Ribes uva crispa - Gooseberry 'Poorman'

The Tradescants were 17th century gardeners who introduced many new plants to England. More than 160 varieties of fruit were listed amongst the inventory of plants grown at the Tradescants nursery in Lambeth, many of which are illustrated in the Orchard. The Garden Museum invited 40 of the worlds leading botanical artists to paint watercolours of fruit in response to the Orchard.

Linda Powers studied Studio Art and Art History at the University of Minnesota and worked as a graphic designer and product developer. She studied Chinese landscape painting before taking classes at the Minnesota School of Botanical Art. Linda and her husband travel often, hiking and photographing nature. Gooseberries grow wild throughout Linda’s home state of Minnesota. She lives near a berry farm that grows a variety of gooseberries, so she chose Poorman for her painting. The berries are the largest of any American variety and are the most likely match to those in the original Tradescants’ Orchard.