Thieves, Charlatans and James Bond; the murky history of our top ten plants is the culmination of Dr. Benfield’s career in researching the history of our most valuable, popular and important plants as commodities for our personal and commercial use. In this interactive session covering plant origins and uses Dr. Benfield will thrill us, make us taste and evaluate the top plants we use today and in the end make you all accomplices to some of the largest heists in the world. The history of our top plants is characterized by intrigue, seduction, outright theft and lots of skullduggery.

Dr. Richard W. Benfield is Emeritus Professor of Geography at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, Connecticut where he taught courses in Human Geography, Plants, Predators and Parks, Russia, The European Union and many of the courses in the department’s tourism track.

His current research interests are in biogeography, particularly garden tourism, and the use of tourism as a conservation tool through the great botanic gardens of the world. He has also published extensively and spoken widely on the geography of Floriculture. In total he has travelled in over 115 countries and seen the botanic gardens and other private gardens in just about them all. In 2013 his best-selling book Garden Tourism was published by CABI Press, Abingdon, England and in 2020 a second edition, New Directions in Garden Tourism, was published by CABI. He is currently working on the nexus of plants predators and National Parks around the world.

This program is co-sponsored by Enfield Garden Club.