For some, gardening is a mysterious activity involving muck, unfathomable know-how and physical labor. To others, it is a gateway to creativity, well-being and magic. Julia Atkinson-Dunn knows what it is to stand on both sides of this fence and has channeled her discovery of gardening into a book to aid and inspire others in their own.
A Guided Discovery of Gardening is a comprehensive partner in creating a garden, arranged to sweep beginner and progressing gardeners through informative basics to fascinating insights laid bare through Julia's casual, friendly and often personal writing. From introductions to plant types and taking cuttings to valuable tips for home buyers and the curation of seasonally responsive planting. Particularly relevant to temperate regions around the world including the US and Canada, rich doses of handy knowledge are intermingled with reflective essays and visual visits to some of her favourite New Zealand gardens, as well as her own.
"Treat this book as your trusted friend. A place you can return to time and again for positive reinforcement as you embark on your own journey of discovering the beautiful rewards found in creating a garden, just as I have." Julia Atkinson-Dunn
TABLE OF CONTENTS
8 My discovery of gardening
Section one - Beginner guides
14 Intro
20 Plant types
26 Garden equipment
34 Botanical plant names
42 Pollination
48 a visit to: Flaxmere garden
58 Collecting from seed
62 Growing from seed
70 Restocking your garden beds
76 Garden centre shopping
80 Putting your garden to bed
88 Structure in the garden
96 Watering in dry spells
Section two - Tips & tricks
102 Intro
108 Starting a garden
116 Valuable advice for your first home
122 Mistakes I made as a new gardener
128 A visit to: No. 11
138 Gardening tips from the wise
142 Garden visits
146 Finding your community
150 Photographing your garden
102 Tips & tricks
Section three - Planting
160 Intro
166 Climate-resilient gardening
174 The New Perennial Movement
180 A visit to: Fisherman's Bay
192 Cut and come again
196 Trees and your garden
202 Privacy and fences
206 food or flowers?
214 Mix up your flower shapes
222 Umbellifers
230 Eager seeders
238 Part-shade plants
246 a visit to: the blue house
258 Bedding plants
266 Bold-bloomed perennials
272 Hardy annuals
280 Flowers and fragrance
284 Knowing your narcissi
290 Blossom
Section four - The enchanting garden
296 Intro
302 Your garden, your way
308 houseplants
312 Garden friends
318 Tuning into the seasons
324 A visit to: Gilroy Nurseries
336 the promise of buds
342 The language of plants
346 The sentimental garden
352 My garden forgives me
356 The garden is a refuge
360 A visit to: My garden
378 Index
380 Thank you
"Julia is a talented writer, clever with a camera, and her flower arrangements have a simple spontaneity which are easy to follow. The plants she has chosen to be in this book create an ethereal airiness in gardens. Julia's little tips on growing from seed will be treasured by all who are interested in beginning a new garden or revamping an older one, at whatever stage in life. The summaries on each of her 12 favourite plants show a deep and natural understanding of the plant world." --Penny Zino, Flaxmere Garden (NZGT 6-star Garden of International Significance) on Petal Power
"It's a book of two halves, beginning with a good digestible advice on types of plants, tools you'll need, plant care and design principles. But it's mostly given over to celebrating her 12 favourite plants which are largely whimsical such as cosmos, sweet peas and snapdragons. It has lovely photographs and rounds out with a guide to picking and arranging, and has recommendations for other resources. " --NZ House and Garden on Petal Power
On moving into the house of her dreams in her mid-30s, designer, artist and writer Julia Atkinson-Dunn stared wide-eyed at the clean slate of her boring backyard with a bubbling excitement that felt foreign. Her passion for beautiful spaces had only ever been held for interiors, or so she thought. Over six years she clawed forward with dirt under her nails and a toppling pile of gardening books by her bed, pursuing a vision that simply seemed to reveal itself as she went. The flower beds ebbed, flowed and expanded with her experimentation, buoyed by her new gardening friends and backstopped by her constantly gathered experience. Julia lives with her husband in Christchurch, New Zealand from where she has authored and photographed Petal Power and Flowers for Friends, maintaining an ongoing conversation with her fellow keen gardeners via her Instagram, newsletter and column. She works closely with the garden community as a speaker and host at festivals and events, advocating the magic of gardening to her peers. Her garden has opened further doors aiding her art practice concentrated on mixed media botanical still lifes and painted landscapes.
Koa Press
Pub Date: February 6, 2024
1.6" H x 9.1" L x 6.9" W
384 Pages
Paperback