Potted History


Book Description

There are plenty of books on how to look after houseplants but no one has shown us how, when and why these plants came to be found in our homes. In this fascinating book we learn how potted plants are as subject to fashion as pieces of furniture. For the Victorians it was the aspidistra in the front parlor; for us it is the orchid in the designer loft. We find that Wedgwood created a market for special bulb pots and that some of Conran's early designs were for houseplant containers. Then there is the story of mignonette - a modest plant but once prized in every home for its intoxicating scent. Now that scent is lost to us for ever. Catherine Horwood's novel combination of social history, plant history and the history of interior design is intriguing. Her illustrations come from a variety of unusual sources since potted plants may be found in many unexpected corners.




Grow Plants in Pots


Book Description

Grow Plants in Pots is an innovative indoor and outdoor gardening guide that explores the full range of plants that can be grown in containers. Whether you want to bring impact and beauty to rooms or a conservatory, or dress up your patio with flowers or productive plants, this book is packed with choices and inspirational ideas! Plants have been selected to suit all tastes and situations, ranging from sculptural ferns and spring bulbs on a windowsill, to patio citrus trees, and chilies and herbs in hanging baskets. Each plant is presented as a simple portrait with essential indoor and outdoor growing advice, galleries of alternatives, and information on natural habitats.




Succulents Simplified


Book Description

Succulents are hot. And Debra Lee Baldwin, the bestselling author of Designing with Succulents and Succulent Container Gardens, is the ideal guide for gardeners, crafters, and DIYers looking for an introduction to these trendy, low-maintenance, drought-tolerant plants. Along with gorgeous photos packed with design ideas, Debra offers her top 100 plant picks and explains how to grow and care for succulents no matter where you live. Step-by-step projects, including a cake-stand centerpiece, special-occasion bouquets, a vertical garden, and a succulent topiary sphere, will inspire you to express your individual style. Whether you’re a novice or veteran, have an acre to fill or a few pots, live in Calexico or Canada, Succulents Simplified is a dazzling primer for success with succulents wherever you live!




Designing with Succulents


Book Description

Lavishly illustrated with over 300 photographs, Designing with Succulents gives design and cultivation basics for paths, borders, slopes, and containers; hundreds of succulent plant recommendations; and descriptions of 90 easy-care, drought-tolerant companion plants. Beginners and experienced designers, landscapers, and collectors alike will find what they need to visualize, create, and nurture the three-dimensional work of art that is the succulent garden.




Organic Gardening for Everyone


Book Description

If you want to grow healthy vegetables at home, but have hesitated because it seems too hard and time consuming, Organic Gardening for Everyone is your perfect hands-on guide—an “if I can do it, you can do it” case study that addresses your concerns and gets you started. Loaded with practical advice and step-by-step guidance, Organic Gardening for Everyone takes a very personal and friendly approach to a subject that can be intimidating. It is a first-class primer on organic vegetable gardening, and an inspirational story about how anyone can balance the rigors of gardening with the demands of a modern, family-oriented lifestyle. In 2012, a California mom decided to start an organic vegetable garden. But she went about it in an unusual way: she crowdsourced it by launching a YouTube channel under the name "CaliKim" and asking for help. And then she started planting. As questions came up, she turned to her viewers and subscribers and they replied with answers and advice. As she learned, her garden grew successfully—even in the hot, harsh California climate. Her expertise also grew, and now she answers many more questions than she asks and has become a very accomplished home gardener. And CaliKim has a great story to tell: growing healthy organic vegetables for your family is not difficult, even for today’s time-challenged lifestyles. She provides complete step-by-step information on growing the most popular edibles organically, and also gives sound advice on how to take on the challenges of balancing a hectic lifestyle with successful growing—and how to involve the whole family in the process. You'll be rewarded for your effort every time you place a plate of natural, organic vegetables on the family dinner table knowing exactly what they are, what is in them, and where they came from.




