Book Description
The perfect companion to the Better Homes and Gardens New Complete Guide to Gardening.
Illustrated easy-to-follow instructions for planning, designing, and building typical landscape projects.
Customer Reviews:
Beautiful, book of knowledge and ideas!.......2007-03-15
This book is great for beginners and advanced landscapers alike. I never worked in a yard before but I can tackle most projects after this book.. it really has great step-by-step info.. I recommend this for all gardeners!
Great book for your bookshelf!.......2005-05-20
This book is great! I use it all the time and my pages have been dog-eared to death. Very useful and the pictures can give you some great ideas! I pull it out all the time, even just to look at the pictures.
Great guide for new gardeners.......2004-03-05
This has been one of my best purchases yet for gardening. From preparing the land to the final touches this book contains excellent detail. In addition, you have multiple plans for projects from gazebos to water fountains. I highly recommend this book. You will not regret the purchase.
REALLY IS COMPLETE!!!.......2003-08-10
They weren't lying when they said new complete guide! It has everything and more. It has really inspired me.The pictures are fantastic. They can give you ideas themselves. This book lets you know how to plan out your landscape, let's you use your imagination, and gives you choices and step by step instructions to make your landscaping dreams come true. I highly reccomend it. This is the best book out there! It has some excellent ideas!
greatest landscaping book I've seen so far.......2003-06-23
This is really a great and very comprehensive book, I love it. I saw it the first time in a store and I was really impressed by it, so I decided to look for it on amazon. My favorite part is the different ways shown to incorporate water. Also I liked the thoughtful tips that should be considered when planning a garden, such as a form of privacy around the spa.
Book Description
Stonescaping is one of today's most popular outdoor landscaping design trends. Now homeowners can find a landscape design and project book combined in one with Landscaping with Stone. The first section provides readers with a framework for incorporating stone in their yard designs, including a look at the different types of stone used in landscapes, sources of inspiration, and ways to think about stone in relation to other outdoor elements. The second part of the book provides readers with tips on working with stone, from transporting to cutting and setting. There is also instruction on how to complete some of the most popular stone projects, including patios, walls, and rock gardens.
Customer Reviews:
You'd never know you could do this much with landscaping.......2007-06-25
What beautiful and innovative designs this book has. My husband and I wanted to landscape much of our property with stone. We actually did more than planned because we were so impressed by much of the ideas in this book. A concern of ours was the price. Much of the simpler projects you find you can do yourself (such as the small retaining wall around the garden), which saved on additional labor costs. We were guided which stones to use, and stones that could be found around the property. For the work that was a bit more extensive we called in a professional and showed him from the book what we wanted. He was very much impressed with this book himself.
If you're looking for inspiration, this is it........2007-05-07
Beautiful book, well put together, LOTS of pictures. I especially liked the way the author covered different styles of stonework. I'm not a fan of very formal design and he included examples of more informal, earthy landscaping.
Great pics.......2007-02-03
I love the full color pictures - it gave me all sorts of ideas. I just wished there were a few more pages on "How to do it" I'd recommend this book though for the price - it was awesome.
Book Description
New Complete Home Landscaping is an updated, expanded edition of Creative Homeowner's award-winning comprehensive book on landscaping for the home. It covers every aspect of home landscaping, from design principles to construction projects; plant selection to plant care. The book consists of three parts. Part One: Preparing to Landscape explains how to design and create a landscape. Part Two: Setting the Stage shows how to build such features as paths, ponds, walls, decks, and watering systems. Part Three: Planting and Growing describes how to select, plant, and care for flowers, trees, shrubs, ground covers, and lawns.
Customer Reviews:
New Complete Home Landscaping.......2007-01-03
There are some interesting and workable ideas in the book. Before purchasing you might want to check out your local library first. I'm not disappointed with it however I think the layouts are more for the professional landscape/design area. There is even a section for making your own pesticides. It is a nice book to have on hand.
Definitely complete.......2006-05-19
This book touched on all aspects of gardening and landscaping - design elements and plans, water features, walls & fences, gazebos, decks and patios. It offers suggestions on plants and flowers appropriate for specific areas and climates. There is also a section with solutions to common problems. I highly recommend this book. The text gave me a lot of knowledge, while the pictures inspired me to start working on my own yard!
A step-by-step guide for amateur & professional landscapers.......2005-02-10
Over 950 photographs and watercolor paintings illustrate New Complete Home Landscaping, a step-by-step guide for amateur and professional landscapers alike. Internationally recognized garden writer Catriona Tudor Erler discusses how to choose the right plants for one's climate and soil conditions, how to install a fence, when to fertilize and what fertilizer to use, fighting common diseases, how to transplant large trees and shrubs, and much more. Packed with pages and pages of detail and explicit constructions, New Complete Home Landscaping lives up to its title as an indispensable and well-rounded resource for anyone seriously contemplating a landscaping project.
