Wildflowers of Georgetown
OSGF
The Oak Spring Garden Library holds books from vast parts of the globe. Through them you can take a tour of the flora of Australia, China, Brazil and more. Then, there are other volumes that bring the focus to a local scale, like Wildflowers of Georgetown. This work highlights the spring flowering plants found in Georgetown, DC; some of which are in bloom right now across the region. Read below to learn more about this latest digital introduction and to hear from our Head of Biodiversity and Conservation on why it’s a gem of a resource.
The saying “April showers bring May flowers” rings true here at Oak Spring as both the gardens and landscape are awash with color. This time of year marks the arrival of our late spring wildflowers that are native to both the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and Bull Run Mountains to the west.
In Wildflowers of Georgetown the spring flowering plants of Washington DC are depicted in 90 pages of watercolors, all completed by Rebecca Wistar Morris Nourse.
Unfortunately, the only information known about Rebecca is from her connection to the Dumbarton House. The Dumbarton House began construction in 1798 and was completed the following year. Robert Nourse was the Register of the Treasury for six presidential cycles and the first inhabitant of the home along with his wife Maria Bull Nourse and their nine children. The daughter of a Quaker merchant, Rebecca married into the Nourse family and subsequently took up residence there with her new husband. Some of Rebecca's artistic work is still on display at Dumbarton House which is now the headquarters of the National Society of The Colonial Dames of America.
Washington DC sits on the fall line between the piedmont and the coastal plain. As a result, a majority of the forests in the Georgetown area are categorized as mixed hardwoods with a dominant tree makeup of species that include: American beech (Fagus grandifolia), Red maple (Quercus rubra), Box elder (Acer negundo) and Tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera). At the foot of these trees are pockets of flowering herbaceous perennials that populate the forest floor, taking over the fallen leaves of last year's winter. Light magenta flowers accompany the deeply veined leaves of wild geraniums (Geranium maculatum), mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) foliage emerges tall enough to spread out like dinner plates, and the twisted petals of yellow lady slippers (Cypripedium parviflorum) lend a dose of whimsy. These plants make their way to the pages of Wildflowers of Georgetown in both illustrations and via a few pressed specimens.
If you’re active on social media, you may recognize some of these plants from part of our ongoing digital exhibit, Fantastic Flora (shared every Friday). This is one of several books in the Oak Spring Garden Library collection with a focus on plants native to the Eastern United States. As such it’s become a go-to resource for our Head of Biodiversity Conservation, Charlotte Lorick, who has been behind many of our weekly Fantastic Flora series posts.
“I’ve had the joy of looking through dozens of books in the library to find illustrations for our weekly Fantastic Flora posts. Wildflowers of Georgetown stood out to me for a few reasons,” Charlotte shares. “It illustrates plants from close to home and captures so many species that I see in my day to day around Northern Virginia. In that way, it provides a snapshot of plant communities and floral observations for a specific period of time which can serve as a fascinating comparison to what we are seeing today.“
“It also has a very nature journal feel to it. It showcases the author's observations in such a simple and natural way that I imagine her sitting in a field or carrying her book on his daily walks to illustrate what she noticed. I felt invited to do the same as I flipped through the pages.”
Rebecca not only illustrates the more charismatic spring wildflowers we all have come to know and love like wild columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) but more diminutive species like the evergreen partridgeberry (Mitchella repens) are included. For Charlotte, the illustration that’s stuck with her the most is of the common dandelion (Taraxicum officinale). Below the illustration, the inscription reads: The Dandelion is spread over the whole face of the globe. its flowers shut and open at certain hours; serving the Shepherd for a clock, while its feathery tufts, are his Barometer, predicting calm or storm.
Charlotte suggests that rather than looking at dandelions as weeds to eradicate, they can be viewed as a unique species which serves a specific role for both humans and the ecosystems where they’re found.
“This book and others like it are treasure troves of information as each author and illustrator has something unique to share and portray about any given plant. Reviewing flora and botanical books throughout history is a great way to learn how people have connected with plants throughout time and how we might want to conserve and engage with them into the future.”
This blogpost is in association with our latest project which aims to unveil the collections of the Oak Spring Garden Library, making them available to view online. Throughout the course of the year and beyond we will be sharing a selection of these works via the Internet Archive.
To view our current online collections visit the link below.
References:
Joseph Nourse (1754-1841). Dumbarton House. (n.d.). https://dumbartonhouse.org/joseph-nourse-1754-1841/
Nowak, David J.; Hoehn, Robert E. III, Crane, Daniel E.; Stevens, Jack C.; Walton, Jeffrey T. 2006. Assessing urban forest effects and values, Washington, D.C.’s urban forest. Resource. Bull. NRS-1. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station