By Karen England, for Let's Talk Plants! October 2021.
Have you heard how much fun the SD Hort Book Club is? It's amazing, and I'm not just saying that because I'm the head muckety-muck. I have learned so much since the book club started in January of this year. The membership roll is 21 with a few lurkers who dip in and out as the books pique their interests and their schedules allow. There is, however, plenty of room for more, so if you've been thinking that a horticulturally curated book club was just thing to do on the last Monday evening of every month at 5 pm on Zoom then, please, by all means join us! Just send me an email c/o info@sdhort.org with "Book Club" in the subject line and I will add you to the roster. It's free, and guests and members are welcome.
The October meeting is on 10/25/21 at 5 pm on Zoom (Zoom link is sent via email prior to the meeting) and the book selection is -
American Eden: David Hosack, Botany, and Medicine in the Garden of the Early Republic
By Victoria Johnson.
"Plant-lovers and gardeners will savor the tales Johnson discovered about nineteenth-century botanizing and empathize with the trials of saving a garden, the most ephemeral of treasures, for posterity.... American Eden is a worthwhile read for history fans, botany and garden enthusiasts, and everyone interested in the challenge of turning a good idea into a legacy."
― Booklist
But wait! There's more . . .
Starting with the October book club meeting, 10/25 at 4:30 on Zoom, right before the Book Club meeting, we will be having our first Happy Half Hour. Come early to book club with a beverage of choice, water works or something stronger, and let’s chat a bit first. More later on what I’ll be drinking in case you “want to have what she’s having!”
The September book, Around The World In 80 Plants, by Jonathan Drori is an unanimous SDHBC two thumbs-up winner!
Jonathan Drori's other book, Around The World in 80 Trees, also got very high marks and we recommend it also, although we didn't officially read both titles.
Even if you don't want to read this/these book(s) which are titles that are truly keepers, at least give the author a watch as he presents his most recent book to the Linnean Society UK on YouTube. It's a wonderful overview of Drori's work. https://youtu.be/HcLH7lnRq_Y
After you watch the YouTube presentation and/or read Drori's books, then head over to the Continental Tires website to get in line to get your own American grown Dandelion tires that Jonathan Drori highlighted!
Most people view dandelions as a nuisance. But here at Continental Tire, we embrace the flowering weed as a key component to the future of tires. That’s right, in conjunction with The Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology, Julius Kuehn-Institute, and EKUSA, Continental Tire has produced, and tested, the first tires where the tread is made 100 percent out of dandelion natural rubber as a polymer. Plans are in place to begin manufacturing consumer road tires made from dandelion-derived rubber in five to 10 years. -Continental Tire
