It’s spring! And that means the gardens are calling. Whether you are garden obsessed like us, or want to try your hand at gardening for the first time, there is something for everyone on this book list. 

Floret Farm’s Cut Flower Garden by Erin Benzakein and Julie Chai

The Cut Flower Garden: Erin Benzakein is a florist farmer, leader in the locaflor farm to centerpiece movement, and owner of internationally renowned Floret Flower Farm in Washington’s lush Skagit Valley.

A stunning flower book: This beautiful gardening book and guide to growing, harvesting, and arranging gorgeous blooms year round provides readers with vital tools to nurture a stunning flower garden and use their blossoms and cut flowers to create show stopping arrangements. It makes a beautiful gift for any occasion, for friends, loved ones and gardening lovers alike!

Floret Farm’s Cut Flower Garden:Cut Flower Garden is equal parts instruction and inspiration—a flower gardening book overflowing with lush photography of magnificent flowers and breathtaking arrangements organized by season. Find inspiration in this lush flower book:

  • Irresistible photos of Erin’s flower farm that showcase exquisite blooms
  • Tips for growing in a variety of spaces and climates
  • Step by step instructions for lavish garlands, airy centerpieces, and romantic florist design and décor for every season

The Complete Gardener: A Practical, Imaginative Guide to Every Aspect of Gardening by Monty Don 

This extensively revised new edition of his Complete Gardener, first published in 2003, brings you right up-to-date on how Monty gardens today – and his recommendations for you. 

The most comprehensive, practical, and highly illustrated book Monty has ever written, it covers what he believes are the most important aspects of gardening. Organic techniques have always been at the core of his practice, but this new edition picks up on another key principle: the need to provide habitats in your garden for local wildlife.

Over half of the photographs in this new edition will be new, taken over a year in his Long Meadow garden, and he is going through the text with a fine-tooth comb to ensure everything he says reflects his latest approach.

Gardening for Everyone: Growing Vegetables, Herbs and More at Home by Julia Watkins 

Growing food in your backyard (or even on a porch or windowsill!) is one of the simplest and most rewarding ways to nourish yourself, be self-sufficient, and connect with nature in a hands-on way. Here sustainability expert Julia Watkins shares everything you need to know to grow your own vegetables, fruits, and herbs (as well as wildflowers and other beneficial companion plants). The book covers all the nuts and bolts of creating and caring for your garden—planning, building, planting, tending, and harvesting—followed by a deeper dive into the plants themselves: demystifying annuals vs. perennials, cold-weather vs. warm-weather veggies, and profiles of favorite crops. Throughout, Julia offers tips for creating an eco-friendly and sustainable garden (such as vermicomposting, no-till “lasagna” gardening, and attracting pollinators), plus some fun and unexpected hands-on projects like how to build a bean teepee, make wildflower seed paper, and enjoy refreshing herbal lemonade ice pops.

Grow and Gather:  A gardener’s guide to a year of cut flowers by Grace Alexander

You don’t need a flower field in the countryside to grow cut flowers, arrange beautiful floral displays or connect with nature.

A simple patch of earth is plenty. In Grow and Gather, you’ll follow the annual cycle of growing cut flowers, from sowing in spring to seed-collecting in autumn.

Simple projects show you how to plant and nurture various flowers, as well as demonstrating the importance of texture, color and shape when arranging them.

Together with these practical projects, tips and hints, flower field gardener and clinical psychologist Grace Alexander guides you in the art of meaningful, engaged and intentional gardening – through mindful growing, you can transform your wellbeing and find a greater connection to your garden and yourself. 

Modern Container Gardening by Isabelle Palmer

Whether you have a roof terrace, a tiny balcony or just a window sill, there’s no excuse not to do some gardening. In Modern Container Gardening, Isabelle Palmer shows just how easy it is to get started in the garden – and how to make the most of every little space. Modern Container Gardening is the perfect book for novice gardeners who are looking to make the most of the space that that they have. The chapters include the basics, how to make a garden in a day, one-pot wonders, window boxes and finishing touches. It contains a mix of small gardens, singular containers and window boxes, all of which are stylish and easy to manage.   This is an accessible book for anyone looking to start gardening.

