Discover the secret to successfully growing and nurturing orchids that will flourish. Ideal for first-time gardeners, Grow Orchids contains everything you need to raise stunning, long-lasting blooms for your indoor space. Learn how to grow and care for a variety of orchids with tips on positioning, feeding, watering, and propagation. A handy troubleshooting guide shows you how to recognise ailing plants, revive neglected orchids, and spot common diseases. From hanging baskets and bark rafts to corsages and bridal bouquets, get inspired and create thriving collections of orchids for your home. Packed with practical, jargon-free know-how, this easy-to-use guide has everything you need to know to help your garden Grow.

This title shows you how and when to prune all the key plants in your garden, with step-by-step photographs. It clearly explains the different methods of pruning, such as deadheading, shaping, clipping and trimming. It describes specific pruning techniques for different types of plants, including roses, shrubs, climbers and hedges. You can learn how to restrict the size of evergreens, trim vines, rejuvenate conifers, train apple trees and shorten the growth on soft fruit bushes to maximize their yield. It includes an at-a-glance seasonal chart to remind you when to prune, and a list of plants' common names. Most plants benefit from a prune for healthy growth and visual appeal, but many gardeners approach the task with trepidation. This accessible handbook provides a clear, easy-to-follow guide through the complexities, explaining why we prune, and giving step-by-step instructions on the different techniques. There is also advice on selecting and using equipment, an extensive section on pruning specific types of plants, and two useful charts showing methods of pruning and seasonal pruning. The book contains all the information you need to keep your plants beautifully healthy, flowering and fruiting prolifically, and looking just as you want them.

Plants make great pets - they're quiet, decorative, housetrained and (mostly) low-maintenance - and with this helpful guide, you'll soon be the perfect plant parent! Grow Your Own Pet Plants has all the information you'll need for green-thumbed success, from learning which plant to take home to how to help your leafy friend thrive in all conditions. Andrew Mikolajski provides helpful tips, from how to nurse and propagate cuttings to choosing a plant which suits your home and lifestyle. With a simple guide to more than 40 plant personalities and easy care advice, from feeding and grooming to showing off your new pet to guests, you'll soon be the proud owner of a new collections of plant pets.

This is an illustrated guide to varieties, cultivation and care, with step-by-step instructions and more than 130 beautiful photographs. Everything you need to know about hostas at a glance in one handy practical gardening guide. It includes a beautiful photographic directory of over 40 types, including yellow, green, blue and variegated hostas. For each variety, full botanical information is provided on the plant's history, growth, size and flowering. It offers a step-by-step guidance on choosing, planting, propagating and caring for hostas, and dealing with pests and diseases. It features superb planting ideas for growing hostas in troughs, as ground cover, as edging plants, in mixed borders, in containers and for flower arrangements. It is the definitive handbook for one of the most popular and best-loved garden plants. The versatility and beauty of hostas makes them one of the most popular and rewarding foliage plants. Whether you use larger hostas to create a stately summer border or dwarf varieties to enliven a rocky or aquatic environment, they are reliable, attractive and relatively low-maintenance. Flourishing even in containers, hostas are truly plants for every situation. This beautiful book explains how to use hostas to their best advantage, as well as providing a fully illustrated directory of over 40 types. With expert advice on selecting varieties, planting and growing hostas, the book will help you to create a wonderful display of these popular shrubs.

A international directory and guide to growing and cooking apples, with recipes and 1500 pictures.

This is a concise calendar of practical tasks, covering all aspects of flower, kitchen and greenhouse gardening throughout all four seasons of the year. You can master a range of new gardening skills, with simple, illustrated step-by-step instructions. It includes suggestions for creative projects, as well as essential tasks to keep your garden looking good. It features a useful glossary of terms, and quick reference charts indicating what to do when in the garden. This practical handbook takes the guesswork out of knowing what to do when in the garden, right through the year. It gives advice on preparing the ground, sowing, planting and caring for plants, and harvesting fruit and vegetables, from early spring to late summer and into winter. Basic maintenance tasks are included, together with brilliant ideas for creative projects such as planting up a pretty hanging basket, making the most of summer bulbs in a mixed border, and which plants will extend the season. Illustrated with step-by-step techniques and packed with expert gardening tips, this book is an essential companion for every garden enthusiast.

