Water Features for Small Gardens: Creating Compact Gardens

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Capturing in a garden context water's elusive reflective and invigorating properties, Greenoak (Glorious Gardens) offers ideas to rouse the thirst of the most soil-bound of gardeners. Extensively illustrated with color photos, six chapters spotlight distinctive types of water gardens from the simplicity of a subtle bowl to a landscape-dominating canal. The book opens a mini-encyclopedia of well-designed backyard and entry-way possibilities: a whimsical sculpture of a swimmer spouts water from one wine barrel into another; a dripping fountain heightens the intricate geologic patterns in a bed of stones; a naturalistic pond attracts wildlife. Informative photo captions alert the reader's eye to design elements as well as identify plants. Four-color drawings illustrate steps of construction and maintenance (pond filling, pump cleaning, plant pruning and hygiene) of elementary ponds and pools. Profiles of common species of aquatic and waterside plants useful in the U. S. are also provided. Garden Book Club selection. (July)

George Cohen

Greenoak offers ideas and instructions on creating pebble-filled pools, formal ponds, and splash and wall-mounted fountains, suggesting what type of plants would go well with each project. Some plans are easy to follow if the gardener is handy; more elaborate projects require professional help. Six "case histories" of water gardens describe the owners' original intentions and show how each can be adapted to one's own garden. The author also provides a chapter on care and maintenance throughout the year.