Inga Jackson

PhD topic title: Plants in the Wrong Place? Weeds and weeding in Britain c.1500-c.1950

PhD supervisors: Mark Jenner, Nik Brown, Jack Hatfield

Biography and research

My research considers the cultural construction and pathologization of weeds. Through exploring archival materials, I look at weeding practices in gardening and agriculture in nineteenth century Britain. I am interested in what makes certain plants weeds; whether this is their ability to cultivate in abandoned areas, or outcompeting other plant life. I consider how the categorising and defining of plants relates to ideas of exotic and invasive plants as well as the historical context of the nineteenth century. 

From 2020 to 2024 I studied at Lancaster University, completing my undergraduate and Masters degree in Sociology. During this time I became interested in the contributions Sociology can make to researching climate change and the relationship between humans and ‘nature’. My dissertation challenged human focused narratives of cities by exploring how urban spaces are used and made by animals, with a particular interest in pests. This has led to my interest in the relationship between humans and plants and how weeds are defined and categorised by humans. 

Funder

The Leverhulme Trust