Patrick Watson is currently South Africa’s most innovative and versatile landscape architect. Known for designing extensive mega-sites, such as Sun City and an entire Indian Ocean Island, he is also the creator of exquisite small gardens in private homes and quiet spaces for reflection, such as the Apartheid Museum and the Garden of Hope at St George’s Anglican Church in Parktown, Johannesburg.

In all he does, he combines artistic intuition with extensive botanical knowledge and a deep concern for the conservation and restoration of nature. His projects are creative, fresh with inspiration, and often bold, and he uses plants, colours, landforms and space to create visual and emotional experiences.

Covering 23 gardens and landscapes, and richly supported by sensitive photography and some specially commissioned artworks, the book is a beautiful record of a remarkable local talent, a visionary whose art is informed by nature. It recognises and celebrates the combination of knowledge, skill and instinct that make up the man, and the radical influence he has had on his profession.

Foraging for Edible Wild Plants is a practical and attractive guide to the many edible varieties of wild plant that grow all around us. It will appeal to gardeners, botanists, cooks and foragers, and to anyone who wants to control invasive plants and weeds in eco-friendly ways. Wild plants have many virtues. They are: Valuable for wildlife and beneficial insects. Good for the soil - locking in nutrients Helpful in the accumulation of trace elements in soil Hosts for essential mycorrhizal fungi underground Interesting and unusual ingredients in cooking Foraging for Edible Wild Plants provides full details of over 50 edible species, with: Illustrated notes on appearance and habitat Valuable nutritional information advice on how to cook them numerous recipe suggestions for jams, cordials, pesto, salads and soups fascinating historical facts tips for non-culinary uses such as dyes from nettles and soap from soapwort advice on controlling invasive species such as knotweed (eat them!) identifying wild plants that are harmful if eaten attractive colour photographs throughout. Foraging for Edible Wild Plants covers both common plants, such as nettle, dandelion, chickweed and ground elder, and less common ones, such as brooklime and wintercress. The author is a qualified dietician and horticulturalist, who puts her troublesome weeds to good use. Put Foraging for Edible Wild Plants on the bookshelf to do the same and welcome some new, plentiful edibles into the kitchen.

This comprehensive text contains a definitive guide on the cultivation of mushrooms. A fascinating and accessible treatise on the topic, this rare book constitutes a brilliant mycological handbook and contains everything one needs to know about the growing of mushrooms. Perfect for beginners and intermediate growers alike, Modern Mushroom Cultivation is a must-have for anyone with an interest in the subject. Chapters comprised herein include: Where Mushrooms can be Grown, Composts and Methods of Composting, Making the Beds, Methods of Pasteurizing the Compost, Mushrooms Spawn, Casing the Beds, Routine Management, Grading and Packing, and Diseases and Pests. This scarce book has elected for republication because of its immense educational value, and is proudly republished here with a new introduction to the topic.

Many gardeners today would like to create more wildlife-friendly gardens, but may feel restricted by their situation, or put off by assuming that they will have to make huge changes to an established plot. This practical book will scotch any myths about wildlife gardening, and encourage everyone, wherever they garden, to invite wildlife to share their outdoor spaces. There are practical ideas for gardens of all sizes and in varied situations, with a special chapter on wildlife gardening in towns: the smallest shady garden can support a range of wildlife and even a window-box or hanging basket in an urban apartment block can make a difference, if you ensure ingredients like extra food in winter, plants that sustain insects and bright or aromatic plants are planted to attract animals and keep them returning. From the best sites for ponds to the right plants to feed various fauna, this book should ensure both you and the wildlife enjoy your garden as fully as possible.

In The Flower Hunter, Lucy Hunter takes us on an inspirational journey through a year in her garden and artist's studio set among the mountains of North Wales. Lucy's evocative, gently humorous words accompany her glorious photographs and exquisite floral arrangements, as she encourages the reader to marvel at the intricate cycles of the natural world, develop their own innate creativity and to look for beauty in the everyday. Her garden provides the raw materials for Lucy's floral artistry - breathtaking naturalistic arrangements with the painterly beauty and flourish of a Dutch still life. Simple projects accompany Lucy's text, from drying garden flowers for an autumnal wreath to making your own journals and natural dyes to assembling lavish arrangements that showcase the voluptuous beauty of garden roses. Lucy believes that we all have a creative voice buried deep within. The Flower Hunter will encourage you to find your own creativity and help it to blossom.

