Laura C. Martin
Personal Information
Description
Laura Martin grew up on six acres of woods near Atlanta, Georgia, looking for and loving wildflowers. After earning a degree in botany she began writing and has, to date, published 26 books on gardening, wildflowers and crafts and now writes a weekly blog, NatureBasedBlog.com. She earned a certificate in Botanical Art and Illustration from NYBG and now happily illustrates her books and articles. She has a passion for native plants, gardening, weaving, cooking, crafting, piano and grandchildren.
Books
Recycled Crafts Box
Discusses recycling and provides information and instructions for making art projects from a variety of recycled materials.
Nature's Art Box
Presents more than sixty projects made from natural materials that are available almost anywhere.
Gardens of the heartland
From the notable garden at Cranbrook in Michigan, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, to the extravagant displays of color at Cantigny, near Chicago, to a simple prairie garden where a nearly extinct landscape is preserved, this captivating history and traveler's guide lavishly portrays for the first time the diverse gardens of America's midwestern region. In all, thirty gardens open to visitors are illustrated in 215 specialy commissioned, dazzling photographs and described in a lively, informative text. The author, Laura C. Martin, leads readers on a memorable tour of the celebrated gardens of Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, and Kentucky. The variety is astonishing, ranging from gardens that feature spectacular beds of flowers and magnificent trees to those with more modest plantings that are important for their key role in the development of gardening in the heartland. Arranged by type of garden from botanical and historical to parks, great estates, and arboretums, the narrative traces the history and design of the gardens with an emphasis on the dedicated people who created them. The text also guides the visitor to outstanding areas and plant collections in each garden. Supplementing the narrative, the appendices provide practical advice for the traveler, from suggested tours to seasonal displays; notes about cultivating some of the gardens' inviting plants; and tips for the garden photographer.
The folklore of birds
A well-illustrated book on bird folklore ranging from the archaeological to the whimsical. Well worth a read.
Garden flower folklore
A very comprehensive and quite amusing wiki about garden flowers (re: names, family, description, meaning, stories and legends related).