Aimed at professional and novice garden and landscape designers; covers the background history and design consideration of naturalistic planting. Architecture (Landscape) & Town Planning; gardening

Recreate the wild beauty and thriving ecology of meadows, prairies, woodlands, and streamsides in your own garden. In New Naturalism, horticulturist and modern plantsman Kelly D. Norris shares his inspiring, ecologically sound vision for home gardens created with stylish yet naturalistic plantings that mimic the wild spaces we covet—far from the contrived, formal, high-maintenance plantings of the past. Through a basic introduction to plant biology and ecology, you’ll learn how to design and grow a lush, thriving home garden by harnessing the power of plant layers and palettes defined by nature, not humans. The next generation of home landscapes don’t consist of plants in a row, pruned to perfection and reliant on pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides to survive. Instead, today’s stunning landscapes convey nature’s inherent beauty. These gardens are imbued with romance and emotion, yet they have so much more to offer than their gorgeous aesthetics. Naturalistic garden designs, such as those featured in this groundbreaking new book, contribute to positive environmental change by increasing biodiversity, providing a refuge for wildlife, and reconnecting humans to nature. In the pages of New Naturalism you’ll find: Planting recipes for building meadows, prairies, and other grassland-inspired open plantings even in compact, urban settings Nature-inspired ways to upgrade existing foundation plantings, shrub beds, and flower borders to a wilder aesthetic while still managing the space Inspiration for taking sidewalk and driveway plantings and turning them into visually soft, welcoming spaces for humans and wildlife alike Ideas for turning shady landscapes into canopied retreats that celebrate nature Creative ways to make an ecologically vibrant garden in even the smallest of spaces New Naturalism approaches the planting beds around our homes as ecological systems. If properly designed and planted, these areas can support positive environmental change, increase plant and animal diversity, and create a more resilient space that’s less reliant on artificial inputs. And they do it all while looking beautiful and improving property values.

Weed-Free Gardening presents a clear and easy-to-implement plan of attack to get even the most tenacious weeds under control without the need for potentially harmful synthetic herbicides. Let’s face it: weeding is far from a homeowner’s favorite chore. But not everyone can afford to hire a landscape crew to keep the weeds at bay, and spraying chemical herbicides isn’t a smart solution for eco-conscious homeowners or pet parents. If that’s the case for you, the weed control prevention and control strategies outlined here by author Tasha Greer will have you growing flowers, vegetables, shrubs, and trees with little to no weed competition. Tasha’s organic approach hands you methods for both preventing weeds early in the growing season and managing weedy intruders year-round. By following the practical guidance found in Weed-Free Gardening, you’ll: Control annual weeds by disrupting their natural lifecycle Learn the whys, hows, and whens of weed-inhibiting mulching techniques Eliminate deep-rooted perennial weeds by eradicating them at their source Meet the best and most effective weeding tools available to homeowners Discover many ways to keep weeds out of the vegetable garden while ensuring healthy and productive soil Implement a practical plan to gain long-term control over weeds In addition, you’ll find resources for weed identification, tips for getting rid of invasive plants, useful ideas for handling areas completely overtaken by weeds, and dozens of “weed hacks” to make life in the garden so much more beautiful. Weed-Free Gardening is here with a plan to save you time, money, and energy, and help you fall in love with your garden all over again. If landscape beds overrun with weeds are making you want to give up on your garden, hope is finally here!

This new edition of a regional classic has been completely revised, updated, and expanded to include many more facets of the joys and challenges of gardening in the maritime Pacific Northwest. Included are new plant discoveries and information on container gardening, design trends, community education and stewardship, and shoreline habitats. The authors offer comprehensive details for using native plants to transform any garden into a low-maintenance, water-wise paradise that utilizes the beauty of native plants and creates habitats for wildlife.

Since the first edition was published in 1992, Nick Robinson's The Planting Design Handbook has been widely used as a definitive text on landscape architecture courses throughout the world. It remains one of the few titles written by a practicing landscape architect and educator who is also a horticulturalist and accomplished plantsman, and which deals with the application of planting design on a large scale in landscape architecture and urban design projects. The Planting Design Handbook is distinctive for its elegant integration of an ecological approach with an understanding of visual and spatial composition. It emphasizes the role of vegetation layers and designed plant communities in complex and diverse plant assemblages for all kinds of sites and uses. This expanded and comprehensively updated third edition still provides a complete examination of principles and practice of design for public, institutional and private landscapes. It takes account of developments in theory and practice, especially in the use of perennials, and reflects a variety of media and approaches current in landscape architecture and design. All chapters have been revised and re-written to ensure updated references and new references have been added. Many new photographs of planting and projects around the world have been included, with examples of current professional drawings to illustrate the design process. It is generously illustrated, including a colour section and the beautifully detailed line drawings of the Chinese architect and painter Jia-Hua Wu.

Designing a garden by the sea poses special problems for the designer. High winds and salt spray can wreak havoc with planting schemes, and the need to provide sheltered areas for sitting and entertaining may be difficult to achieve. On the positive side, the proximity of the sea greatly reduces the chances of damaging spring frosts, so the designer may choose from a far wider palette of plants than is possible further inland, including the exotic and sub-tropical species currently in vogue. A balance between providing sufficient shelter to satisfy the client's needs and allowing views to the sea to be maintained and enhanced, is the challenge facing every designer. The book explains the particular process of analysis needed for maritime environments, the effects of wind and salt spray and the microclimates created by sea and wind. The establishment and maintenance of shelter belts is fully explained, together with practical information about the choice and implementation of planting schemes. A suggested list of suitable plants for windswept sites is included. Each chapter is accompanied by case studies of actual coastal gardens.

Cultivated: The Elements of Floral Style elevates floral design to fine art in this richly informative work on the principles of floral style. A charming and intelligent mentor, Christin Geall emboldens designers, gardeners, and entrepreneurs to think differently and deeply about their work with flowers as she draws upon the fine arts and historical sources, exploring Baroque music, the paintings of the Impressionists, or the work of floral innovators like Gertrude Jekyll and Constance Spry. Covering all aspects of floral design, including choosing plants to grow and arrange, selecting tools and vessels, balancing color and form, and even photographing and selling arrangements, Cultivated offers universal lessons for all levels of practitioners, budgets, and materials. Geall's stunning photographs of her own lush designs illustrate techniques for creating brilliant arrangements that spark the imagination.

"Your Natural Garden is an authoritative, practical, and beautiful guide to tending a naturalistic garden"--