Originally published in 1896. A well illustrated practical treatise on propagating, growing, and exhibiting from the cutting to the silver cup. Many of the earliest gardening books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Home Farm Books are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Jane’s Delicious A–Z of Vegetables is an accessible guide to the most commonly-grown vegetables, plus many new and unusual ones now available, with detailed information on how to sow, plant, feed, water, protect, harvest and eat them, as well as save their seed for future generations. Written in Jane’s quirky, practical style and lavishly illustrated with full-colour photographs for easy reference, this is a one-stop guide to growing any type of vegetable organically.

Christopher Lloyd, icon and iconoclast of the gardening world, was born at Great Dixter, in East Sussex, in 1921 and died there in 2006. In the years between he developed the garden at Dixter into a mecca for plantsmen and a hub of ideas and connections that spread throughout the world. And from the 1930s almost until his death he was also photographing the garden, recording it in intimate detail as it changed and developed. A carefully chosen selection of Christopher's photographs is published here, the majority for the first time. They are juxtaposed with images from the Lloyd family's earliest days at Dixter, and with photographs taken by Carol Casselden and others of the garden as it is today.

A stylishly illustrated compendium of 100 herbs, designed to enrich our understanding of all their uses. This isn't just a book for the kitchen - it's for the greenhouse, the medicine cabinet, the coffee table... Award-winning designer Caz Hildebrand's Herbarium is a 21st-century reboot of the traditional herbal compendium. The visual genius behind the international bestseller The Geometry of Pasta, she has created abstract forms and vibrant colours to illustrate 100 essential herbs and to reveal their hidden properties. From bergamot, comfrey and dill to sassafras, vervain and wasabi, all types of herbs are covered; each is explained through the fascinating history of their uses and symbolism. There are tips on how to use them as seasonings and how to create healing potions, as well as advice on when and how to grow them. Herbarium celebrates all facets of herbs and all their life-enhancing properties.

This little book is addressed to those gardeners who love roses but who perhaps have not had sufficient experience in growing them to produce them at their best. Complete in its unabridged, original form, extensively illustrated and full of instruction that is as useful and practical today as it was when originally published. Contents include - Preface - The Evolution Of The Modern Rose - Planning And Preparing A Rose-Garden - A selection Of Modern Hybrid Tea Roses For The Garden - The Polyanthia Roses - Climbers And Ramblers - The Rose As A Flowering Shrub - Planting - Pruning - Propagate Your Own Plants - Manures And Manuring - Pests And Dieases - Pot-Roses Under Glass - Rose-Shows. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Increasingly, outdoor spaces are becoming our haven - somewhere to breathe again, heighten our senses and escape the onslaught of noise, clutter and technology. This book offers ideas and inspiration for making the most of any outdoor space we might have - whether it is a garden, a patio, balcony, or even just a window box - and for bringing touches of nature indoors for mindful enjoyment. Bestselling author Jane Cumberbatch's 'Pure Style' philosophy is all about making the most of what's around you and finding beauty in the simple and everyday as an achievable alternative to the stressful demands of consumer society. In this book, which was put together over the course of 2020, she draws on the inspiration of her own home and garden to supply ideas for life-affirming colour, scent and texture, and to show how even the most unpromising outdoor space can be a source of sensuous renewal. Viewing the garden as an extension of the home, and with ideas for all seasons, this beautiful and inspiring book is illustrated with glorious photographs and enchanting paintings by the author herself. A book for dipping into or enjoying as one long read, or both.

Lack of space to plant your favorite fruit trees, vegetables, and/or herbs should not prevent you from having a garden that will yield fresh produce for you and your family to enjoy. Most families that live in apartments, condominium units, or places that don't offer a big enough space to create a regular garden turn to container gardening. Although a container garden has many similarities with a regular garden, you may need to exert some extra work in terms of proper care and maintenance. If you can choose the plants that blend well together, then your container garden can provide added aesthetic appeal to the interior of your home while providing fresh and organic produce on your table. Let's face the truth; it is absurd to believe that commercially bought fruits, vegetables, and herbs are not without pesticides even if the store boasts that they only sell organic produce.

Originally published in 1883, this early works on American Grape Vines is extensively illustrated throughout. In this revised edition will also be found a far more exhaustive article on Grafting than was presented in the former. The author has also included a few hint on the subject of Wine Making, with much of the information still being useful and practical today this works is thoroughly recommended for inclusion on the bookshelf of any grower. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Originally published in 1901. The author was Dean of Rochester and a respected expert on rose growing. The illustrated contents include: Causes of Failure Causes of Success Our Queen of Beauty Position Soils Manures Arrangements Selection Garden Roses Rose Shows Roses for Exhibition How to Show Memoranda for the Months A Select List of Exhibition and Garden Roses etc. Many of the earliest gardening books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Home Farm Books are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.