A forest garden imitates young natural woodland, with a wide range of crops grown in vertical layers. Species are chosen for their beneficial effects on each other, creating a healthy system that maintains its own fertility, with little need for digging, weeding or pest control. The result of this largely perennial planting is a tranquil, beautiful and productive space.This book is a bible for permaculture and forest gardening, with practical advice on how to create a forest garden, from planning and design to planting and maintenance. It explains how a forest garden is designed from the top down: the canopy layer first,then the shrub layer,the perennial ground-cover layer,the annuals & biennialsnext, the climbers and nitrogen fixersand finally the clearings, living spaces and paths.Whether in a small back garden or in a larger plot, the environmental benefits of growing this way are great. Forest Gardens are a viable solution to the challenge of a changing climate: we can grow food sustainably in them without compromising soil health, food quality or biodiversity.Forest gardens:store carbon dioxide in the soil and in the woody biomass of the trees and shrubs.enable the soil to store more water after heavy rains, minimizing flooding and erosion.boost the health of the ecosystem, ensuring a balance of predators and beneficial insects because mixed planting is crucial to the scheme.allows the soil to thrive because it is covered with plants all year round.Creating a Forest Garden includes a detailed directory of over 500 trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, annuals, root crops and climbers. As well as more familiar plants such as fig and apple trees, blackcurrants and rosemary shrubs, you can grow your own chokeberries, goji berries, yams, heartnuts, bamboo shoots and buffalo currants.Forest gardens produce fruits, nuts, vegetables, seeds, salads, herbs, spices, firewood, mushrooms, medicinal herbs, dye plants, soap plants, and honey from bees.This book tells you everything you need to create your own forest garden with beautiful illustrations and helpful tips throughout.

    However, there are a number of plants that manage to grow spontaneously in sidewalk cracks and roadside meridians, flourish along chain-link fences and railroad tracks, line the banks of streams and rivers, and emerge in the midst of landscape plantings and trampled lawns. On their own and free of charge, these plants provide ecological services including temperature reduction, oxygen production, carbon storage, food and habitat for wildlife, pollution mitigation, and erosion control on slopes. Around the world, wild plants help to make urban environments more habitable for people.Peter Del Tredici's lushly illustrated field guide to wild urban plants of the northeastern United States is the first of its kind. While it covers the area bounded by Montreal, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Detroit, it is broadly applicable to temperate urban environments across North America. The book covers 222 species that flourish without human assistance or approval. Rather than vilifying such plants as weeds, Del Tredici stresses that it is important to notice, recognize, and appreciate their contribution to the quality of urban life. Indeed their very toughness in the face of heat islands, elevated levels of carbon dioxide and ubiquitous contamination is indicative of the important role they have to play in helping humans adapt to the challenges presented by urbanization, globalization and climate change.The species accounts--158 main entries plus 64 secondary species-feature descriptive information including scientific name and taxonomic authority, common names, botanical family, life form, place of origin, and identification features. Del Tredici focuses especially on their habitat preferences, environmental functions, and cultural significance. Each entry is accompanied by original full-color photographs by the author which show the plants' characteristics and growth forms in their typical habitats. Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast will help readers learn to see these plants-the natural vegetation of the urban environment-with fresh appreciation and understanding.

    Her own garden, Glebe Cottage in Devon, as seen on Gardeners' World, is almost grown entirely from cuttings and seeds and in this book she's on a mission to share her joy in working with nature to cultivate the plants she loves. Too often gardeners are intimidated by propagation, assume it's not for them and go for ready-grown plants from the garden centre. But Carol, a gifted communicator with her infectious enthusiasm, boundless horticultural expertise and easy practical explanations, shows just how simple and satisfying it is to grow your own plants, not to mention sustainable and cheap. She demonstrates, step-by-step, how to divide herbaceous perennials, nurture seedlings or grow new stock from root cuttings, stems or leaves, showing how there is no mystique involved and anybody can do it.In Grow Your Own Garden Carol offers a refreshing new approach to propagation, and, just as she did with Grow Your Own Veg, she brings her own unique style to an inspirational, accessible and practical gardening guide that will have great appeal to novices and more experienced gardeners alike.

