Henry Nehrling
| Henry Nehrling, famed ornithologist and horticulturist, was born
on 9 May 1853 in Herman, Wisconsin. His early education was in a parochial
school several miles from his home. During walks to school, he developed
a passionate interest in nature – especially birds and flowers. In
1890, he took the post of Custodian of the Public Museum in Milwaukee where
he was given the opportunity to collect plant specimens for their greenhouse.
Nehrling then used his knowledge to develop a garden in Gotha, Florida,
where he had purchased land in 1884. Nehrling grew, hybridized, and popularized
many unusual and exotic plants for the general public. Caladiums, palms,
bamboo, and amaryllis were all introduced to the United States by way of
his Palm Cottage Gardens. Nehrling’s garden became so well known during
the 1890s that people like John Burroughs, Thomas Edison, and Theodore Roosevelt
came to visit and learn gardening tips. Nehrling had resigned his post with
the Public Museum of Milwaukee and permanently settled in Gotha in 1894.
In 1917, Nehrling purchased land in Naples, Florida, to pursue an interest
in fancy leaved Caladiums. In 1922, Nehrling settled permanently in Naples,
fondly calling his garden there "Garden Solitude" and "Tropical
Gardens". Henry Nehrling died on November 22, 1929. His Naples’s
garden was preserved as the Jungle Larry’s Caribbean Gardens.
submitted by Norita Moss
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