Helena Rutherfurd Ely Biography

Helena Rutherfurd Ely (born Helena Rutherfurd: 28 September 1858 – 18 May 1920) was an American author, amateur gardener and founding member of the Garden Club of America whose three books influenced American and British gardeners to avoid Victorian formal gardens in favor of plantings that embodied an "informal and sensual style." She focused on planning her gardens around planting "hardy perennial plants found in the agricultural landscape."