Old Herbaceous by Reginald Arkell

Herbert Pinnegar was born in the 1860s. He was an orphan with a lame leg and didn’t seem to have any prospect for a happy future. But with a lot of hard work and the gracious gift of a few generous friends, he makes a way for himself as the head gardener of an English manor house. This is the story of his friendship with the lady of the house and how his devotion to her was rewarded throughout his lifetime.

He is in his eighties when the story begins, sitting by his cottage window looking over the gardens he used to tend. He wonders that gardeners who earn more than he ever did somehow seemed to care less about making things look their best. He never felt that he was just a paid man working for a wage. He felt that the place was his – and so it was, in a manner of speaking…. People said that big gardens were finished; that everything belonged to everybody and nothing to anybody. He didn’t believe that. The world started with a garden and a thing that had been going all that time wouldn’t end so easily.

Old Herbaceous is not a “Christian” book by any means. The narrative makes it clear that Pinnegar is not a church-goer (much to the chagrin of a long line of village vicars), but there are many episodes of grace that make it a delight. First there is his adoptive mother. Then the school teacher, Mary Brain, who teaches him to identify and love wild flowers. Then there is Mrs. Charteris. And the elderly lawyer, Mr. Billiter. Pinnegar’s life is an uphill climb all the way, but these men and women demonstrate a kindness and generosity that fortify him for the challenges.

The writing is delightful. As a young boy, Herbert enters a bouquet in a flower show. While he waits for the judges to make their decision, he sees the most lovely, laughing lady – not a day over eighteen. Young Herbert stood in the center of the tent with his mouth wide open and promptly fell in love, for ever and ever, amen.

Later, when he leaves school and needs employment, he is hired by this lady and her husband to work as an under-gardener. He knew much more than she did about plants, but she reveled in teaching him their Latin names; and, so, his puppy love develops into an enduring friendship that is one of the mainstays of the book. 

Not only is this a gardener’s memoir of his work and relationships, but it is also gives a glimpse of what it was like to live through various historical events, including two world wars. As WWII approaches, we read: Of course, it had all happened before, but Mr. Pinnegar, now nearing seventy, wasn’t quite the man he had been twenty-five years ago. In those days he had taken on every job that was going – carried the village on his shoulders; even found it in his heart to laugh when they dug up the flowers and planted potatoes along the borders. But not this time. He began to feel a fierce resentment against everything and everybody mixed up in this mad endeavor to the destroy the gracious pattern of the world he had known…

This is easily one of the sweetest books I’ve ever read, but not sickeningly so. Plenty of pathos and sadness balance out the moments of charity and beauty. Best of all, you don’t have to know a thing about gardening to love this book.

Blessings,