Recommended
Reading

General Gardening,
Landscaping & Design

The Ann Lovejoy Handbook of Northwest Gardening :
Natural : Sustainable : Organic
Lovejoy, Ann. Sasquatch Books 2003.
--- a really wonderful resource of good gardening practices for the Pacific Northwest.
Many short lists of suggested plants for a variety of situations.

Designer Plant Combinations
Calhoun, Scott. Quadrille Publishing 2008.
--- suggestions to plant pairings you've probably never considered before...
even designers can learn a thing or two!

Foliage: Dramatic and Subtle Leaves for the Garden
Joyce, David. Quadrille Publishing 2001.
--- nice reference for ways to add color and texture to the garden.

Gardening in the Pacific Northwest
Hall, Carol W. & Norman E. Timber Press 2008.
--- good general regional reference.

Landscape Planning:
Practical Techniques for the Home Gardener
Adam, Judith. Firefly Books 2008.
--- Great overall resource with WONDERFUL lists of all sorts.

The Passion for Gardening
Druse, Ken. Clarkson Potter 2003.

Plant-driven Design:
Creating Gardens that Honor Plants, Place and Spirit
Ogden, Scott & Lauren Springer Ogden. Timber Press 2008.
--- wonderful insights into creating gardens that work well with Mother Nature,
the site and the region. Lots of interesting plant lists.

Step By Step Landscaping: Planning, Planting, Building
Better Homes and Gardens. Meredith Corporation, Des Moines, IA 2007.
--- great design ideas for patios and style as well as construction instruction & tips.

Understanding Perennials:
A New Look at an Old Favorite
Cullina, William. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2009.
--- everything you ever wanted to know (and MUCH more) about perennials...
botany, pests, culture, propagation, etc.

 

Composting / Soil / Organic & Sustainable Gardening

Composting: A Practical Step-by-step Guide
Penguin Global 2006.

Let It Rot!: The Gardener's Guide to Composting
Campbell, Stu. Storey Publishing 1998.

Secrets to Great Soil
Stell, Elizabeth P. Storey Publishing 1998.
--- very interesting primer to more natural and self-sustaining gardening.

The Self-sustaining Garden: The guide to Matrix Planting
Thompson, Peter. Timber Press 2007.
--- very interesting primer to more natural and self-sustaining gardening.

The Truth About Organic Gardening:
Benefits, Drawbacks and the Bottom Line
Gillman, Jeff. Timber Press 2008.

 

Food Gardening

The Kitchen Gardener
Titchmarsh, Alan. BBC Books 2008.
--- great resource teaching about veggies/fruits and their cultivation needs, but it's a British book, and some items are named by their British name... which is not the same as it's American name. Some climate information may not match our PNW climate. And I take issue with some of the technical information... most glaringly, the illustration of how deep to plant a woody plant on p. 38. But overall, a pretty good resource for experienced gardeners learning to about edibles. Beautifully photographed.

Edible Wild Plants
Elias, Thomas S. & Peter A. Kykeman. Sterling Publishing 1982.
--- drought-resistant planting through the year.

 

Trees & Shrubs / Pruning

Complete Guide to Trees & Shrubs
Ortho. Ortho 2004.
--- perhaps not as complete as I'd like, but pretty satisfactory for novices.

Dirr’s Hardy Trees and Shrubs: An Illustrated Encyclopedia
Dirr, Michael A. Timber Press 1997.

The Illustrated Practical Encyclopedia of Pruning, Training & Topiary
Bird, Richard. Lorenz Books 2006.
--- very good techniques and examples of fruit trees of all sorts.

The Pruning of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers
Brown, George E. Timber Press 1995.
--- one of the most comprehensive, detailed, and useful book on pruning,
though beginners may find it intimidating.

 

Specialty Gardening Topics

Beth Chatto's Gravel Garden
Chatto, Beth. Francis Lincoln Limited 2000.
--- drought-resistant planting through the year.

Gardening with Hardy Heathers
Small, David & Ella May T. Wulff. Timber Press 2008.
--- good general regional reference.

Hillside Landscaping
White, Hazel. Sunset Books 2007.

The Informed Gardener
Chalker-Scott, Linda. University of Washington Press 2008.
--- this is Chalker-Scott's first book dispelling many gardening myths;
as with most other things the science of horticulture is ever-evolving — read and learn — this is good, current science stuff.

Landscaping with Ornamanetal Grasses
Sunset Books Publishing 2002.
--- ornamental grasses do so much good for a garden; learn how to use them here.

Moss Gardening: Including Lichens, Liverworts & Other Miniatures
Shenk, George. Timber Press 1997.
--- everything about moss... growing, propagating, etc... great beginners reference.

Planthropology:
The Myths, Mysteries, and Miracles of My Garden Favorites
Druse, Ken. Clarkson Potter 2008.
--- I saw this recommended on another gardener's site, and it sounds wonderful.
I love the stories behind things!

Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls
Dunnett, Nigel & Noel Kingsbury. Timber Press 2004.

Right Rose Right Place
Schneider, Peter. Storey Publishing 2004.
--- a great book for (especially) novices. As well as listings of roses, explanation
of the various types of roses, their culture, problems, pruning, etc.

 

Arts & Crafts — garden-related or not

Pebble Mosaics
Schneebeli-Morrell, Deborah & Gloria Nicol. Firefly Books 2002.
--- lots of very creative things you can do with pebbles... instructions for several projects.

 

— Non-gardening Topics —
--- but topics of interest to me because they deal with food,
nutrition, agriculture, ecology, the environment, and/or society.

Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
Diamond, Jared. Flashpoint Press 2004.
--- interesting insights into how societies succeed or fail.

The End of Food
Roberts, Paul. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2008.
--- by the author of the excellent The End of Oil,
this book will scare you about where our food comes from.

Green Metropolis: Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and
Driving Less are Keys to Sustainability
Owen, David. Flashpoint Press 2009.
--- this book dares to suggest that Portland, OR and Boulder, CO
are NOT the greenest cities in the US.

In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
Pollan, Michael. Penguin Press 2008.
--- learn about the connection between the industrialization
of our food supply and the degradation of the environment.

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
Pollan, Michael. Penguin Press 2006.
--- you'll never think about or eat the same after reading this book!

Overshoot: The Ecological Basis of Revolutionary Change
Cattan, William R. University of Illinois Press 2001.
--- this is an older book, but the principle is being more and
more discussed in these contemporary times.

The Paleo Diet: Lose Weight and Get Healthy by
Eating the Food You Were Designed to Eat
Cordain, Loren. Wiley 2001.
--- as the subtitle says... it's about eating the foods
we humans were designed to eat.

The Vegetarian Myth
Keith, Lierre. Flashpoint Press 2009.
--- this book is about the effects of the vegetarianian lifestyle on humans,
agriculture, the ecosystem... and so much more. Very interesting read!