Living Knowledge Network
Unearthed: Gardening to feed
This blog uses three beautifully illustrated books from the Mitchell Library’s collection to explore fruit, vegetables compost.
Publisher J.S. Virtue published The fruit grower’s guide in 1891. The text, written by John Wright, is illustrated by beautiful artwork by May Rivers. It brings together advice for the successful cultivation of fruits, from plums to peaches & grapes to gooseberries.
Fruit, in its best condition, is the purest of food, health-giving, life-sustaining & delicious. It was the first food of the human family, and it has been the last food of countless thousands in the decline of life, accepted and enjoyed when coarser was rejected, and so will be to the end of time.
Title page
from The Fruit Grower's Guide volume 3
Figs
from The Fruit Grower's Guide volume 4
Plums and Grapes
from The Fruit grower's guide volumes 3 & 6
William Rhind's A History of the Vegetable Kingdom was published in Glasgow in 1855.
In the illustration below Rhind has illustrated a bounty of tropical fruits and nuts, highlighting the variety and diversity of their appearance. Once considered exotic, many of these fruits and nuts have become culinary staples in the UK, prized for their health benefits and flavour, such as the avocado (helps lower cholesterol and a source of multiple vitamins), the pistachio (source of fibre and protein) and the mango (a source of vitamins and antioxidants).
Fruits and Nuts: Guava, Jujube & Mangostene
from Rhind's A History of the Vegetable Kingdom
Fruits and Nuts: Lychee, Pistachio, Avocado & Durio
from Rhind's A History of the Vegetable Kingdom
Fruits and Nuts: Ackee fruits & nuts & Mango
from Rhind's A History of the Vegetable Kingdom
Plants used as food
The illustrations below are of plants whose produce is consumed in vast quantities across the globe, yet whose appearance is perhaps not instantly recognisable. Rhind here captures beautifully the fine details of these plants, such as the ruby-like seeds of the Arabica coffee plant (coffea Arabica), from which the coffee beans are harvested, or the delicate white flowers of the shrub that gives us tea (labelled here as thea viridis, also known as Camellia sinensis, of which two varieties produce most of the world’s tea). These plants, however, are also unfortunately intertwined with cruel and exploitative labour practices. For example, it is estimated that as recently as 2021, 20% of cocoa was produced by child labour, equating to 1.6 million children. Beyond this, bread fruit, a staple food throughout the South Pacific and the Caribbean, was sought after by Captain Cook as a cheap food to feed slaves, while the demand for tea and coffee still relies on forced labour in regions around the globe, such as Sri Lanka and Brazil. While we can enjoy these products, and appreciate Rhind’s handiwork, it is also important to strive for better working conditions for those who grow and harvest this produce.
Plants used as food: Coffee and Tea
from Rhind's A History of the Vegetable Kingdom
Plants used as food: Chocolate and Bread Fruit
from Rhind's A History of the Vegetable Kingdom
“Worms”, or The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms, with Observations on their Habits was Charles Darwin’s last scientific book, published shortly before his death in 1882. This is a later edition, published in 1904.
The book describes the worms’ social and sexual behaviour, and the way in which they contribute to the ecosystem by improving soil for plant growth. The illustration below shows examples of the casts left by worms after they have digested the material they have eaten, mainly leaves and other organic material.
Worm casts
from The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms, with Observations on their Habits by Charles Darwin
Unearthed Exhibition
Unearthed: The Power of Gardening is a free display at The Mitchell Library (2 May – 10 August 2025) exploring the transformative, enriching and sometimes radical power of gardening. Inspired by the British Library’s major exhibition, The Mitchell Library is one of 30 library services celebrating gardening through the UK-wide Living Knowledge Network.
From windowsills to allotments, Unearthed: The Power of Gardening at The Mitchell Library explores how the act of gardening can heal and sustain people in a multitude of ways. It reveals how gardening can bring people together, empower communities and shape our relationship with the natural world.
As well as a specially designed travelling exhibition created by the British Library, our display will reflect the collections in the Mitchell Library, with some surprising stories behind the books!