Rock Garden Design and Construction [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

North American Rock Garden Society (Author), Jane McGary (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 2003

Few gardens can transport visitors to wild and rugged landscapes as well as rock gardens. Eye-catching rock gardens are among the most challenging — and satisfying — expressions of the gardener's craft. A true rock garden is a specialized habitat that allows the gardener to grow plants that do not flourish anywhere else. This book offers the first comprehensive treatment of building rock gardens in all parts of North America. Topics covered include rock placement, materials, and planting and maintenance. Variations on the rock garden theme, from planting troughs to creating water features are also discussed. The book presents regional styles and techniques and profiles a dozen public rock gardens from Oregon to Newfoundland. More than 100 inspiring photos accompany the lively text.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In his foreword to this information-filled guide, Panayotti Kelaidis posits that although rock gardening can be difficult to define, rock gardeners indisputably share a passion for plants. And whether one's focus is on dwarf conifers or a collection of succulents, the aspiring rock gardener will find chapters filled with advice from the bright lights of the rock-gardening world, who contribute expert recommendations and a multitude of ideas. An array of artistic gardens is shown, indicating possibilities for sites located in cold and warm regions alike. All sorts of practical considerations are covered, from suitability of the setting to soil to water features. Assorted styles of gardens--scree, berm, tufa, and natural outcrops--are discussed, with hands-on instructions provided for making troughs or container gardens where space may be an issue. The writers' enthusiasm for the subject matter will inspire some to start a rock garden from scratch and inspire experienced gardeners to enhance an existing design. Alice Joyce
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"Lovely examples of berm, scree, and xeric gardens, both public and private, with a welcome emphasis on the aesthetics of integrating these various contrivances, from rock outcroppings to expanses of gravels, into the larger garden picture."
—Horticulture, June 2004 (Horticulture )

"Though its pages are graced with more than 100 color images — many showcasing exquisitely conceived and executed rock gardens — this is by no means a mere coffee table book, but rather a treatise that covers every aspect of rock gardening, from sitting and construction to plant selection, culture, and ongoing maintenance."
—Barry Glick, American Gardener, May/June 2004 (American Gardener )

"Rock Garden Design and Construction is the first book on the subject to attempt to serve gardeners in all parts of North America, and we are in debt to the North American Rock Garden Society for this fine contribution to the literature ... the novice and advanced gardener are both well-served by this new reference."
—Pacific Horticulture, Fall 2003 (Pacific Horticulture )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 316 pages
• Publisher: Timber Press; First Edition edition (October 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881925837
• ISBN-13: 978-0881925838
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #370,241 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive, February 5, 2004

By 

Valerie Adolph "Coast Journal" (Pacific Northwest) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rock Garden Design and Construction (Hardcover)

This is a well-planned book that addresses all the major aspects of rock gardening and has ideas to offer gardeners from all parts of North America. One of its strengths is that the writers understand, through experience, the differences in soil and climate that influence rock gardening in different parts of the continent. Because of this personal experience the dissimilarities are addressed fully and not just mentioned briefly.

With contributions from over 40 leading rock gardeners from all parts of North America this is a truly comprehensive book. The section I found most interesting and relevant was the generous chapter on "Soils" by Louise Parsons. A geologist and rock gardener, she looks at all types of soils, soil components and she offers guidelines for handling soils.

The four sections of the book deal with design principles and materials, types of rock gardens, structures and containers, and regional styles and techniques. The book concludes with an overview of ten public rock gardens, from Alaska to Kansas City, where you'll find fine examples of rock gardening. There is an appendix describing ingredients for rock garden soils and an excellent annotated bibliography.

I learned a great deal from this book - for one thing I had no idea there were so many types of rock gardens (who knew you could make a rock garden on a downtown balcony?). The writing is of uniformly high quality and each of the writers shares with the reader not just knowledge and experience but their passion for rock gardening.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, June 29, 2008

By 

DK (Washington DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rock Garden Design and Construction (Hardcover)

It's a shame; the subject is a fabulous hobby and I love what rocks can do for a landscape but this book is not the answer for the person asking "how do I do it?" I honestly don't see who this book is intended for (the beginner? The pro?) and that's ultimately where this book fails (i.e. poorly thought-out "purpose.") My guess is that the U.S. rock garden society aimed to please everyone (including their member-writers) by compiling essays on various subjects (i.e. soils, different types of rocks used for landscaping, and regional factors) from people across various U.S. regions who have some degree of "experience." However, it ends up accomplishing very little because there is mostly very little detail. There are some good color photos that give the reader some visual ideas but many of them look nearly impossible for an amateur to execute. For example, there are some very general tips on how to mix a suitable soil but never any methodical step-by-step instructions with specific sketches how to place rocks and plants. Are we just supposed to know this from their high-level discussion? And what about the plants? Again, some general suggestions but didn't it occur to them to simply put in a detailed chart of plants for sun or shade that work well in the different regions they cover? Obviously, a rock garden in California is going to have much different plants than a shade garden in Maryland. They go into only the most general of suggestions.

The writing style of the essays is quite "arrogant" too. Hardly written in plain English; seems almost like a transcription of some lectures they've given to their local societies; hardly anything that would be useful for an actual class.

There was one good piece of research on the water-carrying characteristics of different soils and soil combinations, to their credit.

Unfortunately, there are not many good "how-to" books on rock gardening to be found. Try to find something else but this one though.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Guide for Making a Alpine Rock Garden, January 8, 2007

By 

Irving Becker "Irv Becker" (Bellevue, WA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rock Garden Design and Construction (Hardcover)

This is the authoritive book on making your own alpine rock garden. I looked all over the web for references for constuction of alpine rock gardens, and this book was the only reference of value I could find. I built my own garden as the General Contractor using about 30 ton of quarried basalt rock. We visited 3 quarries locally, and hired a small landscaping firm to place the rock. The book provided valueable information to the novice on preparing the garden bed, particularly making the "scree", the sandly soil for the garden bed. The final scree formula was obtained from the book, 10 parts pea gravel, 10 parts builder's sand, and 3 parts peat moss. The landscaper mixed the materials with his track hoe in a pile, and followed my instructions from the book on placing the rock. The project turned out great and I had never done this before.