Of course, the character of my garden is also determined by things beyond any human decision, mine or anyone else's.

Am I accurately reporting what I see in such a blossom? The answer is no ... and yes.

Plants are the original chemists. Their sophistication makes DuPont and Monsanto look like little kids with chemistry sets.

A powerful hand lens [Eschenback Leutchlupe] with a focused beam of light opens up an entire world below the threshold of the ordinary experience of seeing.

Show me a person without prejudice of any kind on any subject and I'll show you someone who may be admirably virtuous but is surely no gardener. Prejudice against people is reprehensible, but a healthy set of prejudices is a gardener's best friend. Gardening is complicated, and prejudice simplifies it enormously.

Anne of Austria, wife of Louis XIII of France, had such an aversion to roses that she could not stand seeing one even in a painting.

Gardening transcends everything that otherwise divides us.