Lifestyle

From vegetable and succulent gardens to sculpture and rose gardens to mountain and waterfront gardens, New Garden Design covers a range of interpretations incorporating walls, fountains, pavilions, canals, pools, terraces and groves in unexpected ways. The resulting new garden is a pleasure garden vested with spiritual, symbolic and ecological intent. A modernist interpretation of Roman stone furniture and freestanding walls punctuate the space behind a 1970s ranch house. A home designed by Bernard Maybeck is accented with a freehand composition of urns, cement pipes and rusty objects, as well as over a thousand species of plants. A grove of olive trees underplanted with rosemary and lavender fields gives personality to two acres surrounding a house designed by modernist Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta.

Love your dog and your garden? With the garden design and dog training information in this book you can have both. Learn which plants, grasses, chemicals and materials are pet-friendly and what dog training and management tools are garden-friendly.

Select bee-friendly plants and plan borders which are beneficial to bees with this helpful book that contains a wide range of practical, beautiful and easy to follow planting plans for bee-friendly gardens of all sizes.

‘The most romantic, creative person in garden design I know.’ Piet Oudolf ‘Jinny's genius is to marry a beautiful vision to an extraordinary empathy with the landscape into which that vision will fit, resulting in a pastoral harmony second to none’ – Victoria, Lady Getty A prolific designer, Jinny Blom embraces a wide variety of styles, from formal walled gardens to contemporary installations. What defines her work is her skill with plants and her ability to create a garden that responds to the history of the site and the wider landscape. In this book, Jinny shares her insight into the creative process she has developed while designing more than 250 gardens around the world. The gardens Jinny creates are as different as their owners and their locations. Small gardens are very intimate and have to work efficiently in order to be pleasing. An Oxfordshire garden of rooms is constructed from nothing, creating a new garden with an old soul. There are modern takes on traditional forms. But all these gardens share a commitment to beautiful craftsmanship and considered planting. Structure and detail are important, and receive close attention. The styles vary considerably – logical, calm, beautiful, romantic, naturalistic, formal, sometimes spare – but the principles remain firm. Jinny designs for the long term, with consideration for the environment; these gardens are built to last. Reflecting Jinny‘s highly individual character, there is plenty of wit and quirkiness alongside the expert knowledge, and it will appeal to the widest audience of garden lovers. Thoughtful and beautiful, yet practical and informative, this book marries artistry with functionality.

An award-winning garden designer's unique union of a practical how-to book with stories and philosophy The Garden Awakening is a step-by-step manual to creating a garden in harmony with the life force in the earth, addressing not only what the people in charge of the land want but also asking what the land wants to become. Mary Reynolds demonstrates how to create a groundbreaking garden that is not simply a solitary space but an expanding, living, interconnected ecosystem. Drawing on old Irish ways and methods of working with the land, this beautiful book is both art and inspiration for any garden lover seeking to create a positive, natural space.

Permaculture experts Ross and Jenny Mars outline the steps to transform your garden into a productive living system. Modeled upon the development of Candlelight Farm, and illustrated with photographs, this guide encourages the reader to make positive steps towards reconciling human impact with nature - following the permaculture ideal. Permaculture is based on the ethics of caring for people and our planet. It is about growing your own healthy food, being resourceful and environmentally responsible. Permaculture concepts and ideas can be applied successfully from small suburban units to large farming properties. Getting Started in Permaculture delivers step-by-step knowledge for a variety of useful projects including: making herb fertilizers, compost, organic sprays for pest control, and much, much more. It also includes how to recycle your soft drink bottles, waste paper, and tires in a number of useful projects such as ponds, fruit fly traps, retailing walls, and solar stills. As part of Permanent Publications Simple Living Series, this practical and accessible guide for gardeners of all skill levels serves as an ideal introduction to the world of permaculture.

"The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies." —Gertrude Jekyll Featuring no-nonsense, year-round, step-by-step advice on everything from plot design and planting to pruning and composting, this handy book is the perfect companion for any gardener. Whether you’re seeking inspiration or information, The Pocket Gardener will keep you busy in all seasons.

