author

Fearing Burr

1815–1897

Best known for a richly detailed classic on American vegetables, this 19th-century Massachusetts writer brought a merchant’s practicality and a horticulturist’s curiosity to everything he wrote. His work still feels grounded, useful, and closely observed.

1 Audiobook

The field and garden vegetables of America : containing full descriptions of nearly eleven hundred species and varieties; with directions for propagation, culture, and use.

The field and garden vegetables of America : containing full descriptions of nearly eleven hundred species and varieties; with directions for propagation, culture, and use.

by Fearing Burr

About the author

Born in Hingham, Massachusetts, in 1815, Fearing Burr Jr. spent most of his life connected to that town and was active in mercantile work with his brother. Reliable historical sources also describe him as a devoted horticulturist who used his leisure time to build deep knowledge of vegetable culture and plant varieties.

He is best remembered for The Field and Garden Vegetables of America, a substantial reference work that gathered descriptions of hundreds of species and varieties along with practical advice on propagation, cultivation, and use. The breadth of that book helped preserve a great deal of 19th-century horticultural knowledge in a form that remained useful long after its first publication.

Burr also left a strong local record through journals kept from 1840 to 1897, and his name appears in works connected with the history of Hingham. He died in 1897, leaving behind writing that reflects both close everyday observation and a lasting interest in plants, place, and community.