Michael King (3) (1952–)

I really like the naturalistic gardening style that Piet Oudolf has introduced ...or maybe just promoted....(Not sure which). But his use of grasses as a landscaping medium are part and parcel of his semi "wild" gardens. This is probably not his best book and as he is the second author, that may not be his fault. Yes there are some lovely gardens there but there seemed to be a dearth of pictures of grasses within the larger gardens. My impression, anyway, is that most of the pictures are of individual
grass plants or small clumps and I missed the broader sweep that I've seen in his book "Designing with Plants".
Still, there are some great pictures there and the general thrust of the book is fine. I am intrigued by the way they "sculpt" with grasses which are, by their very nature, ephemeral .....constantly changing both colour and shape through the seasons. And find it fascinating how they try to take into account how the grsses will appear in the winter under a coating of frost or snow. (In Sydney we don't have to worry too much about frost or snow).
I think the material on designing gardens would be much improved by having the garden plans in colour...even if it's the approximate colours of the grasses at a particular time of the year. (Anyway, they could repeat for different times of the year because that is one of their main themes: that you need to take into account how the plants appear year round and when they are fully grown etc.) Also, the same diagrams would be hugely improved by giving us some cross sections....also in colour; because this would give us an indication of the 3D impact of the garden ...how it would look from the front with the various tiers of grasses and the contrasting colours etc. At the moment, unless you are steeped in the particular varieties of plants they include in their plans, it's almost impossible to envisage them as they might finally appear ....say in the late autumn. Or early spring. It should be very easy to do and would be a boon to the reader.
It generally seems like quite a practical book ....with suggestions for varieties for different purposes and other plants that mix well with the combinations of grasses suggested.
Overall, I quite enjoyed it and it's easy to read. Happy to give it five stars.… (más)