Interview Recording
Interview Transcript
Ann Cripps interviewed on 25 August 2023 by Jean Elder
Synopsis
In 1981 the Tasmanian branch of the Australian Garden History (AGHS) was formed. Hobart born author and garden history consultant Ann Cripps has played a key role in its development from 1980 to 2000, serving as a foundation member, committee member and Secretary.
Having lived most of her life in Tasmania, Ann acknowledges that time spent at the home of her grandmother in Fern Tree, at the foothills of kunanyi/Mount Wellington, gave her an early appreciation of the many elements to a garden and their place within the broader horticultural landscape.
In this interview Ann shares first-hand knowledge of the AGHS’s inception and activities, both locally and nationally, and spanning membership, conferences, advocacy, exhibitions, funding, education, excursions and publications.
Ann, a librarian by profession, used her specialised skills to undertake conservation management plans and significance assessments in Tasmania. Notable southern Tasmanian colonial gardens include Bishopscourt, Markree and Narryna. An interesting deviation from the colonial model was the documentation of little-known miners’ and railway station gardens of an abandoned west coast mining town.
Advocacy has been a key objective of Tasmanian branch activities. In the early years, northern Tasmania nurseryman Frank Walker and Dr Laker from Westbury individually championed the protection of landscape values, and in Hobart Mark Hurburgh led a successful campaign in 1985 to save an historic Sequoia at New Town.
International collaborations have brought garden enthusiasts together, including the American garden writer Ethne Clarke’s attendance at the 1993 national conference in Hobart. A 1998 Australian tour by members of the English Garden History Society, in which Ann played a major part, revealed intriguing insights into Tasmania, such as the presence of opium growing openly in the midlands.
A specialised interest in the early nurseries and nurserymen in Tasmania, the influence of Quakers and the interplay between art and gardening led Ann to undertake extensive research, resulting in a major publication Gardeners, plant collectors, friends: Hobart Town and beyond published in 2022.
Ann’s substantial contribution to the AGHS and gardening history in Tasmania is brought to the fore in this most informative interview.