Library Highlights

Tiny Space Gardening

Amy Pennington
Sasquatch Books, Seattle
“Forget the 100-mile eat-local diet; try the 300-square-foot-diet; grow squash on the windowsill, flowers in the planter box, or corn in a parking strip. Tiny Space Gardening
details how to start a garden in the heart of the city. From building a window box to planting seeds in jars on the counter, every space is plantable, and this book reveals that the DIY future is now by providing hands-on, accessible advice. Amy Pennington's friendly voice paired with Kate Bingham-Burt's crafty illustrations make greener living an accessible reality, even if readers have only a few hundred square feet and two windowsills. Save money by planting the same things available at the grocery store, and create an eccentric garden right in the heart of any living space.”

Big Ideas for Northwest Small Gardens

Marty Wingate
Sasquatch Books, Seattle

“Transform your too-small yard into a beautiful, textured, and colorful garden with this lovely book! Master Gardener and Seattle Post-Intelligencer columnist Marty Wingate details design, planning, and planting ideas that will bring a bounty of flowers, variety, and volume to small yards, tight spaces with limited sunlight, decks, and balconies. This colorful book of great ideas proves that garden-making possibilities for small spaces are enormous!”

The Postage Stamp Vegetable Garden

Karen Newcombe
Ten Speed Press, Berkeley

“One of the best books for beginning and experienced vegetable gardeners, this clear, straightforward, easy-to-read gardening bestseller uses organic, biodynamic methods to produce large amounts of vegetables in very small spaces.

To accommodate today's lifestyles, a garden needs to fit easily into a very small plot, take as little time as possible to maintain, require a minimum amount of water, and still produce prolifically. That's exactly what a postage stamp garden does. Postage stamp gardens are as little as 4 by 4 feet, and, after the initial soil preparation, they require very little extra work to produce a tremendous amount of vegetables--for instance, a 5-by-5-foot bed will produce a minimum of 200 pounds of vegetables.

When first published 40 years ago, the postage stamp techniques, including closely planted beds rather than rows, vines and trailing plants grown vertically to free up space, and intercropping, were groundbreaking. Revised for an all new generation of gardeners, this edition includes brand new information on the variety of heirloom vegetables available today and how to grow them the postage stamp way.

Now, in an ever busier world, the postage stamp intensive gardening method continues to be invaluable for gardeners who wish to weed, water, and work a whole lot less yet produce so much more.”

Container Gardening : 250 Design Ideas & Step-by-Step Techniques

Fine Gardening, Newtown, CT

“For people who don't have space or time for traditional gardening and who need expert advice on choosing and using plants and containers to create their own container garden, large or small. At long last, a smart and sensible gardening guide from the most trusted name in gardening. Compiled from the pages of Fine Gardening magazine, Container Gardening will inspire readers with dramatic plant combinations as well as provide step-by-step techniques to plant and care for containers under all conditions, including regions with short growing periods. The experts at Fine Gardening will show even a beginning gardener how containers can create boundaries, direct traffic, break up wall space, and soften edges throughout the year.”

Flowerpots

Jim Keeling
Trafalgar Square Books, North Pomfret, VT

A seasonal guide to planting, designing, and displaying pots.

Both a potter and gardener, author Jim Keeling combines practical horticultural skills with a visual appreciation--not only of the plants but of the pots themselves.

Hanging Baskets : Glorious Gardens in the Air

Stephanie Donaldson
Lorenz Books, New York

“50 step-by-step projects for planting hanging baskets and wall baskets. All you need to know to create beautiful hanging baskets with clear identification of all plants used and easy-to-follow instructions. Ideas for creative baskets of all kinds from small wall baskets to large antique baskets. Includes planning a scheme, care and maintenance, and choosing the best sites.”

The Tiny Garden

Jane McMorland Hunter
Francis Lincoln Books, London

“Stairs, passages, light wells, the tops of fire escapes - no site is too small for a garden, or the illusion of one. This book shows you how you can create a pocket handkerchief of a garden in even the most unpromising of spaces. Equally helpful for beginners and more experienced gardeners faced with an awkward plot, this book covers everything you need to know to make and maintain a tiny garden, showing you how to make the most of what you've got and suggesting designs for a variety of situations. You need not be restricted to a selection of containers: even things you thought beyond your wildest dreams - lawns, water features and kitchen gardens - are all surprisingly achievable. It fills a genuine gap in the market and covers the areas around a house that are frequently ignored, even in books specializing in small gardens.”

Encyclopedia of the Small Garden

Sue Phillips
Select Editions, Burnaby, BC

“Making the most of a small garden can be a fascinating pursuit in its own right. This reference presents step-by-step practical information as well as a host of ideas for the best use of limited space. The broad range includes water features, container planting, and growing herbs and vegetables.”

Patios and Courtyards

Royal Horticultural Society
Dorling Kindersley, London 

“Combining full-colour images with step-by-step instructions, this guide provides concise, practical information and advice for gardening in patios and courtyards. Topics covered include: assessing your site; suggestions for privacy, families and entertaining; formal and informal styles; dealing with slopes, shade and hot sun; drawing up a plan; choosing appropriate plants and furnishings; and using materials.”

Balconies, Courtyards and Pots 

Caroline Gunter
Australian Women's Weekly, Sydney

“Gardeners with small spaces to fill and creative hearts to satisfy will find a design solution for almost any sized space in this photographed collection. It provides recipes for gardens in the air, such as window boxes and hanging baskets, and for planting balconies with shrubs and annuals.”

Container Gardens

Adam Caplin
House Beautiful, New York

“A beautifully illustrated resource on the art of container gardening explains how to select the appropriate container to suite one's taste, setting, and garden--including terra cotta, stone, recycled containers, baskets, and more--and includes tips on the best plants for different types of containers, plantings for a variety of conditions, planting techniques, and more.”

 

Container Topiary

“Using topiary is a way of enlivening the garden with living ornaments, whether in a large or small garden, on a patio or terrace, or even a balcony or window ledge. Topiary, the art of shaping trees and shrubs into geometric designs, has traditionally been a feature of classical gardens and was once considered suitable only for formal gardens. Container Topiary brings the subject thoroughly up to date with modern, urban spaces in mind and is both a practical and inspirational gardening book. With over 16 step-by-step projects, it describes how to grow and shape topiary for containers in a variety of styles, from the simple box balls and pyramids to more elaborate shapes. As well as the traditional box (buxus), there are also faux topiary projects using fast-growing ivy and even flowers. With advice on displaying topiary and a comprehensive directory of plants, this stunning book, with over 100 specially commissioned photographs, is sure to inspire both novice and experienced gardener alike.”

Gardening in Containers

“America's best gardeners share their secrets for designing beautiful container gardens. Gardening in Containers is filled with clever and inspiring ideas for creating dynamic plant combinations, designing containers for year-round interest, selecting the best plants, and using containers throughout the garden.”