Book Description
500 color photos and more than 100 illustrations.
All techniques for designing and shaping a landscape plan and common outdoor structures.
Includes plant identification photos and charts.
Average customer rating:
- Inspiration and the tools to go with it
- Great book
- Well documented, practical and enticing
- So good it got stolen.
- Gaia's Garden is a practical guide for transforming yard to Eden
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Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture
Toby Hemenway
Manufacturer: Chelsea Green
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 General
| Gardening & Horticulture
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
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Organic
| Techniques
| Gardening & Horticulture
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Techniques
| Gardening & Horticulture
| Home & Garden
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Environmentalism
| Conservation
| Outdoors & Nature
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| Cooking, Food & Wine
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Similar Items:
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How to Make a Forest Garden
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Food Not Lawns: How to Turn Your Yard into a Garden And Your Neighborhood into a Community
-
Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability
-
How to Grow More Vegetables and Fruits: (And Fruits, Nuts, Berries, Grains, and Other Crops)
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Water Storage: Tanks, Cisterns, Aquifers, and Ponds for Domestic Supply, Fire and Emergency Use--Includes How to Make Ferrocement Water Tanks
ASIN: 1890132527 |
Book Description
Permaculture is a verbal marriage of “permanent” and “agriculture.” Australian Bill Mollison pioneered its development. Key features include:
use of compatible perennials;
non-invasive planting techniques;
emphasis on biodiversity;
specifically adaptable to local climate, landscape, and soil conditions;
highly productive output of edibles.
Now, picture your backyard as one incredibly lush garden, filled with edible flowers, bursting with fruit and berries, and carpeted with scented herbs and tangy salad greens. The visual impact is of Monet's palette, a wash of color, texture, and hue. But this is no still life. The flowers nurture endangered pollinators. Bright-featured songbirds feed on abundant berries and gather twigs for their nests.
The plants themselves are grouped in natural communities, where each species plays a role in building soil, deterring pests, storing nutrients, and luring beneficial insects. And finally, you--good ol' homo sapiens--are an integral part of the scene. Your garden tools are resting against a nearby tree, and have a slight patina of rust, because this garden requires so little maintenance. You recline into a hammock to admire your work. You have created a garden paradise.
This is no dream, but rather an ecological garden, which takes the principles of permaculture and applies them on a home-scale. There is nothing technical, intrusive, secretive, or expensive about this form of gardening. All that is required is some botanical knowledge (which is in this book) and a mindset that defines a backyard paradise as something other than a carpet of grass fed by MiracleGro.
Customer Reviews:
Inspiration and the tools to go with it.......2007-09-14
I have totally enjoyed this book. The principles are a little murky because apparently this is a pretty new field and not very well developed for the eastern seabord which I live but it does provide enough guidance to begin setting up your own permaculture areas and start developing areas to be more ecologically sound food producing and living environments. I would HIGHLY recommend it as a first book on permaculture and the resources section alone has been a joy.
Great book.......2007-08-23
I highly recommend this book.
It is a fun place to start, if you wish to create a sustainable garden. All the basics are covered, from grey water, to ponds, to guilds, to forest gardens, and it is enjoyable and easy reading.
Well documented, practical and enticing.......2007-07-24
I bought this book together with Patrick Whitefield's "Permaculture in a Nutshell" and read the latter first, which is a mere introduction compared to Toby Hemenway's "Gaia's Garden". Toby transmits his love for and knowledge of permaculture very well. I am trained as an agricultural engineer and did learn a lot while reading. He first teaches the basics and then rehearses them in the different chapters. The concepts sort of grow and develop while reading, which leaves you with the feeling that you don't have to open the book again to start designing your own garden. Toby's enthusiasm is also tangible and infectious.
The only thing that's missing for me is more examples and better documentation about existing permaculture gardens/farms. My design would be quite different from Toby's (I live in Spain and we have our own favourite mediterranean crops) but the book provides the tools needed to do it your own way and Toby comes over as an open minded teacher.
So good it got stolen........2007-07-22
Sad but true. As a former library worker, I can tell you there is no better praise than when a book gets ripped off.
It is annoying mine was lifted from me but it happened and I am sad; it's a good one.
Thanks for writing it.
