Thoughtful Gardening

With wit and wisdom, an Oxford historian and Financial Times gardening columnist recounts his deep passion and appreciation for gardening.

“A detailed and richly illustrated account of how one of the UK’s leading practitioners approaches the art of garden design.” —Gardens Illustrated Prolific designer Jinny Blom embraces a wide variety of styles, from large garden spaces to formal walled gardens and contemporary installations. What defines her work is her skill with plants and her ability to create a garden that responds to the history of the site and the wider landscape. The gardens Jinny creates are as different as their owners and their locations. In this book, Jinny shares her insight into the creative process she has developed while designing more than 250 gardens around the world. The Thoughtful Gardener contains modern takes on traditional forms, and is split into six sections: seeing, understanding, structuring, harmonizing, rooting, and liberating. All of Jinny’s gardens share a commitment to beautiful craftsmanship and considered planting. Structure and detail are important, and receive close attention. The styles vary considerably—logical, calm, beautiful, romantic, naturalistic, formal, sometimes spare—but the principles remain firm. Jinny designs for the long term, with consideration for the environment; these gardens are built to last. Reflecting Jinny’s highly individual character, there is plenty of wit and quirkiness alongside the expert knowledge, and it will appeal to the widest audience of garden lovers. Thoughtful and beautiful, yet practical and informative, this book marries artistry with functionality. Praise for The Thoughtful Gardener “The most romantic, creative person in garden design I know.” —Piet Oudolf “Jinny’s genius is to marry a beautiful vision to an extraordinary empathy with the landscape into which that vision will fit, resulting in a pastoral harmony second to none.” —Victoria, Lady Getty “The Thoughtful Gardener, at once a lavishly illustrated coffee-table tome and a friendly hands-on primer, offers a glimpse into some of the most magical gardens in the world.” —Architectural Digest “Landscaper Jinny Blom’s long-awaited book is so beautiful that you will not want to rush it. As the title suggests, there is more to this than lovely photography: the pages of The Thoughtful Gardener will stop you in your tracks and make you think about the potential of gardens, in a way that has never struck you before.” —Gardenista

An essential book for all gardeners who want to give a bit more thought into the way they garden Advice on gardening in harmony with nature From gardening during drought conditions to the best friendly fungi Plus how to make the perfect compost A thoughtful and practical book on how to garden in harmony with nature. A leading National Trust gardener reveals the techniques that work at in grand gardens are just as applicable for all gardeners, whether you have a small yard, a veg patch or several acres. His advice covers: How to make a plant healthy from organic spraying with milk, introducing friendly fungi to good nutrition for your plants. Making perfect compost, including hot composting techniques, the ultimate leaf mould, bracken compost and potash, and composting food waste. Surviving droughts and downpours with low-watering regimes, increasing drought resistance in plants, choosing the right plant for your conditions, and keeping plants healthy in water-logged soil. Making your glasshouse green with water-collection systems, using beneficial insects to control pests, alternatives to pesticides and fungicides, sterilising without bleach, peat-free composts and alternatives to plastic. Gardening by the moon with simple and scientific experiments in biodynamic gardening.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

Offers a basic understanding of biodynamic gardening in growing and preparing plant-based medicines.

"Undoubtedly the best gardening book for the past 30 years--provocative, full of information, witty and very funny" --Financial Times An award-winning historian of antiquity, Robin Lane Fox is also one of Britain's foremost gardening experts, and in Thoughtful Gardening he takes readers on a varied and highly enjoyable journey through each season of the gardening year. From a tender eulogy for one of his landscape design mentors to a candid consideration of global warming's effects on his lupins or the perfect shrub to grow in shade along a path, Fox brings his trademark wit, wisdom, and charm to bear on the art and experience of gardening. Essential reading for anyone planting a new garden or taking stock of one after several years, this collection offers valuable critiques of horticultural trends and traditions, and essential insights into gardening practices and philosophies. Taken together these essays form-season by season-a rich reflection on the lessons, challenges, and absurdities of life with a green thumb.

The author of The Natural Shade Garden offers a comprehensive new guide to climate-conscious gardening—beautifully illustrated with 400 photos. There is a new generation of gardeners who are planting gardens not only for their visual beauty but also for their ability to reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. In The New Shade Garden, Ken Druse provides expert advice on creating a shade garden with an emphasis on the adjustments necessary for our changing climate. Druse examines common problems facing today's gardeners, from addressing the deer situation to watering plants without stressing limited resources. Detailing all aspects of the gardening process, The New Shade Garden covers basic topics such as designing your own garden, pruning trees, preparing soil for planting, and the vast array of flowers and greenery that grow best in the shade. Perfect for new and seasoned gardeners alike, this encyclopedic manual provides all the information you need to start or improve upon your own shade garden.

“A Way to Garden prods us toward that ineffable place where we feel we belong; it’s a guide to living both in and out of the garden.” —The New York Times Book Review For Margaret Roach, gardening is more than a hobby, it’s a calling. Her unique approach, which she calls “horticultural how-to and woo-woo,” is a blend of vital information you need to memorize and intuitive steps you must simply feel and surrender to. In A Way to Garden, Roach imparts decades of garden wisdom on seasonal gardening, ornamental plants, vegetable gardening, design, gardening for wildlife, organic practices, and much more. She also challenges gardeners to think beyond their garden borders and to consider the ways gardening can enrich the world. Brimming with beautiful photographs of Roach’s own garden, A Way to Garden is practical, inspiring, and a must-have for every passionate gardener.