    Herbal medicines have been used for many centuries to treat illnesses and restore health, and today herbalism still remains the most widely-practiced form of medicine around the world.Written by a leading Medical Herbalist, The Complete Herbal Tutorprovides in-depth knowledge of the practice and theory of herbal medicine, including everything you need to know about its history, how it works, how to grow, gather and prepare herbs, and how to use them to create a herbal prescription.The rigorously-researched and illustrated materia medica contains over 150 herbs, with clear explanations of their properties, active ingredients and the latest scientific developments on their uses.There is also a clear explanation of how herbs can be used to treat each of the body's systems, with advice on using remedies for healing a range of specific conditions.

    Supported by the author’s extensive topographical research, this book presents a unified vision of the city that links improvements to public and private water systems with political, religious, and social change. Between 1560 and 1630, in a spectacular burst of urban renewal, Rome’s religious and civil authorities sponsored the construction of aqueducts, private and public fountains for drinking, washing, and industry, and the magnificent ceremonial fountains that are Rome’s glory. Tying together the technological, sociopolitical, and artistic questions that faced the designers during an age of turmoil in which the Catholic Church found its authority threatened and the infrastructure of the city was in a state of decay, Rinne shows how these public works projects transformed Rome in a successful marriage of innovative engineering and strategic urban planning.

    Their sculptural leaves and appealing textures make it difficult to stop at one, and it is easy to fill a garden with them. Help is at hand with this attractive guide to the popular new small hostas that take up less space and are ideally suited to container cultivation. They can be used on their own or with companion plants to make charming displays on the patio, porch, or even windowsill.Many small hostas are simply scaled-down versions of classic hostas, while others offer distinctly new attributes in terms of color, leaf shape, and patterning. Like full-size hostas, small hostas can be upright, flat, or cascading; there are varieties that are full of substance, and others that are fine and delicate; there are green ones, gold ones, blue ones, variegated ones, and splashed ones. Some are better garden plants than others, and a valuable function of this book is to showcase the very best of the new introductions. Photographs of the hostas in garden settings show how admirably they respond to imaginative display in a wide range of situations including waterside, woodland, and rock gardens.Beautifully illustrated and highly informative, this handpicked selection of diminutive hostas will inspire hobbyists and gardeners alike and provide inspiration for new planting schemes.

    While studying for a Distance Learning Diploma from the Society of Botanical Arts, Mary Ann Scott began an extraordinary correspondence with Margaret Stevens, the society’s President, who offered advice and critique.Including firsthand accounts of the joys and challenges Mary Ann faced as she progressed through the course, Botanical Sketchbook is sure to inspire artists of all skill levels. It is beautifully illustrated and packed with practical advice on all aspects of botanical painting in watercolor.

    With 1,400 color photographs and its authoritative text, this is a magnificent reference for anyone who loves the Australian bush. In a handy portable format, Native Plants of the Sydney Region is the ideal companion for anyone who wants to put names to the plants they see in the bush.Covering an area from Newcastle to Nowra, and westwards to the Great Dividing Range, Native Plants of the Sydney Region contains plant species from remote areas as well as those common in remnant suburban bushland. Many of the species described are also found along the whole of Australia's east coast and west to the slopes and plains. This book is based on the authors' earlier editions of Native Plants of the Sydney District, which became the standard reference for bushwalkers, gardeners, bush care workers, environmentalists, botanists, landscape architects, and students. It has been completely rewritten with descriptions of nearly 1,400 plant species, some only recently discovered, as well as many new color photographs and revised names in an up-to-date taxonomy.

