Customer Reviews

The Well-Placed Weed: The Bountiful Garden of Ryan Gainey

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Many videos and articles have appeared about Georgia gardener, Ryan Gainey; but this book, The Well-Placed Weed, is straight from the gardener's pen. Ryan Gainey mixes ideas, gardening lore, and poetry in his book about his garden in Georgia. The many photographs showcase his brand of gardening as unique and inspiring. He mixes perennials, bulbs, and annuals with shrubs and trees to produce a beautiful romantic garden. His home is as different as his garden and this book also shows us his unique twist on decorating, cooking, and entertaining. This book is a delight--only a visit to his garden and an invitation to lunch could be better!

I love it! With no how-to information this book is pure inspiration, and how! Beautiful photographs capture the exuberant, audacious and bountiful nature of the author's garden and inspire me to more creativity and courage in my own. Sure, it's pretentious. It has every right to be! This is my best cure for the late winter blahs, when it seems like spring will never come.

(One note: p.28 Aesculus pavia is misidentified as A. parviflora - I only add this because I think A. pavia is much underused and want more folks to plant it!)

I remember seeing Ryan Gainey for the first time a few years ago on PBS....I was so captivated by his wonderful eye in the garden, and loved all of his pets following him all over the property while he worked. I'm an avid gardener, with a cottage house and a fairly small garden consisting of 100 roses,200 lilies, a small waterfall and fish pond that my husband and I built. When we start to think of spring and the new ideas for our yard, we always look at this book for details. With so much "Garden Prententia" these days, this is definitely a refreshing change.We also have a group of little pups that assist us as we work in the yard.....the simplest pleasures are the most rewarding, and you'll love re-reading this book, again and again as the seasons change.....