Fertile ideas for home gardens, based on high standards and criteria of design, spring from this lushly illustrated volume which also includes 60 case studies of residential landscape gardens. 400 color illustrations.

Wolfgang Oehme is one of the most important garden designers of the last 30 years. In partnership with James Van Sweden, who contributes an essay to this book, he ushered in the revolutionary garden style known as the New American Garden. Eschewing previous conventions such as vast lawns, clipped shrubs, and dreary beds of annuals, the New American garden embodies the simple beauty and grandeur of the prairie, defining itself with large sweeps of herbaceous perennials and grasses. The feeling of sheer beauty and calmness that pervades Oehme's gardens is a reminder of our connection to nature. Ornamental Grasses chronicles Oehme’s professional journey, from his childhood in war-torn Germany to his immense success in the United States, all the while exploring his remarkable career, both solo and in partnership with Van Sweden. Over 200 gorgeous photographs depict dreamlike gardens, “Wolfi” plants, people, and much more.

Describes Shipman's remarkable life and fifty of her major works, including the Stan Hywet Gardens in Akron, Ohio; Longue Vue Gardens in New Orleans; and Sarah P. Duke Gardens at Duke University. Richly illustrated, this expanded edition reveals her ability to combine plants for dramatic impact and create spaces of the utmost intimacy.

Monty Don, Britain's treasured horticulturalist, and renowned photographer Derry Moore explore iconic and little-known gardens throughout America. For years, Britain's much-loved gardener Monty Don has been leading us down all kinds of garden paths to show us why green spaces are vital to our wellbeing and culture. Now, he travels across America with celebrated photographer Derry Moore to trace the fascinating histories of outdoor spaces which epitomize or redefine the American garden. In the book, which complements the BBC television series, they look at a variety of gardens and outdoor spaces at the center of American history including the slave garden at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello estate, Longwood Gardens in Delaware, and Middleton Place in South Carolina. Together, they visit verdant oases designed by modernist architects such as Richard Neutra. They delve into urban outdoor spaces, looking at New York City's Central Park, Lurie Garden at the southern end of Millennium Park in Chicago, and the Seattle Spheres. Derry Moore gives his unique perspective on gardens across the United States, including several not featured in the TV series. These include unpublished photographs of Bob Hope's Palm Springs home and garden of renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Featuring luscious photography and Don's engaging commentary, this book will leave you with a richer understanding of how America's most important gardens came to be designed.

In a time of climate change and mass extinction, how we garden matters more than ever: “An outstanding and deeply passionate book.” —Marc Bekoff, author of The Emotional Lives of Animals Plenty of books tell home gardeners and professional landscape designers how to garden sustainably, what plants to use, and what resources to explore. Yet few examine why our urban wildlife gardens matter so much—not just for ourselves, but for the larger human and animal communities. Our landscapes push aside wildlife and in turn diminish our genetically programmed love for wildness. How can we get ourselves back into balance through gardens, to speak life's language and learn from other species? Benjamin Vogt addresses why we need a new garden ethic, and why we urgently need wildness in our daily lives—lives sequestered in buildings surrounded by monocultures of lawn and concrete that significantly harm our physical and mental health. He examines the psychological issues around climate change and mass extinction as a way to understand how we are short-circuiting our response to global crises, especially by not growing native plants in our gardens. Simply put, environmentalism is not political; it's social justice for all species marginalized today and for those facing extinction tomorrow. By thinking deeply and honestly about our built landscapes, we can create a compassionate activism that connects us more profoundly to nature and to one another.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

