Interwoven Wild: An Ecologist Loose in the Garden

From the Native Plant Society of British Columbia email listserv:

NPSBC South Coast Book Launch:

Interwoven Wild: An Ecologist Loose in the Garden

By Don Gayton

Thursday, December 6, 2007 at 7:00 p.m.

Vancouver Museum, Whittick Lounge
1100 Chestnut Street, Vancouver BC

Free parking and admission; The public is welcome

Nationally-known field ecologist Don Gayton brings his wealth of experience to show us how nature and ecology perform their magic right in our gardens and home landscapes. Engaging the reader with real — and occasionally hilarious — gardening experiences, Gayton marries the joys of gardening to the fascinations of ecology. In charming and lyrical prose, he explores the inter-reliance of species, soil fertility, weed invasions, and how the rampion got its name. He also speculates on gardeners — their need to landscape, to purchase specialized tools, to use (or shun) chemicals, and the art they bring to the enterprise. By skilfully interweaving the work of painters, writers, and landscape architects, Gayton marks gardening and landscaping as primordial human urges, and the garden as a gift, a celebration, a revelation buried in our collective mythologies. This is a book for everyone who sees deeper meanings in their gardens and landscapes.

Don Gayton is the author of three books of non-fiction (The Wheatgrass Mechanism, Landscapes of the Interior, Kokanee), and numerous technical and popular articles. His writing has won several honours, including the Canadian Science Writer’s Award, the Saskatchewan Writers Guild Non-Fiction Award, and the US National Outdoor Book Award. Don has worked as a grassland specialist for both the Saskatchewan and British Columbia governments, and currently works as an ecologist for FORREX in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley.

Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 3:06 PM on November 30, 2007