Fascinating -- I'd known of Hosack from the duel story, but hadn't known he was also a botanist and gardener. It's easy to forget that before the the 20th cent

Fascinating -- I'd known of Hosack from the duel story, but hadn't known he was also a botanist and gardener. It's easy to forget that before the the 20th century, nearly all medicines were derived from plants [exceptions being, y'know, stuff like heavy metals]. Even putting aside the actual pharmacological effects of plants, there is an undeniable therapeutic property in simply being in their midst [e.g., in a garden]. Whenever I'm feeling overwhelmed or flummoxed, I meditate in my small garden / orchard and begin feeling better straight away. I think it's something to do with the fact that being in the midst of a little ecosystem really creates a visceral feeling of being a part of something much bigger than oneself. It provokes a sense of wonder. Kind of makes the quotidian problems [debugging, say] seem less gargantuan.