Orchid Muse

”[Orchid Muse] combines cultural advice with historical information… The easy style makes it a pleasure to read with the added benefit of gaining new knowledge.”” – Clare Hermans - RHS Orchid Review“An entertaining romp through the history of human adventures with orchids.” – Dominique Browning - The Wall Street Journal“If flowers are how plants have sex, orchids are the sexiest “harlot-nymphs” of them all, as Erica Hannickel reveals in this delightful and exquisitely explicit ode to orchidelirium.” – Adam Leith Gollner, author of “The Fruit Hunters”“A fascinating survey of one of the world’s most intriguing (and provocative!) blooms, complete with lush illustrations. This book is an enchanting read for any gardener, house plant enthusiast, or history lover.” – Jessica Roux, author of “Floriography”“A fun fascinating romp through the history of the world’s favorite flower.” – Bruce Rogers, author of “The Orchid Whisperer””[A] beautifully produced book… Orchid Muse is a learned and interestingly hybrid text: part essay collection and part handbook… the tightly written and well-digested histories expand its utility beyond the how-to-guide.” – Cal Flyn - Prospect

Erica Hannickel, a master gardener, is professor of environmental history at Northland College. The author of Orchid Muse: A History of Obsession in Fifteen Flowers and Empire of Vines: Wine Culture in America, she writes for Orchids magazine. She lives in Wisconsin.