Wonderland roses’ roots traced to RHS
The man who planted the flowers that inspired the rose garden in Alice
in Wonderland has been forgotten by history, the RHS has said in a new book about its first trainee gardeners.
While it is well known that Lewis Carroll was inspired by his walks with the real-life Alice around Oxford, the man whose work inspired the garden owned by the Queen of Hearts has not been credited until now.
Henry Bailey was one of the first trainees at the original Royal Horticultural Society garden in Chiswick and became head gardener at Nuneham Park in Oxford in the 1850s, where he tended the roses.
Researchers think Lewis Carroll dreamed up Alice in Wonderland on a boat trip to Nuneham in July 1862.
Fiona Davison, head of libraries and collections at the RHS, said: “Many of the trainees at the original RHS garden at Chiswick have been all but swept under the carpet, but their work influenced how we still garden today and even served as inspiration for one of our best-loved literary classics.
“It’s thought that [Henry Bailey’s] roses were the foundation for the fearsome Queen of Hearts and her red and white roses.”
Most of the trainees, who inspired flower beds in Britain and as far afield as New York’s Central Park, came from families of gardeners themselves, or relatively humble professions such as farmers or shopkeepers.
Ms Davison has detailed the 105 original trainee gardeners for her book, The Hidden Horticulturists, which is available to buy from today.