Eureka!

I need to find novels with two characteristics: (1) written in the 1820s (though I will settle for the teens or 30s) and (2) has botany in it.

The second one is not so hard--but the first... apparently, the only novelists still being read from the 1820s are Walter Scott and Mary Shelley. (Had no idea Scott was churning out one or two novels every year for the whole decade until I had to start looking... he was a machine, yo.)

BUT

Just now, I figured out that the Frances Jacson I saw on some long list of novels published in the 1820s was indeed the sister of Maria Jacson, famous botany writer. So, I thought I'd check around teh Internets, and stumbled onto the Chawton House Library site. Lo and behold, I now have two novels downloaded onto this here computer, both liberally peppered over with botanic references. AND--the name of one is Things by Their Right Name... couldn't be more suggestive of taxonomy. It might as well be called Hey You! Use This in Your Diss!