Happy Birthday, Karl Foerster! (And Giveaway Winner)
The ornamental Feather Reed Grass ‘Karl Foerster’ (Calamagrostis x acutifolia) is pretty well known, but what about the plant breeder and garden designer Karl Foerster, for whom the grass was named? March 9th just happens to be Karl Foerster’s birthday, so perhaps a little attention is called for. Though he died in 1970 at the age of 94, Foerster’s legacy lives on through the plants he developed and his influence on garden design.
Foerster was born in 1870 and in 1903 began his own nursery not far from Berlin, specializing in hardy perennials.
Over the years, he successfully propagated about 370 perennial plants. Some are still in use today. He was a pioneer regarding ornamental grasses, and worked with North American perennials that were generally dismissed as weeds on this side of the Atlantic. His namesake grass began as a naturally occurring hybrid that Foerster found along a railroad track. He also propagated the Black-Eyed Susan Rudbeckia fulgida ‘Goldsturm’.
Delphiniums and Phlox were also among his favorite genera.
Foerster was a major influence on later garden designers like Piet Oudolf, Wolfgang Oehme, and James Van Sweden. Their emphasis on grasses, naturalistic design, low maintenance, and year-round interest owes much to Foerster.
Foerster’s life was caught up in the tumult of 20th Century Europe. He defied the Nazi regime by employing Jews at his nursery. After the war, the nursery was located in East Germany. It was nationalized but remained under Foerster’s management for a number of years.
In any case, it seems right and proper to take a moment to remember Karl Foerster – for his creativity and his love of plants.
On a totally different front, I want to announce the giveaway winner for Andrea Jones’ The Garden Photography Workshop: Nell. Congratulations, Nell! Please provide me with a delivery address by writing to jasonbertkay@gmail.com.
I know I said I’d give away a book every week, but I’ve decided to do it every other week. So next week we’ll be giving away Succulents: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Designing, and Growing 200 Easy-Care Plants, by Robin Stockwell.
That’s all for now.
gardeninacity 
Great post–I learned a lot about Karl Foerster. Sounds like he was a decent human being. Interesting, the point about our native grasses being more valued by folks overseas, but that seems to be how things used to work. It’s encouraging that gardeners and homeowners are beginning to realize the importance of incorporating native plants.
Horticulture has sure changed a lot since then.
When you think how formal & stylised gardens were in Karl Foerster’s lifetime … He was very advanced in his thinking. I always enjoying reading about people with passion & creativity, and he sounds pretty special in all ways, employing Jews in his nursery.. at that time.. Brave & defiant! Happy birthday Karl!
I think you’re exactly right about how ahead of his time he was.
I had a book about his gardens in my hand only yesterday! A great influence on me too. Just walking in the German countryside you can see where he got many of his ideas. 🙂
That’s interesting. I wonder if there are any biographies on him.
If I find one I’ll let you know. 🙂
Thank you for such an interesting post. I knew nothing about Karl Foerster but his name.
What an interesting fellow. I know his ‘Goldstrum’. A good worker.
Yes, I think it’s fair to call ‘Goldsturm’ a workhorse of the garden.
Great post thank you for sharing. He created some wonderful plants, thank you for writing this!
You’re welcome.
Thanks for this interesting post; I think it is still possible to visit his nursery but I don’t know who runs it now.
That might be worth seeing.
Very interesting! Bless him for defying the Nazis.
It’s wonderful that someone took an interest in NA plants the way he did.
Yup, here in North America we had to follow his lead with our own natives.
What a surprise it was to read your post and come across a photo from my garden! Love that kind of surprise, Jason.
I had no idea that Foerster had developed Goldsturm. I planted it along with the calamagrostis, not knowing the connection. Do you think that old relationship is why they are both thriving at the Skating Pond? (Or could it just be the right growing conditions…)
It’s good of you to recognize the person behind the plants. Foerster was a big influence in his time, and his influence continues.
Your garden made a big impression on us, especially around the skating pond. And perhaps ‘Goldsturm’ and ‘Karl Foerster’ do get along so well because they share a close relationship with the same passionate gardener.
He reminds me of my own hero, Luther Burbank.
I don’t know much about Burbank, though I’ve heard of him.
What a legacy – when I hear about plant enthusiasts living into their 90’s and beyond, I can’t help but think that this has something to do with their love of plants and how they nurture both the mind and body.
It’s a nice thought, and it makes sense. Gardens sustain our bodies and souls.
How interesting! I have a couple ‘Karl Foerester’ grasses in my garden, and it’s great to read about the man behind it. It sounds like he was a great person, too. I like how he was able to see the potential in plants that others thought of as weeds.
Yes, it shows how creative and original he was.
Great post. I too have Calamagrostis x acutifolia ‘ Karl Foerster’ in my garden and uncharacteristically did not bother to learn more about him.
When I started my blog some years ago I loved to include stories of individuals I learned about simply from the species and cultivar names of plants I loved. If your readers like this wonderful piece on Foerster some might enjoy reading about Henry Duncan McLaren, the second Baron of Aberconway. Plenty of history and 20th century “tumult” too:
https://raingardenartsblog.com/2014/03/02/rhododendron-cilipenense-at-91-years-old/
McLaren is the plantsman credited for the Rhodendron cilipinense hybrid. This British aristocrat, industrialist and politician is responsible for both this stunning little beauty of a plant and a magnificent public garden in the north of Wales.
Also, use the Plant Index menu to find posts about :
Frank Tweedy (Lewisia Tweedyi)
Stanley Kunitz (Poet & Plantsman)
Elizabeth C. Miller
Steve Antonow
Thanks so much for sharing this information!
Unfortunately, for my previous comment, I was logged in to WordPress site that wasn’t my blog. The link should work fine, or you can simply click the Gravatar of this comment. ;- (
No problem. If I lived on Vashon Island I would definitely be interested in this group.
Thanks for the short bio on Karl Foerster! Great info. I immediately thought of Piet Oudolf, whose gardens I greatly admire, as I started reading. So the inspiration was real!
No person is 100% original, there is always someone who provided inspiration or guidance.
How interesting. I’m so new to plants that I know very little about the people behind them, and I’m always pleased to learn about a person new to me, like Foerster.
Plant people are usually pretty interesting.
Thanks for the info. Until I read it I didn’t realize how little I knew about him. Love that grass. One of the best for us.
I don’t have any but I enjoy it in other gardens.
Definitely a man worth remembering and honouring. Thank you for enlightening me!
You’re welcome.