Trees of History & Romance: Essays from a Mount Wilson Garden

In this book, written with grace and playfulness, wit, erudition and occasional introspection, Michael Pembroke has collected a cornucopia of information on certain trees, drawn from history, literature, poetry, mythology, botany and folklore.

His subjects are the deciduous trees and conifers thriving in the cool-climate, basalt soil and altitude of Mount Wilson, a nineteenth-century hill station in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, Australia.

The trees that have excited his imagination, and provided a rich store for his literary abilities, are those that have shaped history, influenced western civilization and inspired lovers.

However, this book is not an encyclopedia. Woven throughout is a personal memoir reflecting the unfolding of a deep felt connection with the land and nature – as an accidental gardener, an amateur naturalist and an occasional romantic.

Although Pembroke's essays originate from a Mount Wilson garden, they draw from trees elemental to any garden, anywhere and are as elemental as the very air and sunshine.