author
F. W. (Frederick William) Burbidge
1847–1905
A Victorian plant hunter with an artist’s eye, he helped bring remarkable tropical species from Southeast Asia to British gardens and readers at home. His travel writing and horticultural books capture both the thrill of exploration and the practical craft of gardening.
1 Audiobook
The Gardens of the Sun A naturalist's journal on the mountains and in the forests and swamps of Borneo and the Sulu Archipelago
by F. W. (Frederick William) Burbidge
About the author
Born in Leicestershire in 1847, Frederick William Burbidge trained as a gardener at Chiswick and Kew before building a wider reputation as a botanist, illustrator, and explorer. He is especially remembered for collecting rare tropical plants, including species from Borneo, for the Veitch nurseries, and for combining fieldwork with clear, lively writing.
His books include The Gardens of the Sun, drawn from his travels in Borneo and the Sulu Archipelago, as well as practical gardening works on orchids, scented gardens, and hardy plants. Later in life he became curator of the botanical gardens at Trinity College Dublin, where he continued his horticultural work until his death in 1905.
Burbidge’s appeal today lies in that mix of adventure and hands-on knowledge. He wrote as someone who had seen extraordinary plants in the wild, but he also knew how to explain them to gardeners and general readers in a direct, engaging way.