Bob Flowerdew

According to Flowerdew, the key to successful organic gardening is working with nature, rather than against it, to get your plants to thrive. This practice is called companion planting, and it is explained in this volume with a style that is both no-nonsense and reader-friendly. Topics range from plants that compete for nutrients to plants that enrich their soil for future crops. Gardeners of all levels will learn from Companion Planting and their gardens will benefit from happy and healthy plants.

Gardening is one of the most popular leisure activities today and most people take it for granted that suitable plants, equipment and information are easily available. This was not always the case. Anne Wilkinson’s engaging book recreates the world of amateur Victorian gardeners – those who had no idea how to start gardening, and no information to help them. In the 1860s gardening was mainly the preserve of professionals who worked on large estates, but a new breed of gardeners was emerging – ordinary householders. Their gardens range from country cottage and rectory gardens to urban gardens behind terraced houses. With no help from the professionals – who refused to believe that gardens in towns were a practical possibility – those innovators laid down the foundations for modern amateur gardening as it is today. This book, richly illustrated with images from contemporary magazines and other sources, explores their journey to create their own piece of England’s ‘green and pleasant land’.

Recreates for us the world of the Victorian gardener - not the doyenne at the head of the large estates but the amateur and small time gardener in towns and villages. In this illustrated book, the author draws on contemporary gardening magazines and other sources to give us an insight into this gardener.

This colorful, engaging book brings together the wisdom--and wit--of four expert gardeners to provide novices with clear instruction on everything from planting to pruning, from creating a pond to lining a hanging basket. Drawing on their years of experience working with apprehensive beginners, the authors carefully explain the gardening calendar and the steps that are needed for a garden to reach its full potential. Readers will clear sites for raised beds, propagate from seed, grow hothouse exotica, protect against infestation, and develop attractive displays.