Customer Reviews

The 20-Minute Gardener: The Garden of Your Dreams Without Giving up Your Life, Your Job, or Your Sanity

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The most valuable thing I got out of this book was the change of attitude in gardening. I used to think that if an exotic and fragile plant didn't thrive in my garden, it was because I didn't treat it right (e.g. too much/too little sun, too much/too little water, not planting the seed on the exact day at the exact depth, etc., etc.) but this book advocates not coddling one's plants. After all, who has time for that unless one is a full-time horticulturalist? Thanks to this book, I now have a much more relaxed attitude toward gardening so that I can actually ENJOY it. It is also peppered with 20-minute projects, each of which may or may not be interesting or doable to a certain reader, but given the attitude of this book, I don't think the authors would be insulted if one did none of them (I am going to try some of them, though.) This book is fun to read even if one does no more gardening than keep a pot of houseplant. There is also some useful information on weeding, insect control, etc. I liked their mostly organic approach to these things, too. It is NOT a comprehensive guide to gardening, and is not meant to be. If that is what one needs, there is plenty available out there. The message here is 'Work smart, not hard, relax, and have fun.'

These guys should've been stand-up comedians...instead, they are articulate, knowledgeable, outspoken advocates of stress-free, fun gardening. If you're looking for a way to keep your sanity AND have a beautiful yard, this is the book for you. If you want one of those full-color, photo-filled coffeetable gardening books that only uses the Latin names for plants (and assumes you have no life other than gardening) move on. My favorite chapter is "Peter Rabbit Had It Coming"!

This book outlines an attitude toward gardening: grow things that you like and that are suited to your area. It sometimes has an odd perception of what counts as a 20 minute project. For example, digging a two foot (!) deep bed, enriching the soil, and planting rose cuttings is takes more than 20 minutes, no matter how much amphetamines you take. But they are right to assert that gardening should be fun, anyone can garden, and we should grow things that, well, GROW. BTW, I disagree with the reviewer who thinks that taking a cutting from an abandoned plant is stealing. Digging up the plant is stealing. Taking a cutting is propogation, not at all harmful to the parent plant. I read a lot of techinical garden books. I found this book a pleasant change of pace, like a chat about gardening.

A quick and funny read with a refreshingly sensible view of gardening and lots of good ideas for saving time
and money while maximizing pleasure and joy. Perfect for Type A gardeners who think they have something
to prove to the world via their delphiniums and peonies! As one who's sometimes wound a little too tight,
I will attest that I found portions of this book intoxicating in their heady defiance of serious gardening's
elitist tendencies.

I found this a fun, quick read with a refreshing attitude toward gardening. For those of us who enjoy the beauty of gardens; but despair of ever finding enough time to manage one with minimal help, this book offers hope for a reasonable way to do both. "Serious" gardeners may find it insulting. The rest of us may find the book helps us to let go of the "guilt" of not spending every free hour making a perfect garden which we have no time to enjoy.

One author is a horticulturist, the other an editor. The title says it all. The book gives many concrete hints for landscaping that looks nice, whatever your area of the country. Many are common sense: planting items requiring alot of watering near hoses; planting items that grow well in your area, rather than exotics requiring alot of work. But it also has some interesting, innovative ideas: easy growing roses, night gardens.

I give it four rather than 5, because to *really* make the 20 minutes work, you need to hire someone to do the mowing.

This book gives practical, hands-on tips on how to spend less time working in your garden and more time enjoying it. It gives tips on weeding (which I found to be funny, but not applicable to me), shopping for garden items and soil tips and techniques. I strongly recommend it for good reading cover to cover or as a gardening reference book.

This book was fun to read, and had some good ideas for those of us who like to garden, but don't always have as much time as we'd like to devote to it.

This book is best for gardeners just starting out--those who want to grow *something* but are overwhelmed by the stacks of garden literature. The best lesson I gleaned from Tom and Marty was their laid-back approach to horticulture: that is, the garden lives for you, you don't live for the garden. There are many good ideas on theme gardens, such as a moonlit one, as well as advice on how to pick healthy plants. Some people might be turned off by their rebellious approach to the exalted principles of gardening (how to love a weed?), but I, for one, thought they were refreshing.

I'd rather shoot myself than read a chapter of most gardening books. This book has entertainment value. The authors don't take themselves too seriously. Why should they--they're discussing flowers and vegtables.