Table of Contents
Getting Started
Why Garden? 8
Enjoying Your Garden 9
Assessing Your Garden 10
Gathering Inspiration 14
Design Techniques 16
Choice of infrastructure 18
Getting It Down on Paper 21
Planning the Work 25
Problems and Opportunities 28
Tools and Materials 31
Marking out the Site 34
Garden Construction
Walls, Fences, Hedges and Gates 40
Patios 43
Decking 47
Terraces and Verandas 50
Porches and Entrances 52
Paths and Steps 54
Lighting 61
Lawns and Edging 64
Borders 66
Pergolas, Arches and Trellises 67
Garden Buildings 70
Choosing the Style 72
Flower Gardens 76
Garden Designs
Traditional Cottage Kitchen Garden 80
Water Garden 82
Modern Mediterranean Garden 84
Formal English Garden 86
Secluded City Garden 88
Japanese Garden 90
Container Garden 92
Wild Gardens 94
Small Patio Garden 97
Balcony and Roof Gardens 99
Driveway Garden 100
Low-Maintenance Garden 101
Rock and Water Garden 102
Herb Garden 103
Food-Producing Garden 104
No-Dig Gardening
Benefits of the No-Dig Method 108
Raised-Bed Options 109
Buildings and Equipment 111
The Perfect Plot 114
Small No-Dig Garden 116
Raised-Bed Construction 118
Growing Medium 123
Manure 124
Bed and Plant Rotation 125
Catch Crops and intercropping 127
Organic Protection 129
Sowing Seeds 131
Potting On and Planting Out 133
Extending the Growing Season 135
Sowing Table 137
Deciding What to Plant
Choosing Plants 140
Designing with Plants 143
Shrubs and Small Trees 145
Small Conifers 149
Hedges and Wall Shrubs 150
Climbing Plants 152
Herbaceous Perennials 154
Bedding Plants 156
Annuals and Biennials 158
Rock-Garden Plants 160
Rock, Alpine and Desert Plants 161
Water Plants 163
Bamboos and Grasses 166
Container Plants 170
Herbs 174
Fruit 177
Vegetables 179
Tips for Growing Vegetables and Fruit
Vegetables 184
Fruit 219
Care and Troubleshooting
Looking after Plants 228
Pests and Diseases 231
Year-Round Calendar 235
Troubleshooting 237
Index 240