The Gardens of Louisiana: Places of Work and Wonder

by A.J. Meek

Book by Meek, A. J., Turner, Suzanne

237 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1997

Reviews

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Starting with the Europeans, particularly the French, a history of gardening in Louisiana shows how and why Louisiana gardens are different from those elsewhere in what is now the United States. Drawing from historical documents & diaries, as well as archival drawings, sketches & paintings, Suzanne Turner, who provides the text, shows how gardening changed with conditions, though this mostly covers larger plantation-sized properties. Following the 20 pages of history, A.J. Meek's photographs with Turner's short individual histories, showcase 21 particular properties, in approximate chronological order, grouped as Urban beginnings, Plantation gardens, Twentieth century revivalism, and Mid-Century. Only 2 are in north Louisiana, 1 in the west (Hodges Gardens in Many). The rest are south of the approximately 30.5° latitude horizontal border with Mississippi and no farther west than New Iberia and most are clustered near the Mississippi River.
Many of the captions are minimal at best. On page 37 "Roots" doesn't say what kind, or mention the monkey grass that surrounds them. On page 69 "Urns and ivy" doesn't mention the tulips in the foreground. I wonder why on page 29 there's a picture of a Dead banana branch.
I wonder where my in-progress updates go when I finish a book.
I do want to visit or re-visit some of the gardens depicted in this book, though I wonder how much has changed due to hurricanes (especially Katrina) since its publication in 1997. I know New Orleans' City Park was badly affected.