Out of words. Out of patience. There really is no

Out of words. Out of patience. There really is no end to this violence is there?...
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My sweet “adopted” family in Villandry, France calls to check on me nearly every week. Between guns, racism, police brutality, coronavirus, and that monster Trump they worry about my safety in the United States. I do too.
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🌹Breonna Taylor. 🌹 George Floyd. Say their name.

Today is the start of National Public Gardens week

Today is the start of National Public Gardens week which runs from May 8th - 17th. I especially care because I work for one; Longwood Gardens, in Kennett Square, PA (and I’ll share those adventures later.) However, please allow me to bless your timeline with the story of someone who deserves to be celebrated all week long—Mr. Malcolm J. Stubblefield...
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He attended Iowa State College which we know today as Iowa State University. Here, Stubblefield was a graduate of the College of Agriculture and studied landscape gardening. Shout out to all you Cyclones 🌪
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Stubblefield later took his plant skills and headed east, to the Boogie Down Bronx. During the mid to late 1930s, he was a gardener and horticulturist who was largely responsible for the beautiful appearance of a place that needs no introduction...none other than thee New York Botanical Garden (NYBG.)
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Iowan, Plant Hero, one of NYBG’s finest, and uncontested OG in the world of public gardens—give it up one time—issa long overdue toast y’all 🥂to Malcolm Jerome Stubblefield! Let’s re-write public garden history today and give this man his flowers.
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@isu_hort @iowastateu @NYBG @AmericanPublicGardens #NationalPublicGardensWeek #PublicGardens #ConquerTheSoil #GardenHistory #BlackHistory #Horticulturist #Gardener #NPGW2020 #OurGardensYourHome

I hate having to post this. It is infuriating and

I hate having to post this. It is infuriating and exhausting. All I want to do is write and share cool stories about horticulture. However, I am black and black skin is weaponized the world over. I don’t have the luxury of not speaking up.
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This flag once hung outside the headquarters of the NAACP in New York City when a lynching took place. The flag demanded that people bear some form of witness to the racist murders taking place in this country. I post it today as a reminder ALL OF US bear witness to the systemic an incessant racism in the U.S.A.
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In late February, Ahmad Aubrey, a 25 year old unarmed black man who was out jogging and minding his own business, was falsely assumed to be a criminal. He was hunted down like an animal in a pickup truck by two white men with a shotgun, 34-year-old Travis McMichael, and his father, 64-year-old Gregory McMichael. It was a modern day lynching.
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This happened in my home state of Georgia. The murderers sit at their house to this day, unbothered, as they have not been arrested. The “President” of the United States, Donald Trump and the “Governor” of Georgia, Brian Kemp are racists monsters. I have zero faith the American legal justice system will prosecute and convict the two monsters that murdered Aubrey. I hurt for his family as this could have been my own brother Christopher. He is a black man that likes to go for a jog on a nice day too. I pray to God he is not next—but he very well could be. And this breaks my heart.

In my best Stevie Wonder voice singing "Happy Eart

In my best Stevie Wonder voice singing "Happy Earth Day to Ya!!!!"
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On this 50th anniversary of Earth Day, I celebrate and acknowledge someone who through part of his life's work, protected the Earth's natural resources. Get up off your feet and put your hands together for Colonel Charles Young! THE FIRST African American to serve as superintendent of a national park.
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Young and his troopers of the 9th Calvary managed the lands of Sequoia National Park in California. Many of the roads and trails they built were so well constructed they are still in use to this day. Now the 9th Cavalry weren't just anybody's. These men are more famously known as the iconic "Buffalo Soldiers."
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Far more then a National Parks Superintendent, Young was a graduate of West Point, a diplomat, and a civil rights leader. He flourished in foreign languages and music even helping Wilberforce University establish its marching band. Oh and, two of his best and life long friends happen to be thee W.E.B. Du Bois and poet Paul Laurence Dunbar. You know, just casual type stuff 🤯
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Colonel Young’s final resting place is Arlington National Cemetery. Like the hero to the Earth and world he is, thousands attended his funeral. (pic The Crises.)
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#ConquerTheSoil #ColonelCharlesYoung #HappyEarthDay #NationalParks #EarthHeroes

