Albert Wilson
Encyclopedia
Albert Wilson was an American gardening
guru
, was a botanist, a landscape architect
, a nationally renowned author, teacher and lecturer on gardening and landscaping, and a TV and radio talk show personality who penned several authoritative books popularizing and extolling upon the finer points and virtues of his passion.
orphanage, an experience he reminisced upon in his book, These Were the Children. In 1927, Wilson earned his bachelor's degree in botany
and, in 1934, his master's in biology
, both from Stanford University
.
TV member station, KQED. He also had a show on KCSM-TV in the late sixties. Wilson was a frequent and very popular guest lecturer at local gardening clubs and nurseries throughout the San Francisco Bay area, mentoring and befriending many attendees. Wilson designed and built his home in 1929, on Creek Drive in Menlo Park, California
. Wilson was also well known as a landscape architect, having designed Allied Arts and Fremont Park in Menlo Park and countless backyards and gardens throughout the SF Bay area.
s and herbicide
s, Wilson was an early advocate of wearing protective garments while using the primitive agricultural chemicals of the mid 20th century. Later, Wilson's stance changed, stunned and truly aghast at the health problems and deaths of many his friends and colleagues caused by chemicals such as DDT
, about which he had troubling second thoughts after having helped popularize their use. He was also an early advocate of organic gardening.
Wilson's dedication to enhancing lives and living environment
s through gardening went well beyond mere landscaping, writing and the broadcasting of his well regarded talk shows. He tirelessly presided over and lectured at one gardening club meeting or nursery seminar after another. Among the clubs Wilson was involved with was the Foothill Men's Garden Club, which he co-founded in 1962, The club, which encompasses Santa Clara
and San Mateo
counties, raises money to preserve the natural environment while enriching the lives of community members through the sale of members' homegrown garden wonders. Each April, the club hosts an annual garden sale. "It takes two days to make the money and six months to argue about whom to give it to," once said Colonel Robert E. Work (ret. USAF
), a club vice president, adding, "We contribute to the good eating and beautification of the community."
, near his Menlo Park home, no doubt while tending his garden. At the March 11, 1996, Palo Alto, California
city council meeting, when Wilson's passing was announced, a city staffer noted that he died, unfortunately, near the creek running past his home, and that he would be remembered by many people in the community.
In 1996, the 32nd annual Foothill Men's Garden Club show - held each year in Los Altos, California
- was dedicated to Wilson, a charter member of the group of back yard gardeners. "Dig it with Albert" was remembered with a collection of photos of the beloved gardening expert and writer.
The Stanford Club of Palo Alto established a memorial fund for Wilson, with proceeds going toward the reconstruction of the Rodin Sculpture Garden at Stanford University
. Wilson planned and landscaped the original flower garden of the Rodin Sculpture Garden in 1986.
Gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...
guru
Guru
A guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom, and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . Other forms of manifestation of this principle can include parents, school teachers, non-human objects and even one's own intellectual discipline, if the...
, was a botanist, a landscape architect
Landscape architect
A landscape architect is a person involved in the planning, design and sometimes direction of a landscape, garden, or distinct space. The professional practice is known as landscape architecture....
, a nationally renowned author, teacher and lecturer on gardening and landscaping, and a TV and radio talk show personality who penned several authoritative books popularizing and extolling upon the finer points and virtues of his passion.
Early life and education
An orphan, Wilson's earliest years were spent growing up in a San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
orphanage, an experience he reminisced upon in his book, These Were the Children. In 1927, Wilson earned his bachelor's degree in botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
and, in 1934, his master's in biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, both from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
Dig It with Albert
For many years, Wilson had a regular talk show, Dig It with Albert, broadcast on San Francisco's KGO 810 AM, and on the local PBSPublic Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
TV member station, KQED. He also had a show on KCSM-TV in the late sixties. Wilson was a frequent and very popular guest lecturer at local gardening clubs and nurseries throughout the San Francisco Bay area, mentoring and befriending many attendees. Wilson designed and built his home in 1929, on Creek Drive in Menlo Park, California
Menlo Park, California
Menlo Park, California is a city at the eastern edge of San Mateo County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, in the United States. It is bordered by San Francisco Bay on the north and east; East Palo Alto, Palo Alto, and Stanford to the south; Atherton, North Fair Oaks, and Redwood City...