This comprehensive introduction contains everything you need to know about the history, botany and cultivation of apples, from planting, pruning and propagation to harvesting, storing and cooking. A stunning identification guide features 800 original photographs and provides detailed information. It is packed with over 60 inspirational and scrumptious recipes for a fabulous selection of breakfasts, appetizers, main courses, salads, side dishes, sauces, preserves, drinks and desserts.

Flamboyant, intriguing, beautiful and exotic, orchids have evolved to become the largest family of plants in the world. This classic book, written by two of the world's leading orchid authorities and now updated, presents everything you need to know to identify, choose and display these delightful flowers successfully. It contains guidance on tools and equipment; feeding and watering; and dealing with pests and diseases. A directory describes and illustrates a wide range of species and hybrids, providing information on habitat, size, flowering time and growing requirements. With over 600 exquisite photographs, this is the definitive guide to growing these well-loved plants.

The first section of this book offers an insight into the significance of the apple in history. It then gives a botanical overview of the fruit and explains how to plant, nurture and cultivate your own apple harvest. The directory section features a unique photographic collection of over 400 internationally grown varieties. Apples are listed alphabetically from Acme to Zoete Ermgaard. The versatile apple is a popular ingredient in many tasty recipes, and a collection of classic apple recipes is featured. Dishes include Curried Apple Soup, Scallops with Apple Mash, Pumpkin and Apple Risotto, Baked Apples, and Apple Crumble.

This title is an illustrated guide to varieties, cultivation and care, with step-by-step instructions and over 160 beautiful photographs. Everything you need to know at a glance in one handy and stunningly illustrated practical guide. It offers full photographic directory of over 50 of the most common varieties of heather from the three genuses of Calluna, Doboecia and Erica. For each variety, full botanical information is provided on history, growth, hue, height, spread and suitability. It offers step-by-step guidance on planting, propagation and pruning, and how to deal with common pests and diseases. It includes instructions on growing heather in outdoor borders, raised beds, containers, hanging baskets and indoors. It is a highly accessible guide to some of the most popular flowering plants, celebrating their year-round beauty. Heathers are not only able to survive and flourish in even the most severe climates, but they also provide bright flowers throughout the year, with many that also boast attractive year-round foliage. This combination of hardiness and beauty, along with relative ease of cultivation and care, makes heathers a wonderfully versatile feature in any garden. This book explains how to use heathers to their best advantage, from achieving seasonal interest to combining with other plants. A fully illustrated directory of 50 recommended varieties, together with professional advice on where to plant them, will help you to create pretty displays in beds, borders, containers and indoors.

This title is an illustrated guide to varieties, cultivation and care, with step-by-step instructions and over 110 beautiful photographs. Everything you need to know at a glance in one handy and beautifully illustrated practical guide. It includes full photographic directory of more than 40 common and exotic water plants, from bog plants and marginals to oxygenating plants and water lilies. For each plant, full botanical information is provided on history, growth, hue, height, spread and suitability. It offers step-by-step photographic guidance on buying plants, propagation, routine maintenance, and pests and diseases. Includes instructions on how make a pond with a liner, stocking your finished pool, and adding ornamental fish. A highly accessible guide to bringing water plants into your garden, whether you have a large or small space. Water gardens are increasingly popular, not only for the exciting variety of plant life that can be cultivated, but also for the diversity of animal species attracted by the aquatic environment. This clear and accessible book explains how to use water plants to their best advantage, as well as providing an illustrated directory of over 40 recommended varieties. It explains the difference between bog plants and oxygenators, surface floating plants and deep-water plants, with practical advice on growing and maintenance. From selecting and caring for water plants to making your own pond, the book will help you to create a water feature to enjoy for years to come.

This title helps you discover the versatility of a beautiful courtyard garden, for entertaining, relaxing and extending your living space. It offers ideas for paths and paving with bricks, tiles, cobbles, gravel, railway sleepers and mosaics, and how to use walls, fences, plants, furniture, lighting and ornaments. It features a range of sites, including sunny, shady and windy, as well as structures suitable for children and pets. It includes suggestions for planting low-growing shrubs, pretty foliage plants, and flowers for seasonal interest. A well-designed courtyard gives years of pleasure. This useful handbook is packed with inspirational advice on creating the most attractive outdoor spaces. It considers the practical aspects of planning, as well as restrictions such as lack of light or space. It is full of ideas for overhauling the basic components of your garden, including surfaces, fences and plants, and describes how to make the most of special features such as ornaments and lighting to create the desired atmosphere. With illustrated examples, clear text and over 100 beautiful photographs, this is an essential guide for anyone wishing to maximize the potential of their patio or terrace.