Grow more food, with less work, in any yard – now completely revised and expanded! Are you itching to start your own garden or grow more in the one you have, but feel that gardening is too challenging or time-consuming for your busy schedule? Now completely updated and expanded, Backyard Bounty will demystify gardening, bringing it back to the down-to-earth, environmentally practical activity that anyone can enjoy. Author and master gardener Linda Gilkeson covers everything you'll need to grow a successful garden, including: Planning your garden and preparing the soil Organic fertilizers and simplified composting Planting for winter harvests and intensive planting schedules Comprehensive information on pests, diseases, and working with an unstable climate Greenhouses, tunnels and containers Organic pest management. Packed with a wealth of information specific to the Pacific Northwest, this complete guide emphasizes low-maintenance methods, covers problems related to common pests and climate concerns, includes a monthly garden schedule for year-round planting and harvesting, and features plant profiles for everything from apples to zucchini. Perfect for novice and experienced gardeners alike, Backyard Bounty shows how even the smallest garden can produce a surprising amount of food twelve months of the year.

Create a whole bouquet of floral quilts with 50 adorable mix-and-match blocks of appliqu,d flowers and bugs. 9 projects.

With more than 45,000 sold since 1989, The New Organic Grower has become a modern classic. In this newly revised and expanded edition, master grower Eliot Coleman continues to present the simplest and most sustainable ways of growing top-quality organic vegetables. Coleman updates practical information on marketing the harvest, on small-scale equipment, and on farming and gardening for the long-term health of the soil. The new book is thoroughly updated, and includes all-new chapters such as: Farm-Generated Fertility―how to meet your soil-fertility needs from the resources of your own land, even if manure is not available. The Moveable Feast―how to construct home-garden and commercial-scale greenhouses that can be easily moved to benefit plants and avoid insect and disease build-up. The Winter Garden―how to plant, harvest, and sell hardy salad crops all winter long from unheated or minimally heated greenhouses. Pests―how to find "plant-positive" rather than "pest-negative" solutions by growing healthy, naturally resistant plants. The Information Resource―how and where to learn what you need to know to grow delicious organic vegetables, no matter where you live. Written for the serious gardener or small market farmer, The New Organic Grower proves that, in terms of both efficiency and profitability, smaller can be better.

This modern guide to storing and preserving your garden produce enables you to eat home-grown goodness all year round. The easy-to-use reference section provides storage and preservation techniques for the majority of plant produce commonly grown in gardens and allotments. Storing your garden produce is the key to self-sufficiency because, with less than an acre of garden, you can grow enough produce to feed a family of four for a year. Much of the produce will ripen simultaneously in the summer; without proper storage most of it will go to wasten. Simple and enjoyable techniques for storing your produce are provided so you can embrace the wonderful world of self-sufficiency. In the A-to-Z list of produce, each entry includes recommended varieties, suggested methods of storage, and a number of recipes, from how to make your own cider and pickled gherkins to how to string onions and dry your own apple rings. You'll know where your food has come from, you'll save money, there won't be any packaging, and you'll be eating tasty local food while feeling good about it.

Have trouble keeping house plants alive? Struggling to find your green fingers? Fear not! You can still have a beautiful plant-filled home with this stunning guide to indoor plants. Whether you are looking to cultivate an entire indoor garden, or simply wish to know more about your single cactus, you can be sure to find the right information for you amongst the seventy-five plants in this stylish guide. And the best bit? All the plants are easy to maintain so even the most timid of gardeners can enjoy turning their hand to this green-fingered pastime. Learn how to care for succulents, cacti, flowering and foliage plants even with a full-time job, with this unique gardening guide that is made to fit alongside our modern-day schedules. With endless inspiration to brighten up your home,desk or office, this beautiful book of plants from across the world is a must for lovers of art and design, as well as plants.

Wood Pallet Projects shows how anyone can upcycle salvaged pallet wood to create truly one-of-a-kind furniture and accessories! Inspirational gallery of pallet project ideas, highlighting everything from furniture and planters to office spaces and room dividers Step-by-step instructions for a chair, picture frame, boxes, entry caddy, coffee table, outdoor loveseat, birdhouse, ukulele, and more More than 250 color photos to walk you through the projects and inspire your creativity Important advice on pallet safety, where to find pallets, and how to process them into usable lumber, plus fasteners, sanding, and finishing Maverick craftsman Chris Gleason combines sound woodworking techniques with a hip designer's sensibility to unleash the limitless possibilities of the common skid! Inside Wood Pallet Projects, you'll find inspired projects for rescuing and repurposing pallets. Some of his pieces celebrate the rough, edgy character of the material, while others are crafted as fine furniture. He shows how to construct both indoor and outdoor furniture in a variety of styles, along with other useful items such as a birdhouse, a toolbox, and even a ukulele! Lumber prices are soaring, and deforestation is a rising concern. Yet millions of pounds of perfectly usable wood are dumped in landfills every year. Wood Pallet Projects will show you how to upcycle salvaged pallet wood to create truly one-of-a-kind projects. There's plenty of nitty gritty here on working with pallets, including where to find them, how to process them into usable lumber, fasteners, sanding, and the best finishes (if any) to use. Chris also provides important advice on how to make sure that your pallets are safe, not sprayed with harmful chemicals. A colorful gallery of finished work provides further inspiration for green crafting.

