BOOK REVIEWS--NONFICTION
planted
by Andy Sturgeon
©1998 Hodder & Stoughton
Although this book was published three years ago, it remains my absolute
favourite gardening book to date. Before I could afford to plunk down the
hefty price on a hardcover copy, I visited my local bookstore, looking it
over and coveting it from afar. Eventually I did buy the hardcover edition, but thankfully it is now available as a soft
cover edition with a lower price.
The unbelievably beautiful full-page photographs by Lorry Eason and Michael
Wildsmith stand out first. These are the most innovative and stunning of any
I have ever seen in a plant book. I’ve seen a lot of banal imagery in print:
this is the opposite. Many of the photos are extreme close-ups, allowing the
viewer to really see the tiny hairs on the head of a sunflower bloom or the
texture of the veins on a lettuce leaf. Sometimes they are so close-up that
the plants look like landscapes onto themselves. You will not find pictures
that illustrate how good your house will look when surrounded with flowering
plants in a specific tonal range. Rather you will see each plant for what it
really is. A certain mood is captured. It’s fuzzy and warm and inquisitive
all at the same time.
The photos are a perfect accompaniment to the text. Andy Sturgeon’s focus
isn’t on step-by-step how-to’s but on stepping back and finding joy in
plants and creating your own mini Eden. He captures the awe and excitement
that can be found in watching a seedling come up through the soil for the
first time. And because the book isn’t filled with photos of perfect
gardens, the reader can get excited and confident about "having a go" at
growing something, without being freaked out that their effort won’t
encapsulate the hyper-perfection of the manicured and professionally
designed garden. This isn’t to say that the book isn’t informational. It is
loaded with practical knowledge and insight and written with a witty,
conversational, yet straightforward tone. Everything you need to know--from
how to find your garden style, growing within your microclimate, digging the
soil, and choosing plants--is explained both thoroughly and simply. It is obvious that Andy Sturgeon loves plants and has none of the stuck up traditional attitudes about gardening that have put off young people for so long. He even addresses practical things like budget and money at the start of the book.
This is the most exciting and contemporary gardening book available and
really takes the concept of gardening where it needs to go. If you can afford one book about gardening this year, I highly recommend that planted be the one you get. -GS
Buy This Book
| 