Roses are one of the world's best-loved flowers, and their sweet scent and long-lasting beauty make them indispensable in the garden. With over 200 varieties described and photographed, this book helps you to choose the right plant for your situation, from a free-flowering old rose to a delicate miniature. A Grower's Guide section shows how to maintain your roses, how to select healthy specimens, how to plant them, when to prune and how to propagate new plants. Whether they are grown singly or in conjunction with other plants, as hedges or ground cover, winding through a tree or in a container, there is a place for a rose in every garden.

This title helps you create a fragrant paradise to enjoy throughout the year, shown in 100 stunning photographs. You can make the most of scent around the garden by planting bulbs, annuals, perennials, herbs and small trees. You can choose beautiful plants that will calm, stimulate and uplift the body and spirit, such as butterfly bushes, honeysuckle, hyacinths, jasmine, lavender, lilac and roses. It describes scented schemes for many different garden styles, including cottage, Mediterranean and formal. It features an at-a-glance reference chart giving plant descriptions and a guide to their common names. Smell is one of the most powerful of our senses, and a glorious garden filled with subtle or intoxicating fragrances can affect our mood and wellbeing. This invaluable handbook describes the myriad plants that have scented qualities, whether it is in their flowers, leaves, fruit or bark, and explains how to use them effectively in different locations and garden styles. There is guidance on planting and harvesting for maximum fragrance, as well as advice on how to choose varieties that will provide interest throughout the year, and from morning until night. There is also a useful chart listing scented plants with their growing season and attributes.

This book features over 570 colour photographs, including stunning plant directories, inspirational plantings, and practical step-by-step techniques. Providing all the essential gardening know-how, it shows how to create a fabulous garden with lasting impact, year-round colour and delicious scent. It teaches how to use scented bulbs, annuals, shrubs and trees to create a welcoming and relaxing outdoor environment. Here, is the ultimate inspirational guide to planning, creating and maintaining bountiful borders of beautiful blooms all year round. This is a book for the enthusiastic and practical as well as the aspirational gardener. It shows how to make best use of a plant's features to create a particular style of garden, and how to keep your garden looking good all year round. Packed with essential information, hints and professional tips, this is the perfect planting guide and practical handbook.

Andrew Mikolajski's Garden Design offers a complete breakdown of the process involved in creating a garden, from making an initial assessment of the site's possibilities to applying design principles and choosing plants and landscaping materials. It is aimed at amateurs who have no previous knowledge of garden-making but will also be of value to professionals entering the trade. Most books on garden design are either very technical or are predominantly picture books. This manual is different. A lively and provocative read, it is full of handy hints and tips for creating the perfect outdoor environment. Readers are encouraged to explore and question established ideas about good garden design, and will be sure to grow in confidence as they learn how to make informed decisions about every aspect of the garden design process.

This title includes succinct advice on site, aspect, soil, compost, lawns, fences, pruning, training, propagation, pest control and more. It is an authoritative guide: helpful solutions to more than 1001 of the most frequently asked questions in one accessible at-a-glance volume. It answers queries on garden sites, soil, walls, lawns, fences, patios, trees, shrubs, annuals, perennials, herbs, houseplants, vegetables, container gardening, the water garden, compost, propagation, weed control, everyday maintenance and greenhouses. It comes with over 850 photographs, this volume will help you find a quick solution to every garden question. Whether you're a novice gardener or have been growing plants for years, each season can bring new dilemmas that need addressing. This handy volume asks every typical garden question and provides invaluable guidance for successful gardening. There are chapters on planning and assessing the garden site; the hard landscape; lawns; the ornamental garden; the kitchen garden; the water garden; propagation; pruning and training; garden problems; growing under cover; and garden equipment. All provide suggestions, help and reassurance for the concerns most likely to be encountered, making this the perfect reference book for every gardener.