Finding herself in a new home in Brighton, Kate Bradbury sets about transforming her decked, barren backyard into a beautiful wildlife garden. She documents the unbuttoning of the earth and the rebirth of the garden, the rewilding of a tiny urban space. On her own she unscrews, saws, and hammers the decking away, she clears the builders' rubble and rubbish beneath it, and she digs and enriches the soil, gradually planting it up with plants she knows will attract wildlife. She erects bird boxes and bee hotels, hangs feeders and grows nectar- and pollen-rich plants, and slowly brings life back to the garden. But while she's doing this her neighbors continue to pave and deck their gardens. The wildlife she tries to save is further threatened, and she feels she's fighting an uphill battle. Is there any point in gardening for wildlife when everyone else is drowning the land in poison and cement? Throughout her story, Kate draws on an eclectic and eccentric cast of friends and colleagues, who donate plants and a greenhouse, tolerate her gawping at butterflies at Gay Pride, and accompany her on trips to visit rare bumblebees and nightingales.

This hardworking addition to the best-selling Backyard Homestead series offers expert advice on what tasks to do around your farm and when to do them — no matter where on the planet you call home. Author Ann Larkin Hansen sets the priorities for each area of the farm, including the barn, garden, orchard, field, pasture, and woodlot. For every critical turn of the year (12 in all), Hansen provides an at-a-glance to-do list along with tips and a more in-depth discussion of key topics for the season. Easy-reference charts, checklists, and record-keeping sections help you keep track of it all.

Many people are concerned about the use of chemicals to control pests, especially where children or pets are concerned, and are turning to natural solutions to solve this age old problem. The truth is apart from the possible long term health problems, modern factory farming and chemical pesticides are actully less effective in the long term to organic gardening. With pest control in the home and garden, nature provides all the solutions if you know where to look. This book will teach you everything you need to know to not only protect your home and garden from pests but to also protect home, garden and food from pesticides.

This concise Storey BASICS® guide teaches novice gardeners how to successfully keep indoor plants beautiful and healthy. Learn how to choose the best plants for your home and what each species needs in terms of location, water, sunlight, and fertilizer. Covering the basics of repotting, pruning, and dealing with pests, Ellen Zachos shows you how to keep your houseplants looking vibrant for years to come. Soon, you’ll be watching over a collection of thriving plants that add a lively dose of color to your home.

Love plants, but short on outdoor space? Or feeling inspired by striking terrariums and succulent gardens? Eager to create a unique home brimming with greenery? Then this is the book for you. With stunning photography and expert step-by-step tips, Bring the Outside In reveals everything you need to know to help your plants thrive, from dramatic statement foliage and miniature citrus trees to table-top terrariums and hanging planters. With chapters on orchids, cacti, herb gardens, and chilli plants, your home will be flourishing in no time.

This is a herb book with a difference. It shows you how to grow and use your own fresh, home-grown, kitchen herbs throughout the gardening year. In a really user-friendly format, it follows the changing seasons to provide guidance, inspiration and practical advice on cultivating a kitchen herb garden, in whatever space you have available. * Includes detailed information on how to plan, plant, grow and maintain your herbs so that your herb garden is always productive. * Information on their traditional use is accompanied by advice on cooking them and on their health benefits. * Included in each of the seasonal chapters is a featured Herb of the Month, which includes extended and fascinating information - and some delicious recipes. * Offers you an A-Z Gazetteer of the most popular herbs to use in the kitchen so you can decide which ones to buy as well as which ones to grow.

This handy guide resurrects the fine art of frugal housekeeping with over 500 tips on saving money throughout the home and garden. Learn creative ways to cut back, pinch pennies, reduce, recycle, and re-use. Want to save on the grocery bill? Buy the whole chicken rather than individual cuts. Get more wear out of your wardrobe? Add a dash of salt to the washer to keep your darks from fading in the laundry. Lovely vintage-inspired line drawings and a beautiful foil-stampedcloth cover make this an ideal stocking stuffer or newlywed gift. Best of all, Penny Saving Household Helperis a bargain in and of itself. At $12.95, it's just a little over two cents per tip!