How to Read a Tree by Tristan Gooley

Trees are keen to tell us so much. They’ll tell us about the land, the water, the people, the animals, the weather, and time. And they will tell us about their lives, the good bits and bad. Trees tell a story, but only to those who know how to read it.

In How to Read a Tree, Gooley uncovers the clues hiding in plain sight: in a tree’s branches and leaves; its bark, buds, and flowers; even its stump. Leaves with a pale, central streak mean that water is nearby. Young, low-growing branches show that a tree is struggling. And reddish or purple bark signals new growth.

Like snowflakes, no two trees are exactly the same. Every difference reveals the epic story this tree has lived-if we stop to look closely.

Grow: Fill Your World with Plants by Robyn Booth

Discover the joy of growing and using plants indoors and outdoors, no matter how limited your space.

This beautifully illustrated book is a modern, fresh take on gardening that shows how anyone can grow their own vegetables, create a mini wildflower meadow or learn how to make the most of their houseplants. And you don’t need your own garden to get started. Creating a thriving window box, choosing suitable plant pots for a desktop oasis or joining a local community garden are perfect ways to experience the joys of gardening.

Learn which plants will encourage wildlife, discover what works best for your space (no matter how small), find inspiration, experiment with colour, texture and techniques. Whatever you choose to grow, you’ll be doing one of the best activities there is to enhance your sense of well-being and improve your physical health – so grab those seeds, pick up the watering can and get growing!

The Seven-Step Homestead: A Guide for Creating the Backyard Microfarm of Your Dreams by Leah M. Webb

Today’s gardeners want a bit of everything—vegetables, fruit, medicinal herbs, flowers for pollinators, and even chickens for eggs. The dream is to build a diverse landscape that serves multiple functions, but achieving that goal can be intimidating and overwhelming. Homesteader Leah M. Webb shares her strategy for implementing a homestead plan in seven stages by starting small and gradually adding more features each year. 

The Seven-Step Homestead takes readers through the process with a series of doable steps, beginning with establishing one or two raised beds of the easiest vegetables to grow, and gradually building up to the addition of fruit trees and berry bushes on hugelkulture mounds, a coop full of chickens, and a winter’s worth of storage crops. Step-by-step photos from the author’s own homestead, accompanied by her hard-earned advice and instruction, make this a one-of-a-kind guide for anyone who aspires to grow more of their own food.

How to Garden When You Rent by Matthew Pottage

Your outdoor space does not need to look dull when you are renting your home. You can still brighten it up with a tailored gardening guide designed especially for your gardening needs. 

Find some gardening inspiration! This simple, easy-to-follow gardening book will help you achieve an impressive garden. Inside, you’ll find:

  • Three central chapters focus on different rental lease lengths, each showcasing key plant types.
  • Gallery of inspirational ideas for front and back gardens, balconies and patios, and any other available outdoor spaces the reader can plant up and enjoy.
  • Essential planning chapter to encourage readers to identify what they can achieve in their rental garden, how much time they have to make it happen, and how much money they want to spend.
  • “Working with the Seasons” guide to help readers identify what they can do as soon as they move in, depending on the season they start their lease.
  • Maintenance chapter showing renters how to keep their garden in good shape (including weeding, cleaning and pruning know-how), so that they can enjoy the garden they now have and feel confident that they can get their deposit back when they leave.

Your garden will look beautiful and cared for, and your landlord will be impressed with how healthy and lush your plants look! This must-have gardening reference book is packed with plenty of tips, tricks, and techniques for good gardening maintenance. 

Creating a magnificent garden oasis is achievable and cost-effective with this book about gardening. Discover ways of turning even the most unloved balcony, yard, or urban garden into a lush, welcoming space that you, your roommates and your friends can enjoy for as long as you choose to live there.

The Plant Rescuer by Sarah Gerrard-Jones

Whether you have just one or many houseplants, this is the book they need you to read. It is a clear and practical toolkit on all aspects of plant care from how to choose a plant to tips for everyday care. Changes in your plant’s appearance are often a cry for help and this book will help you understand their needs. Learn how to help your plants not only survive but thrive.

Sarah, also known as @theplantrescuer, is a self-taught houseplant obsessive who firmly believes every plant deserves a happy life. Her determination to see beyond the ‘perfect plant’ and to rescue unloved plants makes her the go-to guide.