Gardening with the expert: helpful solutions to 1001 of the most frequently asked questions in one accessible at-a-glance guide. This title includes advice on everyday gardening dilemmas, with an easy-to-follow directory covering both wide-ranging questions about larger aspects of gardening as well as specific issues on problem plants. It includes succinct queries on garden site, aspect, soil, walls, floors, lawns, trees, conifers, shrubs, annuals, perennials, herbs, houseplants, vegetables, containers, the water garden, compost, pruning, training, propagation, weeds, tools, and greenhouses. With more than 700 informative and attractive colour photographs to accompany the clear text, this question-and-answer encyclopedia will help you find a solution to every common garden problem. This easy-to-read gardening companion will help to demystify some of the common problems gardeners face, offering explanations and solutions that are easy to put into practice. From general queries that require large-scale planning, such as how to decide where to site a patio, to specific queries, for example, about how to prune a clematis, this handy volume offers invaluable guidance and suggestions for successful gardening. Each chapter looks at a different aspect of gardening, so finding solutions to particular problems will be straightforward. All terminology is clearly explained, so whether your question is general or specific, this comprehensive volume will help you to find a solution.

This is an illustrated guide to varieties, cultivation and care, with step-by-step instructions and over 150 beautiful photographs. It features full photographic directory of over 40 varieties, including cluster-flowered roses, miniature roses, ground-cover roses, large-flowered roses and rugosa roses. For each variety, full botanical information is provided on history, growth, hue, height, spread and suitability. It offers step-by-step guidance on planting, propagation and pruning, and how to deal with common pests and diseases. It includes instructions on using roses for hedging and ground cover, and combining them with other plants. It is a highly accessible guide to some of the world's best-loved plants, celebrating their diversity and beauty. It offers everything you need to know at a glance in one handy and superbly illustrated practical guide. The rose is the quintessential flower of the summer, and apart from the beauty of the flowers, many modern varieties have the twin advantages of a long flowering season and disease resistance. With hues ranging from delicate pastels to glowing reds, yellows and oranges, the range has never been wider, encompassing roses for growing en masse or in conjunction with other plants, as hedges, ground cover or in containers. This beautiful book explains how to use modern roses to their best advantage, and features a directory of over 40 varieties. There are practical instructions for planting, propagating and pruning roses, ensuring a magnificent display in all types of garden.

This title is an illustrated guide to varieties, cultivation and care, with step-by-step instructions and over 160 beautiful photographs. Everything you need to know at a glance in one handy and superbly illustrated practical guide. It offers full photographic directory of over 50 varieties, including large, medium, small and dwarf conifers. For each variety, full botanical information is provided on history, growth, hue, height, spread and suitability. It offers step-by-step guidance on planting, propagation and pruning, and how to deal with common pests and diseases. It includes instructions on buying conifers, growing them in containers, transplanting established shrubs and trees, and creating evergreen conifer hedges. It is a highly accessible guide to some of the most popular and versatile plants, celebrating their diversity and beauty. Mainly evergreen, tough and hardy, conifers give year-round pleasure and interest, providing superb backdrops to the transient flowers of summer, then coming into their own in autumn and winter as their firm outlines begin to dominate the scene. This book explains the place of conifers in the plant kingdom, suggests ways in which they can be used in the garden, and illustrates some of the most striking types now in cultivation. A fully illustrated directory of 50 recommended varieties, together with expert advice on how and where to plant them to their best advantage, will help you to create bold shapes, textures and contours in all types of garden.

This title provides everything you need to know to create and maintain a stunning garden throughout the year, with 10 inspirational and practical books. Planning and maintaining a successful garden - one that meets the needs and aspirations of the owner - is an enjoyable and creative process. The skills required can be mastered by everyone and are clearly explained in this beautiful set of books. The tasks involved in creating and improving a garden are divided into manageable units, to help you maximize the potential of your site. So if you dream of borders of colourful and scented blooms, a healthy green lawn, a patio in which to relax, or even low-maintenance ideas to lessen the workload, here are the skills to guarantee success. These handy books also make it easy to devise planting schemes that incorporate year-round colour, architectural shapes and different plant textures into the garden. There are plenty of schemes for colourful, fragrant, and even edible, hanging baskets and window boxes, as well as ideas for filling space with annuals, and incorporating perennials and shrubs into your garden design.With over 1200 colour photographs and accessible and informative text by respected horticultural experts, this comprehensive set of gardening guides will give inspiration and practical suggestions to improve any garden situation.

The secret to creating a glorious, productive garden is year-round love and attention; it's good-old-fashioned maintenance: remember to plant tulips and daffodil bulbs in autumn, and your garden will come alive with bright splashes of colour in early spring; remember to hoe the flowerbeds in April to prevent weeds choking the new growth; and, take cuttings of shrubs in August. Keeping track of what to do when is no simple task, but this straightforward new book will help you plan your year. It gives you seasonal lists of jobs to do, which plants to plant and plenty of expert advice and handy hints on how to improve your garden.