Book picks similar to
The Planting Design Handbook by Nick Robinson


landscape-architecture
gardening
design
landscape-design

Design of Cities


Edmund N. Bacon - 1967
    . . Splendidly presented, filled with thoughtful and brilliant intuitive insights." —The New Republic In a brilliant synthesis of words and pictures, Edmund N. Bacon relates historical examples to modern principles of urban planning. He vividly demonstrates how the work of great architects and planners of the past can influence subsequent development and be continued by later generations. By illuminating the historical background of urban design, Bacon also shows us the fundamental forces and considerations that determine the form of a great city. Perhaps the most significant of these are simultaneous movement systems—the paths of pedestrian and vehicular traffic, public and private transportation—that serve as the dominant organizing force, and Bacon looks at movement systems in cities such as London, Rome, and New York. He also stresses the importance of designing open space as well as architectural mass and discusses the impact of space, color, and perspective on the city-dweller. That the centers of cities should and can be pleasant places in which to live, work, and relax is illustrated by such examples as Rotterdam and Stockholm.

The Hidden Life of Trees


Peter Wohlleben - 2015
    Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time of it and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group.Drawing on groundbreaking new discoveries, Wohlleben presents the science behind the secret and previously unknown life of trees and their communication abilities; he describes how these discoveries have informed his own practices in the forest around him. As he says, a happy forest is a healthy forest, and he believes that eco-friendly practices not only are economically sustainable but also benefit the health of our planet and the mental and physical health of all who live on Earth.

Permaculture Two: Practical Design for Town and Country in Permanent Agriculture


Bill Mollison - 1979
    Ways in which plants can modify climate and many forms of pollution are discussed. Highly productive, low-energy systems, are made clear, in this fascinating book that offers some concrete solutions for saving Mother Earth."...If there is a single claim, that I could make, in order to distinguish Permaculture from other systems of agriculture, with the notable exception of keyline concepts, it is that Permaculture is primarily a consciously designed agricultural system ... a system that combines landscape design with perennial plants and animals to make a safe and sustainable resource for town and country. A truly appropriate technology giving high yields for low energy inputs, and using only human skill and intellect to achieve a stable resource of great complexity and stability.""Permaculture Two is about design, not gardening or livestock per se but as elements in a system intended to serve man, and the ends of good ecology ... Good teachers have nothing to give but enthusiasm to learn; they cannot with the best will in the world, give their students knowledge. Thus it is ‘how’ to design, rather than designing your site which I am attempting here ...""... both individual and competitive enterprise, and ‘free’ energy have faiIed us. Society is in a mess; obesity in the west is balanced by famine in the third world. Petrol is running out yet freeways are still being built. Against such universal insanity the only response is to gather together a few friends and commence to build the alternative on a philosophy of individual responsibility for community survival.”ContentsDesign in LandscapeSoil ImprovementBroadscale TechniquesDesign for Difficult ClimatesStructuresWaterworksFree Range Poultry DesignPermaculture and Community

Narada Bhakti Sutra: The Aphorisms Of Love


Sri Sri Ravi Shankar - 2005
    Sri Sri Ravishankar and epitome of joy, love, silence, humor and deep wisdom gives an inspiring discourse on the Narada Bhakti Sutras, aphorisms on love.128pp

Backyard Sugarin': A Complete How-To Guide


Rink Mann - 2006
    Like the previous editions, this one tells you how you can make maple syrup right in your own backyard without having to build a sap house or buy buckets, holding tanks, evaporators and other expensive paraphernalia. Provides detailed "how-to" information, and makes some new and noteworthy revelations-including tips sugarers across the country have shared with the author.

Fear God


Francis Chan - 2010
    In each case, they are met with fear. Not respect, reverence or courage, but sheer speechlessness, humility, and complete surrender. They are overcome with pure fear and many of them cry out to be destroyed.Most people today have lost this fear. We must understand that a true fear of God leads to the keeping of His commandments, leads to life, and is the beginning of wisdom.Everyone who has come face-to-face with  God falls over in fear. Do you think you'd do anything different?www.basicseries.com

Ecology (Modern biology series)


Eugene P. Odum - 1963
    The pictorial models are useful in understanding relationships. The models also abound in descriptive detail.

Green Architecture


James Wines - 2000
    James Wines puts up the various - and often irreconcilable - concepts of environmentally-friendly architecture for discussion, making a case for an architecture that not only focuses on technological solutions, but also tries to reconcile man and nature in its formal idiom. Among the examples of contemporary ecological architecture presented are works by Emilio Ambasz, Gustav Peichl, Arthur Quarmby, Jean Nouvel, Sim Van der Ryn, Jourda and Perraudin, Log ID, James Cutler, Stanley Saitowitz, Fran ois Roche, Nigel Coates and Michael Sorkin.

How to Raise Monarch Butterflies: A Step-By-Step Guide for Kids


Carol Pasternak - 2012
    nicely communicates the wonder ... Especially effective is the eight-pictured depiction of the development of the caterpillar into a chrysalis." --School Library JournalObserving a Monarch butterfly as it transforms itself from caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly is among the most thrilling experiences that nature offers. Raising Monarch butterflies is made easy with the help of this detailed guide.How to Raise Monarch Butterflies explains what threats Monarchs face today and how readers can help conserve the Monarch's feeding grounds from encroachment. Revel in one of the most remarkable miracles of nature.This updated edition contains:More than 40 new colorful and detailed photos More secrets to help you find eggs and caterpillars Instructions on how to feed a monarch and more details on their care Expanded information on varieties and propagation of milkweed New page on the diverse insects in the milkweed patch New suggestions for starting a butterfly garden, including a large photograph of an outstanding Monarch Waystation.