Today like so many others in Atlanta and around th

Today like so many others in Atlanta and around the world, I grieve the passing of civil rights legend Rev. Joseph Lowery. Of course, I have memories of what a giant of social change he was. However, would you believe my most vivid memories of him were funny ones?!...
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Growing up in Atlanta I got my hair done by Debbie @mamazuko at the Auburn Avenue Barber & Beauty Shop. Every two weeks Rev. Lowery would walk in (he was super handsome in person) speak to the ladies first, then get his hair cut. He would sit in that chair and talk trash and tell jokes with Mr. Jay his barber (who acted and looked just like the barber in Coming to America 😩); Pig (the owner of the building who took crap from no one) and all the other old heads and characters that would constantly stop in. And by characters I mean: street criminals, addicts, hustlers, PhD’s, gay, straight, trans, teachers, nurses, business people (you get the picture) everybody came through those doors. He treated us all the same and cut up with the best of them lol! It was a riot up in that building and I loved it.
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With all the monumental change he created in the world and the indelible legacy he leaves, at the end of the day Rev. Lowery was still a cool dude from Atlanta with a killer sense of humor that could crack a joke with the best of them. He will be missed ❤️🙏🏾

My sister and fellow horticulturist @wambuilovespl

My sister and fellow horticulturist @wambuilovesplants sent me this picture and my jaw dropped—literally. It is something I have waited yearzzzz to see. I read about the legendary flower sellers in Washington D.C. and had never seen a picture of what they looked like--until now! Today we call these women (and men) Flower Farmers. Type Flower Farmer into Google images and tell me how many black women you see. I'll wait......
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This picture is from June 1870 (spoiler alert y'all--we ain't new to this!) The ladies appearance marked the arrival of spring in Washington, D.C. long before the famed cherry blossoms. (If you have followed me long enough you know we can thank an African-American botanist, Roland Jefferson for saving those trees too!)
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Flower sellers, sometimes called peddlers or vendors, grew flowers on their rural land and brought them into cities like D.C., Richmond, Memphis, and to this day Charleston. These women represent so much more to me then spring. They represent resilience, direction, and purpose. The rough path I've walked for 20 years as a horticulturist has long been laid with beautiful flower petals. And these are the women I get to thank. The original Flower Farmers. (and thank you Wambui ❤️)
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#ConquerTheSoil #FlowerFarmer #TrueToThis #Flowers #GardenHistory #BlackHistory

“Although this futuristic survival kit may seem

“Although this futuristic survival kit may seem a bit extreme for right now, it also has current practical applications. If someone had difficulties breathing, they may be able to use this in order to be able to breathe more freely.” And to think this was written just seven years ago...
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Back in 2013 Chiu Chih, a fictional reality designer from Taiwan, created this backpack with a plant in it after realizing a lack of breathable air may be the first problem we face if the apocalypse ever were to happen. Trend Hunter even labeled it “Futuristic Planet Couture.” Flash forward to 2020. Chiu Chih is a designer certainly ahead of their time.
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(Photo credits: @designboom @chiu.chih @trend_hunter )
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#ConquerTheSoil #Plants #PlantCouture

Things are tough right now but if we dig deep we c

Things are tough right now but if we dig deep we can still find a way to make a joyful noise! And why is that you say? Like to hear it, here it go...
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Besides being the Queen of Gospel and one of the most celebrated singers in the world, our good sis Mahalia Jackson also found time to conquer the soil! An astute business woman Mrs. Jackson owned a lucrative floral shop “Mahalia’s House of Flowers” on the South Side of Chicago. Clients bought the flowers as long as she promised to sing at funerals and Mahalia Jackson happily obliged them 🌹🌹🌹
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Video repost of “In That Great Gettin’ Up Morning” performance from @mahaliajacksonfans
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#ConquerTheSoil #Floral #FlowerPower #MahaliaJackson #GardenHistory

Ain’t no flamingo’s on the lawn around here bébé. Yard art—but make it sheep.
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#ConquerTheSoil #Sheep #YardArt #Chenonceaux

Happy Valentine’s Day from the love gardens at V

Happy Valentine’s Day from the love gardens at Villandry! Sound up to learn the 4 types of love stories represented here:
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*True love ❤️
*Heartbreak 💔
*Fleeting love 🦋🎭
*and last but not least dem daggers—killa love🔪🩸👀
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#ConquerTheSoil #ChateauVillandry #FollowTheFollows #Love

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Abra Lee

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