John Tradescant the elder (c. 1570 - 1638) and his son John Tradescant the younger (1608 - 1662) were plant hunters, gardeners and collectors of curiosities. Tradescant’s botanic garden introduced lots of new plants to England. Popular house plant Tradescantia, named after the Tradescants, was sent from a friend in Virginia and grown in England for first time at the garden before 1629. The plant, commonly called ‘inch plant’, ‘Moses in the cradle’ and ‘Wondering Jew’, has many varieties with trailing foliage ranging from green and white to a deep purple.
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