UNGER, Mary E.
Alfred Unger moved from the USA to Yokohama in 1890. There Alfred purchased the Boehmer Nursery from its founder, Louis Boehmer. Established in 1882, it was the first nursery to export plants from Japan to Europe and America. At the time of Unger's takeover, another nursery, Yokohama Nursery Company, was formed. They produced lavish catalogues with full-colour illustrations of plants. To compete, Unger turned to renowned publisher Takejiro Hasegawa to develop a comparable product with woodcut illustrations and text written by his wife, Mary. This work, The Favorite Flowers of Japan, was the successful result of their collaboration. A rare copy of a beautiful production, it shows 24 different kinds of flowers and plants, including bonsai or dwarf tree illustrations. First published in 1901, the book had second and third editions which were in turn reissued, making it hard to date this copy. The first and second editions have a two-page publication list at end not present in this copy.
