of different seasons when my interest was inspired. This is not a book to be read at one time. Katharine had spunk and she drew me in right off the bat and when I thought I just might give up on a certain topic I was finding dull she would write something that would make me chuckle. I just fell in love with her. I looked up some of the seed companies and found them to still be doing business and I show more actually bought some bulbs from one of them! I was drawn to this book because I was born in 1959 and was curious to see the writing style of that time and hoped to get a glimpse into what my Mother's life might have been like. I have copied 2 other reviewer's opinions because they described Katharine and her book better than I could. If you choose to give it a try, I hope you fall in love with her too!

Apr 11, 2009 Marguerite rated it 4 stars
I've never met an opinionated gardener I like more than the late Katharine S. White. The essays in this book shaped me somewhat, to the extent that they helped me accept my own gardening prejudices and limitations. More than anything, though, they helped me to dream, to visualize perfection in my own little piece of sod. I've come close to that mark a couple of times, but not on the shady lot we now call home. This is a book for winter months, the times you'd like nothing better than to sink your hands into some good earth and make things grow. The only thing better than reading about it is doing it. But, if you're going to read about it, read White

Char rated it 4 stars June 13, 2007 Katharine's wit is very English, genteel, 50's and I found myself laughing aloud at least once per chapter. This is a book to savor over time. Read a few pages or a chapter when you need a respite, put it down, then come back to enjoy again show less

I don't garden so after the novelty wore off it was rough going. I'd consider spreading it out, say a chapter a week, otherwise it's a bit much. I also had to look up quite a few of the flowers to keep pace. The writing is fine, though dated in style, in my mind it definitely read as pre-WWII. There's a definite underpinning of the white middle class experience as normative.

One of my all time favourite gardening books, this is a delightful book for a cold winter's day of reading and dreaming in front of the warm fireplace.