6 of the best gardening books for Christmas
If gardening has kept you going this year and you’re wanting more ideas and inspiration, put some gardening books on your Christmas wish list.
Whether you want to nurture your houseplants, start a new vegetable patch or find some inspiring ideas for 2021, there are plenty of books out there to give you a head start this Christmas.
From tomes by well-known TV gardeners Monty Don and Frances Tophill, to wildlife guides, horticultural manuals and houseplant companions, there’s a book for every green-fingered enthusiast.
Here are just some of the offerings to consider…
1. For succulent success: Succulents And All Things Under Glass by Isabelle Palmer on Amazon £7.99
If you’ve followed the succulent trend and are now amassing quite a collection, this may be the book for you. Written by renowned city garden designer Isabelle Palmer, it features more than 25 ideas on how to create stylish indoor gardens using succulents and terrariums, including quirkier ideas on how to display your succulents in wine and brandy glasses. Perfect for a Christmas host who loves showing off their creative side with plants.
2. For the whole picture: RHS Complete Gardener’s Manual on Amazon £16.96
For the gardener who just wants a one-stop shop for all things horticultural. From planning your planting to pruning, propagation and problem-solving, this one’s a great reference guide for both beginners and experienced gardeners, and will save you a lot of time trawling the internet trying to pinpoint the advice you need.
3. To create karma in your life: Plant Therapy by Dr Katie Cooper Amazon £13.99
There’s plenty of evidence that being surrounded by nature is good for our health, but now psychologist and plant enthusiast Dr Katie Cooper has written this book, which shows how indoor plants have the potential to be used as a profound therapeutic tool. She explores how we can readjust the balance in our lives through living with plants, and showcases plants that can help us to reduce stress and improve our mental health. Ideal for when Christmas is over and we need a bit of calm.
4. For wildlife lovers: Rewild Your Garden by Frances Tophill on Amazon
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Yes, we all want to encourage wildlife into our gardens – birds, bees and other pollinating insects – but how can we do it? Here, Gardeners’ World presenter Frances Tophill makes it easy, with this practical, well-illustrated guide that’ll be a must for gardeners who want to do their bit to protect wildlife and help create a sustainable future.
5. For dream garden inspiration: Sissinghurst: The Dream Garden by Tim Richardson on Amazon £21.22
This beautiful coffee table tome is one for those who aspire to recreate even a little bit of Vita Sackville-West’s legacy in their own garden, or just to understand how Sissinghurst, in Kent, one of the most visited gardens in Britain, evokes a mood of romantic abandon. It features glorious pictures of the rich tapestry of colours in the many borders at different times of year, the rose garden, the white garden, the spring garden and lime walk, and other outstanding areas of design, along with descriptions of the plantings. Informative and inspirational – a perfect Christmas gift.
6. For those looking to connect with the outdoors: My Garden World by Monty Don on Amazon £12.00
I am delighted – and proud – to say that ‘My Garden World’ enters its 6th week in the Sunday Times Bestseller list. Thanks to all who have already bought it and to those of you who are yet to do so – it is waiting for you on Amazon
— Monty Don (@TheMontyDon) October 30, 2020
The Gardeners’ World favourite reminisces and muses on his connection with wildlife at both his garden at Longmeadow, his home in Herefordshire, and his farm in Wales. He describes in detail the birds he sees, the wild flowers that enchant him and other wildlife he encounters; the sparrowhawks, the frogs, beetles and ladybirds, all part of his rich experience. It’s both informative and personal, and there won’t be a dry eye in the house when you read the chapter about his beloved golden retriever Nigel, a regular on Gardeners’ World, who died in May.
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