In 1986 Susan Campbell made the chance discovery of a hitherto unknown garden diary. She spent the next 35 years researching its background before writing this book. The diary was written between 1838 and 1865 by the father of Charles Darwin Doctor Robert Darwin and after his death in 1848 it was continued by his sister Susan. It describes the horticultural and domestic activities at The Mount a large house with extensive beautiful gardens and pastures on the banks of the River Severn in Shrewsb