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Birds, not wind, brought life to Iceland’s youngest island

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When Surtsey erupted from the sea in 1963, it became a living experiment in how life begins anew. Decades later, scientists discovered that the plants colonizing this young island weren’t carried by the wind or floating on ocean currents, but delivered by birds — gulls, geese, and shorebirds serving as winged gardeners. Their findings overturn long-held beliefs about seed dispersal and reveal how deeply interconnected life truly is.

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The Gardens of Mien Ruys – a book review

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I don’t know how I missed her, but I was totally unfamiliar with Mien Ruys. A beautiful new book The Gardens of Mien Ruys details her life and work.
Born in the Netherlands in 1904, she was the daughter of Bonne Ruys, who founded Moerheim Nursery in 1888. She grew up in a liberal atmosphere and encouraged to learn and study. She found great comfort in the natural world around her and learned all the plants in her father’s nursery at a young age.
After leaving school at the age of 19, she knew that she wanted to work in the garden center. The Moerheim Nursery, in addition to selling plants, had an on-site design studio where they published a detailed catalog and sold landscape design plans to customers. It was in the design studio where Ruys first began to work and she was soon encouraged to venture beyond her country and study abroad. Her father’s connections helped her secure a traineeship with Wallace & Sons Nursery in Tunbridge Wells in England. There, she met Gertrude Jekyll who became a great influence.  Later, she moved to Berlin to study a modern architectural style of landscape gardening that was being developed in Germany. 
Returning home to the Netherlands in 1923, Ruys realized that her future was not in plant cultivation but rather in demonstrating how to use plants in gardens. She set about experimenting with perennials and design in her parent’s orchard. She eventually expanded and created a variety of garden rooms where she used perennials in specific situations (shade, water, herb, blue garden, pink garden, etc.). This book explores each of these gardens with descriptions, original design plans and photos.
Ruys’ designs became very well-known and she was very prolific, working on over 3,000 projects (!) in her lifetime (she died in 1999 at the age of 94). She became a household name following the publications of several books as well as the stylish and ground-breaking magazine Onze eigen tuin (Our Own Garden)  in 1954,  which is still in publication today.
Ruys gardens are characterized by clean lines punctuated by naturalistic plantings, mainly perennials. She often used rectangles, circles, and diagonal lines, overlapping and repeating them in her designs. She also experimented with a variety of hardscape elements and was known for using Grion tiles, railroad ties and recycled plastic. She worked closely with architects and considered the garden an extension of the building. She worked with several housing development projects.
This is a beautifully designed book that is illustrated with gorgeous photos. Each chapter covers a decade. Beginning with a capsule that discusses the key events in the Netherlands at that time, there is a brief biographical summary, followed by profiles of Ruys’ projects. Concluding chapters showcase key elements of her designs and her favorite plants.

Disclosure: Timber Press sent me a copy of The Gardens of Mien Ruys in exchange for my personal opinion and review.

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

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