The Botanical Bible tells the story of plants and flowers, beginning with an overview of the plant kingdom and the basics of botany, then offering strategies for gardening with purpose. Later chapters introduce seasonal eating, the healing properties of plants and the world of botanical art. This stunning gift book is part history, part science, part beauty book, part cookbook and part art book. It will appeal to anyone wanting to use plants and flowers in modern life, whether they are an accomplished gardener or are simply yearning for a more natural life. This comprehensive guide to plants, flowers and botanicals covers a host of practical uses, features vintage illustrations alongside the work of current artists, and is sure to be an inspiration to anyone interested in the natural world.

There is no shortage of books on how to look after houseplants but no one has shown us how and when and why these plants came to be in our homes. Catherine Horwood's combination of social history, plant history and the history of interior design explains why, as Flanders and Swann sung in the 1950s, 'the garden's full of furniture / and the house is full of plants.' In this fascinating book we learned how potted plants are as much subject to fashion as pieces of furniture. For the Victorians, it was the aspidistra in the front parlour, the Edwardians loved a palm, and, for today's millennials, no home is complete without the ubiquitous fiddle-leaf fig. This book show that there is little new when it comes to plants in the home. In the mid-18th century, Wedgwood created a market for special bulb pots and in the 1950s, some of Terence Conran's earliest designs were for houseplant containers. Across the ages, the choice of potted plants has been influenced by the layout of houses, the levels of dirt and pollution and the equipment to hand. Now, with so much choice, we seem happy to treat houseplants as disposables. This book gives a better understanding of the miracles that were once achieved with indoor plant displays, inspired by Sir Hugh Platt's 1608 vision of a garden 'within doores'. This new edition has been revised with new material added to bring the history of the houseplant and its massive explosion in popularity right up to date.

In this sequel to her 2007 best-seller "A Garden Lover's Cape Cod," one of New England's foremost gardeners photographs and analyzes her favorite public and private gardens on Martha's Vineyard.

This early work is an absorbing read and thoroughly recommended for the shelf of any horticulturalist. It contains much information that is still useful and practical today. Contents Include: Tomatoes: Choice of Site. Type of House. Varieties; The Soil; Propagation. Potting. Planting; Pots and Boxes; Care after Planting. Mulching. Trimming. Weight of Crop; Gathering and Marketing. Grading. Packing; Diseases of Tomatoes; Pests; Cucumbers: Site. Propagation. Varieties; Preparation and Planting. Cleaning; Care after Planting. Trimming, Training and Stopping; Gathering and Marketing; Pests and Diseases; Outdoor Tomatoes and Ridge Cucumbers. 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.

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.

A revised and updated edition of Andrew Lawson's classic work Andrew Lawson has an artist's eye, a scientist's training and long experience as both a gardener and a photographer of gardens. In this book he calls on all his skills and practical knowledge to illuminate the complex subject of using colour in the garden and to demonstrate the extraordinary power of colour to change the sense of space, to suggest coolness or warmth and to evoke different moods. The Gardener's Book of Colour shows how to put colours together in garden beds, borders and containers, explaining how to construct harmonizing and contrasting schemes and exuberant displays of mixed colour. All the major schemes are supported by keyline drawings giving full planting details. In addition, illustrated plant directories, arranged by colour and flowering season, provide cultivation details for over 850 plants, enabling you to assemble the right plants for your chosen scheme and to carry that scheme through the year. Authoritative and accessible, The Gardener's Book of Colour will stimulate your imagination and put exciting new ideas within your grasp. Whether you want an instant splash of brilliant seasonal colour or a sumptuous border with subtle year-round appeal, this book will show you how to achieve it.