Gaia's Garden is a practical guide for transforming yard to Eden.......2007-05-12
This book is a fascinating read, very informative, and approachable for anyone trying out sustainable living, whether experimenting for the first time or with some experience. The author is inspiring and maintains a level of hopefulness not always found in environmental literature. He balances idealism with practicality and treasures the process of growing one's own food and flowers, recognizing that this is a lifelong journey and the gardener is always learning in a dynamic process. I find myself reading a chapter or so and being drawn out into my own yard to putter around with a new idea, then rocking on my front porch while I devour another chapter. This book is life-giving on several levels!
Product Description
Creative Homeowner helps turn a dream into a reality with Pools & Spas: Ideas for Planning, Designing, and Landscaping. This book offers ideas and advice through the complete process from pool/spa selection to creating an attractive environment. Over 300 inviting color photos illustrate the many options from infinity-edge pools to indoor swim spas; from built-ins to attractive aboveground pools. Valuable advice is included on site selection, materials, financing, and more. As the crowning touch, Pools & Spas suggests ideas to create the ideal setting for the new pool or spa using decks, patios, and landscapes.
More than 300 full-color photographs convey current design ideas
Explains how to choose a pool or spa based on lifestyle as well as location
Prepares homeowners for the construction and installation process
Offers ideas for decking and landscaping around a pool or spa
Covers planning issues such as budgeting, financing, hiring a contractor, and site selection
Provides helpful advice concerning pool- and spa-related equipment
Resource Guide with most recent pool products
Comprehensive cross-referenced index and glossary with important technical terms
Softcover, 224 pages, Published 2003
Customer Reviews:
Pools and Spas.......2007-07-23
There are some good ideas and landscape ideas in this book for designing spas and pools. In the end I probably only spent 20 minutes in this book and didn't get a whole lot out of it. We spent a considerable amount of money on our pool but we live in Arizona and the landscape ideas didn't apply to this climate. Overall, lots of pretty pictures. 2 out of 5 stars.
We Borrowed Then Bought!.......2005-05-28
We also borrowed this from the library, but found we didn't want to return it. We spent hours showing each other what pictures we really liked, got great tips on thhe issues the pool owner faces and have a real idea of what we need to consider. So, since we want to use this during the planning process, we bought it!
Another Winner in Pool Books!.......2005-04-18
I borrowed this book from the library (too many pool books are not worth buying), and spent the rest of the night looking at it. Great photo examples of various types of pools that are described in detail, along with chapters on Safety, Design, Landscaping, Materials, etc... One of the best! (Same review as Pool & Spa Planner by Better Homes & Gardens, because they are both great books!)
Great info, great pictures, recommended resource.......2004-07-08
There are a lot of pretty home design books out there that have very little information tucked between the pictures. This book is full of information but also has a number of handsome photos of pools, spas, and water gardens which will give you ideas if you are planning a custom designed pool or tub. It's a great resource for someone thinking of installing these features in their backyard, and it also touches on landscaping, lighting, and even sauans.
Required reading for pool owners.......2004-04-07
Full of photographs of beautifully designed pools and spas set in various architectural environments, "Pools & Spas" is literally full of creative ideas if you are planning on adding a pool or spa to your home. However, the book does not stop with designs but also includes information on maintenance, various types of pool equipment, and even the process of installing an in ground pool. While the coverage of in ground pool installation is not detailed enough to do it yourself it does give you an idea of what is going on at the various stages so you know what to expect from your contractor.
If you are even thinking of installing a pool or spa, whether in ground, above ground, or portable, you should pick up a copy of "Pools & Spas". It includes a lot of factors that you might overlook when planning your pool and everything you need to know to take care of it correctly when it is finished.
Book Description
Ready to launch and grow your home-based landscaping business? This guide covers all the bases, from getting clients and referrals to designing projects to marketing your business on the Internet.
Customer Reviews:
This is good advise.......2007-04-01
If you want to start a ladscape companey this uis the book you want!
From the foundation to the long run it's full of great advice and instruction. I would recomend it to any new buisiness owner.
Very informative.......2007-01-11
The book has plenty of information and ideas for starting a landscaping biz, and presented in a light-hearted style that I appreciate. Thanks to Mr. Dell for sharing his insights.
Start Home Base Landscaping Bus.......2005-09-19
This was just what was needed. Lots to learn. Explanations were clear and direct. Very useful.
Excellent no nonsense book on landscaping.......2005-05-05
If you are considering starting a business this book is a must read. the principals listed in the book apply to almost any business, but the references are definately targeted at landscaping.
The book is well written, easy to undersatnd, and makes a lot of sense. this is money well spent.
Good reference.......2003-10-07
A very good reference and guide for anyone that has never started a small business before. He covers a variety of topics in detail, and even has examples of forms to use on a daily basis. Very helpful, and well written.
