flowers in literature

Contains essays in which the author examines the histories of eighty garden plants as they appear in myth and literature; arranged alphabetically by plant name.

Draws from poet Emily Dickinson's writings to determine the flowers she loved and grew at her home in Amherst, Massachusetts, and explains how to create one's own Emily Dickinson garden, covering design and planning, plant sources, and growing tips.

Discusses the flowers of Emily Dickinson's indoor and outdoor gardens and the impact of her love and understanding of horticulture on her poetry.

Color illustrations accompany quotations from twenty-four Shakespearean dramas about twenty-seven flowers. Explains what each flower meant in Elizabethan times and Shakespeare's particular use of it in his plays.