Native Texas Gardens: Maximum Beauty, Minimum Upkeep

I love this book. I use it with books like the Wasowski's "Native Texas Plants" to better visualize how these plants actually look in the landscape. They feature private and commercial gardens in different regions of Texas, and show photos in different seasons. Great for planning.

My husband and I are both native plant lovers. Having been raised in this environment, my daughter has taken up the same love. At her son's school they are trying to have all the gardens planted with native plants. Since her father has a degree in Landscape Architecture, she has depended upon him for advice. We bought this book for her for Christmas and she has enjoyed it and takes delight in using it to show what native plants are best for the school.

This book shows several different Texas landscapes using natives. There are no detailed planting diagrams, but there are Loads of very high quality beautiful pictures of the landscapes showcased. The photos are so nice, that they have really inspired me! There is a written description of each example landscape and the story behind it. The descriptions under the photos point out the different plants used. Bottom line: I love this book! Now you know what to expect from this book. I am glad I have it, I like to go back and browse through it every so often.

For one who loves books they visit libraries and book stores to just smell the paper. Well that works for lovers of gardens also. This book contains picture of beautiful and practical gardens. I have to admit I bought it for pictures of my favorite garden that people come from neighboring states to see. That is Weston Gardens (designed by Randy Weston). Ninety percent of my plants and ideas come form walking through Weston gardens. Many of the other gardens also have practical ideas for Texas gardens.

An eye-opening look at what can be done with natives. This book probably couldn't have been done ten years ago, but clearly the native plant movement is alive and well and growing by leaps and bounds. Common sense gardening. A must for any Texas homeowner.