Preserving the knowledge of experienced gardeners

Jane McGary janemcgary@earthlink.net
Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:39:46 PDT
Further to Michael Mace's suggestions for preserving the knowledge of 
older gardeners, one good way of doing it (besides oral tradition) is 
making video-audio recordings of these gardeners walking around theri 
gardens and discussing the plants, preferably at a season of peak 
bloom. With current technology even an amateur could probably do 
this, but of course a trained person would do a better job.

Before I leave my present garden, I hope to persuade my niece, who 
works in TV production, to record me explaining the more permanent 
plants, primarily the trees and shrubs, so that if the next residents 
don't immediately bulldoze the whole thing, at least they will know 
what they have. I don't pretend to great wisdom, and this isn't a 
"historic" garden, but I think the new people will be less likely to 
cut down the Franklinia if they know its story.

Reverting to Mark's post about words deleted from a junior 
dictionary, as an experienced lexicographer and frequent OUP 
employee, I should point out that the choice of words for a junior 
dictionary is largely dictated by the frequency at which words appear 
in texts intended for use by elementary school students (a frequency 
determined by computing on a database of representative texts), and 
probably in a specific geographic region. If it's a US edition, for 
instance, "stoat" (a fauna term not used in the US) would be omitted 
in favor of some fauna name US children might more likely encounter. 
Though it's sad that they're not reading "The Wind in the Willows."

Jane McGary
Northwestern Oregon, USA


Histories/commentaries from experienced gardeners could be hosted on the
>wiki (PBS leadership willing), where anyone could access them.  Think of it
>as a legacy you can leave for the future.


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