Gardening on Pavement, Tables, and Hard Surfaces is the first book to describe how to grow garden plants directly on hard surfaces such as pavement, rocks, tables, and other impermeable platforms. Plants have known all along that they can grow on these media, and George Schenk translates this small miracle into practical language for gardeners. With just a few inches of soil, gardens can be created almost anywhere. Tabletops can serve as the foundation for small rock gardens; ground covers can grow vigorously on concrete; even bonsai can thrive directly on decorative stone. Using extensive photos, plant lists, and step-by-step instructions, the author shows how every gardener can adopt this charming, vibrant, and beautiful style of planting.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Booklist
Schenk, the author of Moss Gardening (1997) and The Complete Shade Gardener (2002), tells how to grow plants on pavement, rocks, railings, tables, stumps and logs, and stepping stones with just a few inches of soil, framing the resulting raised bed with material solid enough to hold it in place. This also can be achieved by planting low ground covers in the seams of soil between paving blocks of a terrace or patio, by planting low-growing plants along a walkway of paving stones, and by planting grass or ground covers in the open grids of preformed concrete gridwork. Schenk gives instructions on the shape of the beds and on the right kinds and depth of soil. He also provides advice on watering, weeding, pruning, dead-heading, and fertilizing, and lists hundreds of the best plants to use, providing data on their size and growth rate. Complementing the informative text are 109 color photographs. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
Schenk speaks directly and enthusiastically to the reader with the familiarity of an old gardening friend. Once you've discovered his approach, you may never look at gardening the same way again. -- Lynette Walther "Camden Herald" (06/15/2006)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An unusual "take" on gardening,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Gardening on Pavement, Tables, and Platforms (Hardcover)
This is an extremely interesting "take" on gardening. It had never occurred to me to plant directly on pavement, but this book convinced me I should try it. I did, and with spectacular results. I now have flowers growing in the middle of my driveway in a strip of dirt that's about 10' x 2' x 4-8" high. It looks much more natural than a traditional raised bed, and, amazingly, the dirt has stayed put without benefit of artificial barriers, just a few judiciously placed rocks. I also now have flowers growing out of a rotting stump. This book opened to me a whole new world of possibilities.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gardening on Pavement, Tables, and Hard Surfaces,
By Nana Livingston (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Gardening on Pavement, Tables, and Hard Surfaces (Paperback)
Inspirational and unusal book showing ways to maximize the beauty of areas that might otherwise remain a blight on the landscape. Covering pavement, enhancing stumps, and dressing up rocks are all possible with the guidance of this clever gardener whose writing is also excellent. I've purchased extras to give as gifts and gave one to my landscaper who has tirelessly and artfully moved rocks all over my new North Carolina landscape to great effect! You will love this book if you love to do unusual things in your garden!
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Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
Platform gardens of all kinds and sizes-from the bed of plants on pavement at ground level, to the tabletop landscape, to the stroll garden on the paved roof of a high-rise-are alike in being supported on hard surfaces that are usually impervious to roots and to water. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
pavement gardening, pavement bed, table gardening, tabletop landscape, fern table, blue star creeper, parking pad, retaining material, edging plant, filtered shade, nest ferns, sweet woodruff, part shade, garden friends Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New Zealand, Pacific Northwest, United States, Bridge of Flowers, Samar Island, Barry's Isle, Cascade Mountains, South American, Shelburne Falls, Yukon Gold New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Platform gardens of all kinds and sizes-from the bed of plants on pavement at ground level, to the tabletop landscape, to the stroll garden on the paved roof of a high-rise-are alike in being supported on hard surfaces that are usually impervious to roots and to water. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
pavement gardening, pavement bed, table gardening, tabletop landscape, fern table, blue star creeper, parking pad, retaining material, edging plant, filtered shade, nest ferns, sweet woodruff, part shade, garden friends Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New Zealand, Pacific Northwest, United States, Bridge of Flowers, Samar Island, Barry's Isle, Cascade Mountains, South American, Shelburne Falls, Yukon Gold New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 2
books:
- Water Features for Small Gardens: From Concept to Construction by Keith Davitt in Back Flap
- The Complete Shade Gardener by George Schenk in Back Flap
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