Book Description
In Landscaping Your Home, some of the best designers in the field show how to do a complete makeover of front, back, and side yards. The book is packed with fresh ideas for entrances, foundation plantings, and pathways, and explains how to use landscaping to better situate a house, thereby increasing its property value. Lavish illustrations make this practical approach to landscaping easy to follow.
Customer Reviews:
Great book!.......2007-01-10
I am loving this book! It has so many helpful instructions on landscaping your home. Plus the beautiful pictures are great. It's a book that truly lives up to the Taunton tradition of excellent gardening material.
Advanced garden design reading.......2006-08-13
A cut above the typical home-center landscape book. Not another do-it-yourself guide but a collection of design considerations and approaches by multiple garden/landscape designers. Excellent for those interested in learning more about various principles of garden design.
A lot of help........2001-12-29
Great for helping you to relize the importance of a layout.
Planing ahead is something I didn't usually do.
A must for design start.......2001-03-27
What a great rescource for someone trying to make those needed changes. Just getting started is aleays the most difficult of any task. This book assists in getting anyone well on their way.
Product Description
Home Landscaping: Texas is the latest edition in Creative Homeowner's best-selling Regional Home Landscaping series, providing easy, practical ideas to beautify outdoor environments. Starting with the 200 best plants that thrive in the region, landscape professionals from Texas created 46 outdoor design concepts. Included are easy-to-follow instructions to create the paths, fences, walls, and arbors included in the designs, as well as information on plant care and maintenance. Clearly written in a friendly style, Home Landscaping: Texas provides the insider advice to turn even a novice gardener into a landscape pro.
Over half a million copies of the Regional Home Landscaping series sold
46 creative designs developed by landscape professionals
Over 400 full-color photos and illustrations
Easy-to-follow instructions
Complete descriptions of the plants plus advice for plant care
Full cross-referenced index and glossary
Softcover, 208 pages, Published 2004
Customer Reviews:
useful.......2007-05-07
An excellent book for beginners. It features great landscape designs and a good overview of plants. Colorful illustrations, easy to read and practical. I highly recommend it.
Errors make me scared to try his plans........2007-04-05
This was one of the first landscaping books I purchased when I moved back to Texas and bought a newly constructed (read barren all but grass) house. It IS very inspirational and I always thought that it would be the first book I would reach for when I could afford to start my major landscaping project around my property. Now I'm ready to really begin planting and I've bought a few other books in the past few weeks to assist me in planning. (Other reviewers who say that you'll also need a plant guide specific to Texas are right, in my opinion. The plants the author picks may do well in Texas, but they're not necessarily natives and some will need special attention in the vastly different growing conditions throughout our great state.) I really thought the other books I purchased would supplement this one but then I sat down with all my books, pencil and graph paper, my property survey, and my local (native) nursery's plant list. I was finally making actual plans, not dreaming about it.
What do I see on page 28 as I work on plans for my front bed? A Red Oak planted 7 feet from the front window. HUH? I'll confess myself to be a novice but I'm not THAT much of a novice! Most people with a shred of common sense know that a tree that will eventually attain both a height and spread of 80 feet should not be planted anywhere near that close to your house.
Sadly, the book does not have any actual photos of the landscape designs presented, only illustrations. Lovely though they may be, they are not necessarily realistic. I'm guessing that a real picture of a Red Oak 7 feet from a home might be hard to find, since few people would be silly enough to do it. Due to my lack of faith in the plans, this book rapidly went to the bottom of the pile for my planning. Even the plant portraits he provides (the only photos in the book) could be found in better books.
Here's something interesting. If you click on the author's name above, you will see that he's produced these landscape designs for almost every region in the US. So, I'm guessing this is actually a mass-market production. I would be interested in comparing the Texas book to the others to see if there are many differences. I have a guess already. In this book, he does discuss hardiness zones but in every other Texas landscaping book I have, the actual regions of Texas are the focus. Hmmm, specifics about Texas in a book with Texas in the title. How novel.
Some books I can recommend wholeheartedly are the following (in the order I think they're useful to my paper and pencil, real, true planning):
Texas Wildscapes: Gardening for Wildlife LOVE LOVE LOVE it! This book does it all. I'm particularly interested in attracting birds and butterflies to my yard. This book discusses the regions of Texas and their different needs, gives you a step-by-step plan for developing your own landscape design and gives a rundown of the needs of local wildlife and instructions for completing specific projects. You will need a supplemental plant guide though because this book is not photo rich in that area. The book was poorly reviewed for having a vast plant list that was not searchable but someone from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept. left a review telling how to get the searchable index by e-mail. I got it within hours of sending off a request.