    Creating an Australian Garden not only passes on the knowledge gained from Angus's extensive experience as a plant breeder-it empowers us all to unlock the secrets of cleverly designed Australian gardens that provide year-round color, vibrant foliage, and havens for wildlife. Creating an Australian Garden contains practical tips on planning a garden from scratch, adapting an existing garden, using water-saving methods, creating mounds and raised beds to ensure the drainage many Australian plants require, growing native plants in containers, choosing the best plants for your environment, easy-to-follow basics of soil preparation, and 450 of the best Australian plant varieties, including many that are newly released. Find out how to choose the ideal plants for your climate, or create a microclimate to accommodate the spectacular native plants you'd like to grow. See how versatile native plants can be, becoming part of any garden style you envisage for your backyard. Most importantly, learn everything you need to know, from planning to planting, to allow you to create a stunning native garden, wherever you live.

    The beautifully illustrated Designing Gardens with Flora of the American East approaches landscape design from an ecological perspective, encouraging professional horticulturalists and backyard enthusiasts alike to intensify their use of indigenous or native plants. These plants, ones that grow naturally in the same place in which they evolved, form the basis of the food web. Wildlife simply cannot continue to survive without them-nor can we.Why indigenous plants, you may ask? What makes them so special to butterflies and bees and boys and girls? For Carolyn Summers, the answer is as natural as an ephemeral spring wildflower or berries of the gray dogwood, "As I studied indigenous plants, a strange thing happened. The plants grew on me. I began to love the plants themselves for their own unique qualities, quite apart from their usefulness in providing food and shelter for wildlife.Emphasizing the importance of indigenous plant gardening and landscape design, Summers provides guidelines for skilled sowers and budding bloomers. She highlights . . . The best ways to use exotic and non-indigenous plants responsiblyEasy-to-follow strategies for hosting wildlife in fields, forests, and gardensDesigns for traditional gardens using native trees, shrubs, groundcovers as substitutes for exotic plantsExamples of flourishing plant communities from freshwater streams to open meadowsHow to control plant reproduction, choose cultivars, open-pollinated indigenous plants, and different types of hybrids, and practice “safe sex in the gardenFrom Maine to Kentucky and up and down the East Coast, Designing Gardens with Flora of the American East lays the "gardenwork" for protecting natural areas through the thoughtful planting of indigenous plants. Finally we can bask in the knowledge that it is possible to have loads of fun at the same time we are growing a better world.

    His experience and knowledge will help us all become better native plant gardeners."--Steven P. Christman, editor,Floridata.com Best Native Plants for Southern Gardens highlights and illustrates several hundred readily available and easy-to-grow native species for gardeners and landscapers living in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia.These native plants include shrubs, small and large trees, and a collection of perennials, all of which have proven to be extremely successful landscape plants in the southeastern United States. The average homeowner will be able to find many of these species in local retail nurseries whether or not these nurseries specialize in native plants.Gil Nelson has created an indispensable, authoritative publication that describes and recommends high-performing native plants, tells readers how to avoid the use of invasive species in their gardens, and highlights the design of several specialty and wildlife gardens. With the help of regional experts, the included species have been selected based on field visits to retail and wholesale nurseries, private and public gardens and arboreta, personal knowledge and experience, and discussions with landscape and gardening enthusiasts, professionals, and experts throughout the region. The inclusion of more than 600 color photos makes this an easy-to-use, valuable addition to any gardener's library.

    And few things taste more delicious than fruit picked straight from the tree or bush and eaten when perfectly ripe, perhaps still warm from the sun. This is fruit the way nature intended, not fruit that has been flown in from hundreds or thousands of miles away or stored in climate-controlled warehouses before being sealed in plastic for supermarket shelves. What could be fresher, tastier, more local, and more seasonal than fruit you've grown yourself, in your own garden or allotment, picked at just the moment when it's at its most perfect?This book shows just how easy it is to grow your own fruit. You don't need a huge garden or a dedicated orchard. It's possible to get a perfectly good harvest from plants grown in containers on balconies or patios and from even the smallest of town gardens. Pick the right varieties for the conditions you've got, invest in a bit of planning and preparation, follow the instructions contained in these pages, and you can be harvesting and eating your own strawberries, plums, pears, apricots, blackberries, redcurrants, melons, and figs.

