Our monthly meetings are a forum for sharing knowledge and experience in all aspects of gardening and horticulture. Meetings are held on the second Thursday of each month at 7:30pm, usually near Griffith Park (unless noted). We enthusiastically welcome new members, so please drop by.

This event is free to SCHS members and $5 for non-members. Children under 18 are free. Ample onsite free parking is available.

 

Next Meeting:

Thursday, February 11, 2010, at 7:30pm

Guest Presenter:

Jane S. Smith

Program:

Science and Advertising in The Garden:  The Colorful Case of Luther Burbank

In the years when California was becoming a farm and flower cornucopia, the charismatic plant breeder Luther Burbank was an international celebrity. From cartoons to stained glass windows, his image and his reputation were familiar around the world. Inspired by Darwin, Burbank developed the Burbank potato (still the world’s most widely-grown variety), the Santa Rosa plum, the Shasta daisy, the Burbank rose, and hundreds of other new creations that helped define the horticultural and agricultural promise of the dawning 20th Century.

Jane S. Smith will discuss her new book, The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants, Penguin Press: 2009.

Jane received her Ph.D. from Yale University and is currently a member of the History Department at Northwestern University. She writes frequently about the intersection of science, commerce, and popular taste.

For more information, please visit Jane’s website.

Location: Friendship Auditorium, 3201 Riverside Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90027. Click here for a map to Friendship Auditorium.

This event is free to SCHS members and $5 for non-members. Ample onsite free parking is available.

Upcoming Meetings – mark your Calendar now! Meetings are held on the second Thursday of the month, unless noted otherwise.

2009–2010 Schedule

March 11 – John Greenlee will talk about his new book The American Meadow Garden.

April 8 – Dr. Rachel S Jabaily presents “Up, Down, Wet then Dry: The Quest for Puya (Bromeliaceae) in the Andes”

May 13 – Bob Hornback shares “The Horticulturist’s Alice: A Garden Tour of Wonderland”

June 10 – Marcia Donahue discusses “Planting Sculpture, Sculpting Plants”

July 8 – Jim Downer: Learn about garden plant problems, diseases and pests - common, uncommon and ‘new’ with experienced plant pathologist.