Lawson, William 17th Century

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Lawson was called the "Izaak Walton" of gardening writers. He was probably of "humble birth." Evelyn in his book entitled Sylva speaks of him as "our honest Lawson," which might seem somewhat patronizing. Lawson's books have a distinct freshness which is commendatory. He "professed to write entirely from experiences."

He was the author of two of the most delightful gardening books in the English language. The first, The Covntrie Hovswifes Garden (1617), was the first one particularly written for women gardeners. His second book, a most practical one, was A New Orchard and Garden (1618). The orchard was still designed as part of the garden and he described a typical "North-country" English garden. This book went through 9 editions to 1683. It was in reality the first English book on fruit trees. In general, his books were designed for the "simple cottage."