Gardeners' World - 101 Ideas for Pots


Book Description

You don't even need a garden to enjoy growing beautiful plants as a pot or window box can be squeezed in anywhere. Whether you want to have colourful flowers or homegrown veg, Gardeners' World 101 Pots is packed with fantastic planting recipes to try. All are easy to do and will produce great results without any hassle. There are ideas to create stunning displays for each season of the year, plus easy ways to grow veg in pots so your own homegrown produce is just outside your kitchen. You'll never be stuck for ideas of what to plant with this handy little book. Gardeners' World Magazine is Britain's biggest selling gardening magazine, providing fresh ideas and clear advice every month. From plants and flowers to gardens and design, allotments and kitchen gardens to shopping guides and tried and tested reviews, Gardeners' World Magazine features the top names in BBC gardening, such as Monty Don, Alan Titchmarsh, Carol Klein and the Gardeners' Question Time team. Find out more at www.gardenersworld.com




Yates Top 50 Edible Plants for Pots and How Not to Kill Them!


Book Description

How to grow your own food in the smallest spaces - in pots on balconies, courtyards and windowsills Increasingly people are keen to grow some of their own food, giving them fresh, delicious and healthy ingredients right on their doorstep. Homegrown food also means reduced food miles and packaging, and reminds us where food comes from and how plants grow. With backyards shrinking and more people living in apartments, we need to find a range of fruit, vegies and herbs that will grow and thrive in small spaces. Whether you love lush leafy greens, tangy citrus, crunchy carrots or vine-ripened tomatoes, there are lots of edible plants that can be grown in pots, hanging baskets and vertical gardens on sunny balconies, verandas, courtyards and windowsills, opening up the wonderful world of homegrown to everyone. This book provides the best information on which edible plants to grow in pots and how to care for them, no matter what your skill level. With loads of glorious photographs for inspiration, it puts 'patio to plate' within reach of everyone, whatever their gardening space.




Practical Bamboos


Book Description

Practical Bamboos features the 50 best bamboos based on appearance and usefulness. A handy checklist allows readers to pick plants that are right for them at a glance. A section on using bamboo in the garden covers topics such as incorporating bamboos in the mixed border, using them to create Japanese-style or Mediterranean-style gardens, using them for hedges and edging, establishing them in containers, choosing the right ones for difficult places, and selecting the best plants for small gardens or waterside planting.




A Year Full of Pots


Book Description

'Stunning pictures and packed full of really good advice and inspiration' – Monty Don --------------- Pots are everywhere in Sarah Raven's garden at Perch Hill. Every corner comes to life with their colour and vibrancy. A Year Full of Pots overbrims with year-round inspiration, planting ideas and expert advice from Sarah Raven, the Sunday Times bestselling author of A Year Full of Flowers and A Year Full of Veg. Accessible and rewarding, growing flowers in pots is a simple and enjoyable way to enhance any space, from small city plots to huge gardens. Get the pots right and your garden will take on a cheerful energy of its own. They are the bubbles in the champagne, the cherries on the cake; the final flourish in making a garden beautiful. And with pots, there is one iron rule: more is more. Discover practical design tips that will really enhance your containers. Use ingenious tricks when combining flower colours such as choosing a BRIDE (the star of the show), a BRIDESMAID (similar to the bride but smaller and less conspicuous) and a GATECRASHER (the colour contrast, which brings the whole thing to life). Learn all about the types of forms and plant structures – THRILLER, FILLER, PILLAR and SPILLER – and how to put them to best use. And take on the simplest of ideas, such as raising flower pots on to a wall or table so you see more of them, for instant impact. Following the seasons, A Year Full of Pots shows you how to make your own evolving tapestry of colour through long-lasting container combinations. All the flowers and planting schemes Sarah has tried and tested over the decades are in here, plus the design principles that will work for you at any scale, whether you have one pot or a garden full of them. 'An archipelago of inspirational potted paradises awaits on every page of this beautiful but also hugely helpful book' – Arthur Parkinson