Native Texas Plants: Landscaping Region by RegionWONDERFUL! Gives professional quality landscaping plans for each region plus other landscaping plans for specific needs like wildlife, water, etc. It also has an excellent written and photo description of the plants she uses.
Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas If you're not interested in the Wildlife book above, this one is another that presents a great step-by-step plan for the creation of your own landscape design. Unfortunately, it doesn't give any sample plans for you to look at like Native Texas Plants does. It does offer some useful information about wildlife and xeriscaping.
Month by Month Gardening in Texas: What to Do Each Month to Have a Beautiful Garden All Year (Month-By-Month Gardening in Texas) Excellent book for the planner. Not what to plant but a calendar to tell you when. It might make you puzzle about how hard it is to find a tree or perennials at Home Depot or Lowe's in Fall and Winter but check out your local nursery that carries natives and you'll find plenty.)
Texas Gardening the Natural Way: The Complete HandbookHoward Garrett is widely recognized as an authority on Texas gardening and uses organic methods. The book has an excellent section with photos and descriptions of all kinds of plants but lacks the landscaping plans I was after. Also, they're not all natives although not everyone minds that so I included it in this list because it is a good reference.
Great landscaping guide.......2007-02-20
This book is great -- it has info on lots of local plants that really grow. I think one of the best features are the plans they have for different areas in your yard and sun exposure with excellent renderings to go with them. They even take you through the seasons so you can see how an area looks in December as well as May. Very user friendly!
very helpful, informative.......2007-01-13
Great book, especially for novice garders and those learning gardening in a new climate. Easy to use and full of good ideas.
Not Enough Texas.......2006-12-05
This is an okay general guide for beginners in home landscaping. However, it is not particular to Texas, despite its title. There are only about 30 pages devoted to plant material, and this is not covered in depth. The text makes no real attempt to help gardeners select plant material suitable to the many different soil types and environments found in Texas.
Book Description
Home Landscaping: Southeast Region shows how to beautify 23 common landscape situations, such as front and back entries, walkways, borders, slopes, and patios. Design variations incorporate more than 200 of the best plants for the southeastern states. Readers also learn all they need to know to install the paths, fences, walls, arbors, and trellises that make up the designs. Step-by-step instructions show how to tackle each project. Plant descriptions also explain planting and care.
Customer Reviews:
Another wonderful resource.......2005-08-21
The book covers most of the landscaping issues with easy to understand planting guides. A very good book for planning all or a part of your yard.
Great Idea Book and Reference for Southeast Landscaping.......2002-02-15
I found this book in the library and after renewing it 3 times figured I'd better just buy it. I've checked out many garden plan books, but this one had the info I needed to plan for different seasons, how the plans would look in a few years, and what I needed to maintain the plants. It's specific to the Southeast so I don't waste time on plants that won't work for me. It's a great idea source and reference.
Excellent! Clear instructions with great diagrams........1999-03-23
This book is an excellent guide for the new or veteran homeowner. It's filled with lots of ideas and a variety of plants including trees, shrubs, perennials, groundcovers and a few annuals. It offers a samples of typical planting scenarios for the home landscaper. Identifying each design as good for sun or shade and showing the variations is one of the best features. Seasonal variations are also helpful. But the best feature is that it clearly diagrams the placement of each plant including distance from the structure and distance from each other. Drawings and actual photographs of plants are also helpful. I highly recommend this book for the new or renovating landscaper.
Books:
- New Complete Guide to Landscaping: Design, Plant, Build (Better Homes and Gardens(R))
- North Carolina Gardener's Guide, 2nd Edition
- Orchidelirium
- Outdoor Water Features: 16 Easy-to-Build Projects For Your Yard and Garden
- Outside the Not So Big House: Creating the Landscape of Home
- Paula Pryke's Flower School: Mastering the Art of Floral Design
- Paula Pryke's Flower School: Mastering the Art of Floral Design
- Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook
- Plant Physiological Ecology
- Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
- Seven Habits Of Highly Effective Teenagers
- Lon Chaney: The Man Behind the Thousand Faces
- Le Morte Darthur
- Out of the Crisis
- The Dead Zone
- The Blue Edge of Midnight
- Cost Control: A Strategic Guide
- Human Rights Horizons: The Pursuit of Justice in a Globalizing World
- A Quiche Before Dying
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Landscaping Illustrated (The Complete Idiot's Guide)
Scotts Lawns: Your Guide to a Beautiful Yard
Landscaping with Stone
Landscaping Your Home: Creative Ideas from America's Best Gardeners (Fine Gardening Design Guides)
Walks, Walls & Patios: Plan, Design & Build
