American Anemoia
In the absence of its gardener, an ostensibly ornamental garden appears overcome with the abundance of the adjacent hedgerow. blurring the line between past and present, and illustrating the tension and elasticity of gardening with native plants in America over the last 250 years.
As Philadelphia celebrates the 250th anniversary of American independence, the 2026 PHS Philadelphia Flower Show offers a chance to reflect on the gardening legacies we’ve inherited and the ones we’re growing for the future, shaped by people and plants from around the world.
Anemoia (pronounced “an-uh-moi-uh”), from The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, describes nostalgia for a time never experienced. This horticultural still life, reimagined from an undated early 20th-century photograph, presents an inescapable paradox: from ground shaped by gardening, how do we make space for the garden as it is, not merely as it was once intended? Reflecting on 250 years of the American experiment, this allegorical garden acknowledges the complexities of horticultural history while posing timely questions about our relationship with the contemporary landscape.
Native plants have appeared in American gardens since before the nation’s founding, championed by early horticulturists like John Bartram. Initially valued for their beauty and novelty, these plants were living artifacts of an unfamiliar natural history. Today, a horticultural renaissance of native plants is driven by ecological urgency. Yet even this movement is shaped by anemoia and risks projecting ideals onto the land, mistaking nostalgia for a sense of place. The gardens we inherit are palimpsests, and we must reckon with those layers as much as we celebrate them.
A full plant list will be available once construction is completed. Stay tuned.