City of the Century: The Epic of Chicago and the Making of America


Donald L. Miller - 1996
    Here, witness Chicago's growth from a desolate fur-trading post in the 1830s to one of the world's most explosively alive cities by 1900.Donald Miller's powerful narrative embraces it all: Chicago's wild beginnings, its reckless growth, its natural calamities (especially the Great Fire of 1871), its raucous politics, its empire-building businessmen, its world-transforming architecture, its rich mix of cultures, its community of young writers and journalists, and its staggering engineering projects -- which included the reversal of the Chicago River and raising the entire city from prairie mud to save it from devastating cholera epidemics. The saga of Chicago's unresolved struggle between order and freedom, growth and control, capitalism and community, remains instructive for our time, as we seek ways to build and maintain cities that retain their humanity without losing their energy. City of the Century throbs with the pulse of the great city it brilliantly brings to life.

The Essential Garden Design Workbook


Rosemary Alexander - 2004
    This fully revised and updated second edition features new U.S. case studies and new photographs. Valuable tips on green gardening are new to this edition, and include how to harvest rainwater, how to design a green roof, tips on sustainable planting, and a guide to composting. Tailor-made for hands-on gardeners, the workbook approach is accessible, practical, and can be used to create a garden from scratch and to redesign an existing garden. Gardeners will find easy ways to measure large spaces, estimate the height of a tree, and find the right proportions for a deck. They'll also find tips on space, light, and color. Includes hundreds of easy-to-follow line drawings and diagrams.

Abstraction and Empathy: A Contribution to the Psychology of Style


Wilhelm Worringer - 1907
    Its profound impact not only on art historians and theorists but also for generations of creative writers and intellectuals is almost unprecedented. Starting from the notion that beauty derives from our sense of being able to identify with an object, Worringer argues that representational art produces satisfaction from our objectified delight in the self, reflecting a confidence in the world as it is as in Renaissance art. By contrast, the urge to abstraction, as exemplified by Egyptian, Byzantine, primitive, or modern expressionist art, articulates a totally different response to the world: it expresses man s insecurity. Thus in historical periods of anxiety and uncertainty, man seeks to abstract objects from their unpredictable state and transform them into absolute, transcendental forms. Abstraction and Empathy also has a sociological dimension, in that the urge to create fixed, abstract, and geometric forms is a response to the modern experience of industrialization and the sense that individual identity is threatened by a hostile mass society. Hilton Kramer s introduction considers the influence of Worringer s thesis and places his book in historical context."

Creative Code: Aesthetics + Computation


John Maeda - 2004
    For seven years, Maeda and his students—several of whom are already internationally celebrated—have created some of the most digitally sophisticated and exciting pieces of design to emerge anywhere. Little of this research has been seen outside the laboratory.This book presents the most fascinating work produced by the group, arranged into themes that apply to today's design issues: information visualization, digital typography, abstraction, interaction design, and education. Each section also features brief essays by leading names in the field of interaction and digital design—Casey Reas, David Small, Yogo Nakamura, Joshua Davis, and Gillian Crampton-Smith.Deftly bridging the chasm between art and science, John Maeda, a true pioneer in the digital realm, leads the way to a greater understanding and richness of experience.

On Roads: A Hidden History


Joe Moran - 2009
    He visits the Roman role in the way our roads are numbered, the ancient sat-nav systems of China of 2600BC and the unknown demonstrations against by-passes in the 1920s, and ends up at the roots of today's arguments about road pricing and road rage.Full of quirky nuggets of history, On Roads also celebrates the often overlooked people whose work we take for granted, such as Percy Shaw, the inventor of the catseye, Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert, the designers of the road sign system, and Charles Forte, the entrepreneur behind the service station.These stories of our past shed light on hidden changes in our society, the relation between people and nature and the invisibility of the mundane.And - on subjects ranging from speed limits to driving on the left, and the "non-places" where we stop to the unwritten laws of traffic jams - they have never been told together, until now.

The Ex Files


Jane Moore - 2003
    Right, beautiful, feisty Faye Parker has finally snared a sensitive cutie named Mark. So when he pops the question, Faye is fully prepared to step out of the dating rat-race, call the caterer, and don the veil.Just as soon as she has one last teensy-weensy little fling.Then comes the dicey issue of the guest list. First there’s Nat, Faye’s ex—a narcissistic fashion model hell-bent on flaunting his substantial charms in Faye’s face, his latest Playboy bunny in tow. Next there’s Kate, Mark’s ex—a woman so indignant she’s not the bride that she’s liable to slit Faye’s zipper. And, of course, there’s Adam, Faye’s flamboyant sidekick, milking the chaos for all it’s worth while shamelessly ogling Nat’s abs. As the rehearsal dinner lurches toward the brink of a spin-the-bottle-fueled imbroglio, Faye must face the fact that marriage means more than a flawlessly executed reception. She’s got a serious decision to make—about Mark, about love, and about her own deepest desires. Wickedly funny, The Ex Files is a sexy, sophisticated caper that offers a brazenly edgy take on the complexities of the modern bride.