Legends in the Garden: Who in the World is Nellie Stevens [signed] [first edition]

If you've ever wondered about the people and places immortalized in plant names, this enlightening and entertaining book will provide some answers. Legends in the Garden introduces 46 people and places — some familiar, others unknown — associated with popular garden plants. Rosa 'Burbank' honors Luther Burbank, the "plant wizard" of Santa Rosa. John Champneys and Philippe Noisette, key figures in the development of the rose, gave their names to R. 'Champneys' Pink Cluster' and R. 'Blush Noisette'. But who were Nellie Stevens (Ilex 'Nellie Stevens') and Frances Williams (Hosta sieboldiana 'Frances Williams')? This delightful book combines accounts of the lives of these intriguing characters with descriptions of the plants that bear their names and the stories of their chance discoveries or deliberate breeding.