The Looking-glass Garden: Plants and Gardens of the Southern Hemisphere Book + PRICE WATCH * Amazon pricing is not included in price watch

The Looking-glass Garden: Plants and Gardens of the Southern Hemisphere Book

The Looking Glass Garden is an ambitious book; author Peter Thompson hopes to change the way westerners imagine a well-designed landscape. According to Thompson, for too long the English style has dominated in America and western Europe, resulting in a uniformity that edges out possibility and strangeness. The prevalence of gardening with "native plants" has also limited creativity: Thompson argues that as long as plants are well situated and well cared for, they can come from anywhere in the world. The book's title refers to the moment when Alice moved through the looking glass into Wonderland. In this context Wonderland flourishes in the gardens of New Zealand, Australia, Chile, and South Africa. Chapters concentrate on specific southern hemisphere design elements and distinctive plants--"Oases with Trees," "Tropical Drama"--and are accompanied by enticing photographs. Thompson writes like a man on a mission: "This book tells of the challenge from south of the equator to these entrenched and long-accepted ideas," he explains. Once the challenge is accepted, "we will look back and recognize ... the start of another revolution." --Emily White Read More

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  • Book Description

    Seeking to dispel the myth that these exotic, often dramatically beautiful plants are unreasonably difficult to grow, an English botanist and nurseryman discusses the role Southern Hemisphere plants can play in gardens, with examples from the sometimes frosty Pacific Northwestern US to the sunny Mediterranean, as well as an amazing group of Southern Hemisphere gardens. Includes maps, detailed hardiness lists, and an excellent bibliography. Genuinely inspiring, if sometimes small and fuzzy, color photographs. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

  • Product Description

    Just as Alice's looking glass revealed a world where nothing was as expected, Peter Thompson's "looking-glass garden" offers readers a glimpse of a world of new plants and possibilities by crossing the equator. Colors are brighter, shapes more exotic, and names unfamiliar -- banksias, corokias, and podocarps, to name just a few. Although the floras of countries as diverse as South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Chile bear striking differences from each other, the plants are surprisingly complementary. They offer adventurous gardeners a series of palettes, forms, textures, and effects that have no parallel in the familiar, comfortable garden offerings of the north.

    A thorough overview of this vast array of plants would take many volumes, and the author quite sensibly focuses directly on the role these dramatic plants can play in gardens, north and south. He emphasizes garden situations and garden categories, and seeks to dispel the notion that these "foreign" plants are unreasonably difficult. Indeed, he explains that gardeners in difficult situations may bless these remarkable plants, which often thrive despite drought, low soil fertility, and high temperatures. Where possible, Thompson offers advice on using such plants in cooler areas, and he provides case studies and hardiness information for practical use. Above all, he seeks to extend every gardener's range of plants and make us all think differently about how we place and use plants.

    Part inspiration, part travelogue, and part practical gardening guide, this innovative book is certain to turn orthodox views of the garden upside down.

    150 color photos, 7 maps, 6 x 9"

  • 0881924997
  • 9780881924992
  • Peter Dr. Thompson
  • 12 April 2001
  • Timber Press
  • Hardcover (Book)
  • 428
  • illustrated edition
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