The Plant Listener

Horticultural lecturer Kilpatrick offers a homespun take on the science behind horticulture, in order to better know and love plants in general and to better care for one’s own. In a conversational style, she elaborates on areas of botany potentially unfamiliar to beginning gardeners. For instance, Kirkpatrick delves into plant sexual habits, asking “So, how does a flowering plant prepare to go out on a date?” and answering herself with equal parts humor and scientific erudition. A follow-up chapter, cheekily entitled “Dolly the Sheep Ain’t So Great,” addresses asexual reproduction, noting that several hundred species are thought to generate seeds from only one parent, making offspring plants clones of their forebears—and that other plants, like dandelions, can go the asexual route if necessary. Exploring her personal practices as well as plant biology in general, Kirkpatrick admits to developing personal relationships with each of her plants and argues that they benefit from the conversation: “Talking to each plant made me pay them some attention so, mid-conversation, I would notice if the plant was in need of water, if the flower head had to be removed and so on.” For anyone inclined to look a little more deeply at what it means to live with plants, Kirkpatrick’s friendly and informative guide should prove just the ticket. (BookLife)