. Wilson was also well known as a landscape architect, having designed Allied Arts and Fremont Park in Menlo Park and countless backyards and gardens throughout the SF Bay area.
How Does Your Garden Grow?
How Does Your Garden Grow? is one of the well crafted gardening books by Wilson, who was genuinely interested not just in gardens, but in the gardeners who tended them as well. Though at one time he pontificated grandly upon the seemingly miraculous wonders of pesticidePesticide
Pesticides are substances or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling or mitigating any pest.A pesticide may be a chemical unicycle, biological agent , antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against any pest...
s and herbicide
Herbicide
Herbicides, also commonly known as weedkillers, are pesticides used to kill unwanted plants. Selective herbicides kill specific targets while leaving the desired crop relatively unharmed. Some of these act by interfering with the growth of the weed and are often synthetic "imitations" of plant...
s, Wilson was an early advocate of wearing protective garments while using the primitive agricultural chemicals of the mid 20th century. Later, Wilson's stance changed, stunned and truly aghast at the health problems and deaths of many his friends and colleagues caused by chemicals such as DDT
DDT
DDT is one of the most well-known synthetic insecticides. It is a chemical with a long, unique, and controversial history....
, about which he had troubling second thoughts after having helped popularize their use. He was also an early advocate of organic gardening.
Wilson's dedication to enhancing lives and living environment
Built environment
The term built environment refers to the human-made surroundings that provide the setting for human activity, ranging in scale from personal shelter and buildings to neighborhoods and cities that can often include their supporting infrastructure, such as water supply or energy networks.The built...
s through gardening went well beyond mere landscaping, writing and the broadcasting of his well regarded talk shows. He tirelessly presided over and lectured at one gardening club meeting or nursery seminar after another. Among the clubs Wilson was involved with was the Foothill Men's Garden Club, which he co-founded in 1962, The club, which encompasses Santa Clara
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
and San Mateo
San Mateo County, California
San Mateo County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. It covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula just south of San Francisco, and north of Santa Clara County. San Francisco International Airport is located at the northern end of the county, and...
counties, raises money to preserve the natural environment while enriching the lives of community members through the sale of members' homegrown garden wonders. Each April, the club hosts an annual garden sale. "It takes two days to make the money and six months to argue about whom to give it to," once said Colonel Robert E. Work (ret. USAF
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
), a club vice president, adding, "We contribute to the good eating and beautification of the community."
Not soon forgotten
Wilson died at age 93 after apparently falling down a steep ravine bank, into San Francisquito CreekSan Francisquito Creek
San Francisquito Creek is a creek that flows into southwest San Francisco Bay in California, United States of America. Historically it was called the Arroyo de San Francisco by Juan Bautista de Anza in 1776...
, near his Menlo Park home, no doubt while tending his garden. At the March 11, 1996, Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
city council meeting, when Wilson's passing was announced, a city staffer noted that he died, unfortunately, near the creek running past his home, and that he would be remembered by many people in the community.
In 1996, the 32nd annual Foothill Men's Garden Club show - held each year in Los Altos, California
Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
- was dedicated to Wilson, a charter member of the group of back yard gardeners. "Dig it with Albert" was remembered with a collection of photos of the beloved gardening expert and writer.
The Stanford Club of Palo Alto established a memorial fund for Wilson, with proceeds going toward the reconstruction of the Rodin Sculpture Garden at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
. Wilson planned and landscaped the original flower garden of the Rodin Sculpture Garden in 1986.
Publications
- 1938, Distinctive Trees, Shrubs and Vines in Gardens of the S. F. Peninsula, Happy Hours Publishing, Menlo Park, California, ISBN 1-112-77924-8
- 1949, How Does Your Garden Grow, Happy Hours Publishing, Menlo Park, California, ISBN 0-933845-00-6
- 1953, Gardeners All in California, Happy Hours Publishing, Menlo Park, California
- 1963, These Were the Children, Albert Wilson Publishing Company. Menlo Park, California