Tag Archives: Maianthemum racemosum

Marie Gaden RIP

I was very saddened to hear that Marie Gaden has died at 91. I learned so much from Marie about gardening and I have so many plants that originated from her. She was from England and married a Norwegian just after the war and had a fantastic garden up in the hills above Trondheim and Jonsvatnet. I remember that she grew seed at one time for UK seed company Thompson and Morgan. She belonged to various international seed clubs like the Alpine Garden Society and Scottish Rock Garden Club and tried many new plants from seed each year! 

Marie (and my ex – Eileen) at home at Jonsvatnet (she always had a trowel at the ready in her hand to dig up plants)
Marie gave me so many plants over the years. I had little to give back which taught me that it isn’t about exchanging but passing on to the next generation!

One of the plants I got from Marie was a Maianthemum racemosum, which grows vigorously in the garden in a really dry spot under a large birch tree. I call it Marieanthemum and I mention this in my book:

Her husband died and she sadly had to leave that fantastic garden and downsized but still had a small garden crammed full of perennials and her living room table and chairs were as ever full of seed packets, seed catalogues and reference books! She was a wonderful generous woman! RIP Marie. You are here no longer but your plants and memories live on :)

It was Marie that taught me to fold seed packets. She was still doing this in her 80s.

Marieanthemum racemosum lives on in my garden (picture taken this week):