From Publishers Weekly
Pennsylvania gardeners Ondra and Cohen (
Perennial Gardener's Design Primer) bring imaginative ideas, practical techniques and new inspiration to autumn, that often-neglected tail end of the gardening year. According to the authors, the key players of fallscaping include the multicolored foliage of trees, grasses and other plants; flashy seedheads and berries; long-blooming perennials; late-blooming sedums, coneflowers, asters and goldenrod; the surprising fall-blooming crocuses, daffodils and lilies; and vines like honeysuckle and sweet autumn clematis. Ondra and Cohen submit a number of fall-friendly garden plans, complete with shopping lists, from a high and dry garden of echinaceas, lavenders and feather reed grass to a vegetable, herb and flower kitchen garden of peppers and basils (to be brought inside before cold weather) and kale and chard (to carry the harvest into winter), with colorful touches of alpine strawberries, sunflowers and pansies. Interspersed throughout are Fall Techniques, with practical, down-to-earth information on how to divide perennials and design suggestions on planning paths, as well as more wacky ideas like spray-painting seedheads. The book ends with a Fall Garden Care Primer, delineating ways to evaluate your garden, improve your soil, build new beds, take cuttings, prepare plants for winter, store your tools and care for your lawn (a long section). Full of useful details and lush photographs, this book rounds out the growing year and may fill a gap in many a gardening library.
(Aug.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Booklist
Gardens in fall are often deemed the poor stepchildren of their showier spring and summer counterparts, and there is simply no good reason why this should be the case. With their dazzling foliage colors, vivid blossoms, and tantalizing berries, fall gardens abound with sensory treats. In their engrossing and enthusiastic look at the marvels of autumn gardening, renowned garden writers Ondra and Cohen reveal the wealth of suitable and stunning plants destined to be the stars of any garden setting. Profiling trees and shrubs prized for their brilliant foliage, ornamental grasses treasured for their ethereal seedheads, and hardy bulbs cherished for their surprising versatility, Ondra and Stephanie Cohen encourage gardeners to think beyond the traditional chrysanthemum/aster/goldenrod garden palette. With helpful sidebars covering such topics as invasive species and debris disposal; full-color illustrations of inventive planting designs for dozens of landscape challenges; and a comprehensive, basic care primer, Ondra and Cohen's vibrant and authoritative guide is a must-have resource for those wishing to maximize their garden's potential. Haggas, Carol
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
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