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Gardening book- basics
John473
Posts: 62
Hi
I live in a housing estate and have a small south facing garden. I make too many mistakes with planting etc. People tell me my garden is nice but I want to improve it. However I feel my gardening basics are poor. Is there a book that you would recommend ? I love climbing plants, flowers for scent and propagating from cuttings. I would like to go back to basics really- I find the more I try to understand the more I realise I don't know!!!!
Advice appreciated
John
0
Posts
Have a look in second hand bookshops or charity shops and see what appeals to you. My fist 'Bible' was a reader's digest tome with a hessian cover. Light on pretty pictures but heavy on information. Plants (fashions and introductions) and views on pesticides etc have moved on but the basic information is still the same
Mine was John Brookes' The Small Garden which I can't find online so maybe I've got a classic?
This is the only link I could find to it but he's done tons more books.
http://www.iberlibro.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=18149096144&searchurl=tn%3Dsmall%2520garden%26sortby%3D17%26an%3Dbrookes%2520john
I devoured this in my younger years.
It's out of date now but the things it taught me stuck with me.
Anything by DR D G Hessayon. There are lots of different titles and the books are easy to use. My first veg garden was planted entirely under his tutelage thanks to a little grey volume (the covers are a little more colourful nowadays).
Hello John473. The following old books are my suggestions. I found them on the shef at home and they are brilliant:
- Carters Book For The Casual Gardener - Jim Mather (has a good section on propagating and seed sewing)
- 100 Plants for Pots and Containers -Mary Moody
- A Practical Guide to Patios and their Surrounds - Bramley Books
a bit detailed but really helpful:
- Reader's Digest Encyclopaedia of Garden Plants and Flowers
I think the first is a really good basic book.
Thanks very much Wakeshine
I second the charity shop recommendation!
Get them out of the library before buying anything new, as they're really expensive.
I've found anything by Dr H useful, although the old versions are quite dated now in look and feel. I also like Alan Titchmarsh. The Gardener's Year or How to be a Gardener are good 101s, although I enjoy reading the 'How to...' ones that deal with particular topics. I have the '...Grow Your Own Plants' which is about propagating and I'm looking for a cheap 'Climbers and Wall Shrubs'. The Works online bookshop have some of them for £1.50 at the moment I noticed when I was looking up the right titles.
Last edited: 05 August 2016 19:33:11
Hi all
my local bookshop had Alan Titchmarsh's- how to be a gardener so I got these- thanks for the help.
Appreciated
John