Ruth Kassinger's Blog, page 3
February 12, 2014
“A Garden of Marvels” is “Hot Science”
Discover Magazine reviews A Garden of Marvels in the March issue in its “Hot Science” column. The word is: “[[Kassinger] digs up fascinating stories….Garden is a lively alternative to traditional botany textbooks, reveling in scientific exploration of the plant kingdom.”
February 8, 2014
For Valentine’s Day: A Heart-shaped Watermelon?
About ten years ago, Japanese growers started producing square (or rather cubic) watermelons. Not only could they be packed and shipped more efficiently, they took up less room in small Japanese refrigerators. The growers discovered consumers were also willing to pay a much higher price for the fruits, and soon they were offering square apples, […]
January 25, 2014
Ravenous Robins Ravage Holly
Like some kinder, gentler version of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, hundreds of robins have invaded our backyard. Fortunately, they’re not after me. They’re intent on the ripe red berries on a holly tree whose limbs overhang our yard. Robins travel in large flocks this time of year here in the mid-Atlantic region. The ground has […]
January 23, 2014
A Match (between Moth and Orchid) Made in Madagascar
Charles Darwin, stung by criticisms after he published On the Origin of Species in 1859, that he hadn’t provided sufficient evidence of his theory of evolution, turned to orchids for additional support. He accumulated dozens of species, some from from the countryside near his home southeast of London, others from wealthy friends who had hired […]
January 16, 2014
The Strange and Lovely Story of the Vegetable-Lamb
I’ve been delighted with the advance reviews for A Garden of Marvels (to be published by Morrow/HarperCollins on February 25). But I’m especially tickled by the one from Kirkus because it notes Eva-Maria Ruhl’s beautiful drawings and highlights my favorite, the vegetable-lamb. Up to the late 1600s, Europeans believed that out on the central Asian steppe […]
January 12, 2014
*Stellar* Pre-publication Reviews for A Garden of Marvels!
I’m gratified to report that Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, and Library Journal gave A Garden of Marvels starred reviews. Kirkus calls it “a delightful book––fun to read and share, no green thumb required.” Publishers Weekly says: “Kassinger weaves a huge amount of information into what still feels like a personal memoir, and by the end of […]
January 7, 2014
Why Can’t You Buy Cashews in Their Shells?
At the house we rented in Tortola in the Caribbean, there was a cashew tree in bloom and fruiting (see the photo). The tree made me wonder why, when I shop for nuts, I never see cashews in their shells. Peanuts, pistachios, walnuts, and almonds, yes. But cashews are always shelled. What you see in […]
January 3, 2014
So, What Are Conifers Doing in the Tropics?
I just returned from Tortola in the British Virgin Islands where this Norfolk Island Pine loomed over the house my family rented last week. The Norfolk Island Pine––its Latin name is Auracaria heterophylla–– isn’t actually a pine, but it is definitely a conifer. It seemed out of place among the yellow hibiscus, red bougainvillea, and […]
December 18, 2013
Why ( and How) You Should Water Your Christmas Tree
Live trees––conifers included––need water, of course. Their roots draw in water and dissolved minerals from the soil. Evaporation from leaves and needles (through holes called stomata) is the force that keeps water rising up the tree. After a tree is cut for the Christmas tree market, no more water rises, and the needles dry out […]
December 11, 2013
How To Pick the Perfect Poinsettia and Make It Last
Garden centers and Big-Box stores are now filled with red, white, pink, salmon, burgundy, and even purple poinsettias. Whatever color you choose, you want your plant to last as long as possible. So how should you choose an individual specimen? What look like the petals of a poinsettia flower are actually modified leaves called “bracts.” […]