“I want to put the mystery back into the heart of garden design, where it needs to be. It’s what lures you in through the gate, keeps you moving through the landscape, and fills you with excitement along the way. The sense of mystery is what turns a mere display of plants, paths, and ornaments into an adventure.” —James van Sweden Guided by world-renowned landscape architect James van Sweden and horticulture expert Tom Christopher, any gardener can learn the secrets of the gardener’s art and absorb the essence of inspired garden design. In their gifted hands, creating your own perfect garden, with its own alluring mysteries, turns out to be not only easy but a delight. Whether it’s a ten-foot-square city terrace or a ten-acre expanse, the same principles apply: the intelligent use of positive and negative space, of form and scale, of light and shadow, of rough and smooth textures. Do you want a garden you can immerse yourself in? A garden you can smell and listen to as well as observe? An exuberant garden or a contemplative garden? In this elegantly written and visually stunning book, van Sweden reveals the secrets of famous gardens around the world and encourages you to find inspiration in the arts—in painting (from America’s classic regional artists to the abstract expressionists), music (from classical to jazz), sculpture, even dance. He introduces you to famous artists who share how their art has influenced the design of their own gardens, and teaches you to think not in terms of borders and beds or even paths and meadows but of a tapestry woven from sky, trees, rocks, vines, flowers, grasses, and space. Richly illustrated throughout with magnificent photographs, The Artful Garden both tells and shows, sharing with beginning and experienced gardeners a wealth of inspiration and practical help. “What’s my message?” van Sweden asks in conclusion. The wise answer: “Don’t squander the potential for surprise and wonder.” This beautiful book guarantees everyone who reads it a priceless store of gardening wisdom.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The former First Lady, author of Becoming, and producer and star of Waffles + Mochi tells the inspirational story of the White House Kitchen Garden and how gardens can transform our lives and the health of our communities. Early in her tenure as First Lady, despite being a novice gardener, Michelle Obama planted a kitchen garden on the White House’s South Lawn. To her delight, she watched as fresh vegetables, fruit, and herbs sprouted from the ground. Soon the White House Kitchen Garden inspired a new conversation all across the country about the food we feed our families and the impact it has on the nutrition and well-being of our children. In American Grown, Mrs. Obama invites you inside the White House Kitchen Garden, from the first planting to the satisfaction of the seasonal harvest. She reveals her early worries and struggles—would the new plants even grow?—and her joy as lettuce, corn, tomatoes, collards and kale, sweet potatoes and rhubarb flourished in the freshly tilled soil. She shares the stories of other gardens that have moved and inspired her on her journey across the nation. And she offers what she learned about planting your own backyard, school, or community garden. American Grown features: • a behind-the-scenes look at every season of the garden’s growth • unique recipes created by White House chefs • striking original photographs that bring the White House garden to life • a fascinating history of community gardens in the United States From a modern-day vegetable truck that brings fresh produce to underserved communities in Chicago, to Houston office workers who make the sidewalk bloom, to a New York City school that created a scented garden for the visually impaired, to a garden in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, that devotes its entire harvest to those less fortunate, American Grown isn’t just the story of a single garden. It’s a celebration of the bounty of our nation and a reminder of what we can all grow together.

Sweeping, voluptuous, and authoritative, Private Paradise instantly joins an elite collection of great and inspiring garden design books. Charlotte Frieze presents forty-one cutting-edge gardens, all richly photographed and profusely illustrated, emphasizing design, climate, and horticulture. Overarching themes of Aqua, Arcadia, Bold Geometry, Color, Nightscapes, Oasis, Sanctuary, and Urban cogently frame chapters about the challenges presented by the land, the climate, and the client’s interests. Located throughout the United States, these gardens demonstrate the intersection between traditional elements of garden design and current concerns such as sustainability, drought tolerance, and use of native plants. Private Paradise features the work of the most talented landscape architects and garden designers working in the United States today, including Topher Delaney, Marta Fry, Kathryn Gustafson, Raymond Jungles, Steve Koch, Ron Lutsko, Steve Martino, Pamela Palmer, Ken Smith, Christine Ten Eyck, and Thomas Wolz. In a publication that rightfully takes its place on the sturdy foundation of a century’s worth of garden surveys and design monographs, Private Paradise creates a compelling portrait of contemporary landscape design.

This book is a survey of 12 breathtakingly beautiful gardens by award-winning photographer Andre Baranowski, whose eye for beauty will embolden readers the world over to embrace their inner instincts and create their own garden wild. The new movement in contemporary gardening is about going back to the wilderness, creatively landscaping with native plants to enrich their environments and seamlessly merge with their natural surroundings. Politely rejecting traditional manicured, hedged and pruned gardening aesthetics to invite an alternative kind of beauty: wildly bursting with indigenous plants, old-growth trees, vibrant patches of wildflowers and perennials, succulents, un-pruned bushes and ornamental grasses. New York City's Highline is a famous example and this landscaping approach is becoming increasingly popular for private homeowners. This book surveys twelve such breathtaking gardens captured by award winning photographer Andre Baranowski. The featured gardens range from small private residencies to large properties, by renowned landscapers such as Oehme van Sweden, Fernando Caruncho, Jorge Sanchez, and Piet Oudolf. The texts detail each project's approach and the hurdles presented by its landscape, providing the reader with an array of instructional ideas from an insider's mindset. Guaranteed to be a boundless source of inspiration and treasured by lovers of gardens worldwide.