    Biofuels discusses different types of biofuels, the science behind their production, their environmental impacts, and possible future uses.

    Up until now there has been no comparable source of information. Featuring horticultural notes from a network of growers and enthusiasts, backed up by data from recent scientific studies, the book presents a remarkable amount of information in a fashion accessible to amateurs as well as specialists. More than one hundred line drawings and nearly six hundred photographs—many portraying rarely seen trees—offer aids to identification. Introductory chapters covering conservation and modern techniques of tree-growing, and a comprehensive glossary and bibliography, round out the volume and make New Trees incomparable—and indispensable.

    This is the first book in English about his work. A master of composing with perennials, grass, and bulbs, Nordfjell also has a deep engagement with the landscapes that surround his gardens. Materials such as Swedish granite, steel, and timber give his gardens structure and a powerful identity, animated by water and light. Every detail of his composition is meticulously worked out, and the gardens reveal new aspects through the seasons. This book covers 14 of Nordfjell's gardens, including his 2009 Best in Show and 2007 Gold Medal gardens at Chelsea. Accompanying Ulf Nordfjell's thoughtful and lucid text are Jerry Harpur's superb photographs, which were taken over several years and represent the gardens in all seasons in both general views and details.

    Americans are staying closer to home – literally tending to their gardens, by the millions. And they’re reaching out for help and advice. Doug Oster, popular radio talk show gardening expert and newspaper garden & food columnist, gets more questions about tomatoes than any other vegetable. #2 is garlic, with basil close behind. It’s time for a book about these favorites of the American kitchen. With color photos throughout, this book is a balance of easy-to-use organic gardening tips, a little horticultural history, serious and funny cautionary gardening tales…and 30 simply delicious recipes (the gastronomic payoff). No matter if a garden is a loft balcony or a backyard in the ‘burbs, Doug leads his readers step by step with his trademark “how I do it” humor and Julia Child honesty…with a bonus prize of all those recipes as a reward for their labors. For beginners and old-timers alike.

    The peak cherry-viewing season, however, is extremely short -- from late March through early April -- and the exquisite blossoms scatter without trace in little over a week. Despite, or perhaps because of, the fleeting nature of the spectacle, cherry blossoms have occupied a special place in the hearts of the Japanese since earliest times.Cherry blossoms are seen as an ideal model for life and death, emblematic of both the glorious and ephemeral natures of human existence, dazzling during a short life before falling gracefully to the ground. For this reason, they have provided inspiration for poets, painters, artisans and many others over the centuries. Identifying in nature a sublime spirituality transcending external beauty, and elevating that spirituality to an art form lies at the core of Japanese culture. For over a millennium, the city of Kyoto has made this aesthetic sensibility its own.This book, a companion to the recent Autumn Colors of Kyoto, features 48 outstanding cherry blossom-viewing locations photographed by three lifelong Kyotoites who have made it their mission to convey the beauty of their remarkable city.A bilingual map section provides address information and contact details for each location.

    'Take Chelsea Home' is a practical compendium of the best of design, planting, decoration, style and inspiration from the world-famous annual event, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

    These infestations increasingly erode forest productivity, hindering forest use and management activities, and degrading diversity and wildlife habitat. Often called nonnative, exotic, nonindigenous, alien, or noxious weeds, they occur as trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, ferns, and forbs. This book provides information on accurate identification of the 56 nonnative plants and groups that are currently invading the forests of the 13 Southern States. It lists other nonnative plants of growing concern. Recommendations for prevention and control of these species are provided in a companion booklet, “A Management Guide for Invasive Plants of Southern Forests,” published by the Southern Research Station as a General Technical Report. Basic strategies for managing invasions on a specific site include maintaining forest vigor with minimal disturbance, constant surveillance and treatment of new unwanted arrivals, and finally, rehabilitation following eradication.