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The Gardens of Mien Ruys - a book review

I don't know how I missed her, but I was totally unfamiliar with Mien Ruys. A beautiful new book The Gardens of Mien Ruys details her life and work. Born in the Netherlands in 1904, she was the daughter of Bonne Ruys, who founded Moerheim Nursery in 1888. She grew up in a liberal atmosphere and encouraged to learn and study. She found great comfort in the natural world around her and learned all the plants in her father's nursery at a young age. After leaving school at the age of 19, she knew that she wanted to work in the garden center. The Moerheim Nursery, in addition to selling plants, had an on-site design studio where they published a detailed catalog and sold landscape design plans to customers. It was in the design studio where Ruys first began to work and she was soon encouraged to venture beyond her country and study abroad. Her father's connections helped her secure a traineeship with Wallace & Sons Nursery in Tunbridge Wells in England. There, she met Gertr...

Wide-shot Wednesday


This is a photo taken earlier in the summer on a much cooler day than today. The view is looking up the terrace toward the pergola at the top. 


Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Comments

  1. I do love wide shots. It's easier to get a sense of a garden when more is incorporated in the frame. Dogwood 'wolf-eyes' has always been a favorite of mine in your garden and todays soft color pallet with the pink rose and blue hydrangea is particularly fetching.

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  2. Beautiful flowers, beautiful foliage, and cool, overcast skies...heaven!

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