Planting Design: Gardens in Time and Space

There are three main factors to consider in Planting Design: aesthetics, horticulture, and symbolism of plants. "Gardeners and garden designers seek inspiration from a variety of sources. Among these, nature is perhaps a relative recent choice, a reflection of changing attitudes toward natural world..." Piet Oudolf and Noel Kingsbury wrote. They continued to cover nature and gardens (use of plants with wild character, nature-inspired planting pattern, use of native species, avoiding formality, biodiversity, etc), ecology and habitat (ecological fit, visual ecology, etc), planting in space, plants on display, the mechanics of planting design, planting in time, and practicalities (soil preparation, plant selection, etc) and maintenance. Planting Design is the most important aspect of landscape education and practice. It is also a subject that is very difficult to teach or to learn. "Planting Design: Gardens in Time and Space" can alleviate this problem. We need people to do research on Planting Design from different angles. Piet Oudolf is an innovative designer, horticulturist and plantsman, and Noel Kingsbury is an advocate of naturalistic planting. "Planting Design: Gardens in Time and Space" is a result of their cooperation. It has 176 pages and many spectacular color interior photos. It is a great attempt with an emphasis on the horticultural aspect of Planting Design. Gang Chen, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, Author of "Planting Design Illustrated," "LEED GA Exam Guide," "Architectural Practice Simplified," and other books on various LEED exams, architecture, and landscape architecture

As an admirer of Noel Kingsbury's prolific work, I was initially put off by this book. In some passages, it reads like a manifesto on a new approach to gardening. On futher reading, however, I have found it stimulating, valuable, and full of hard-to-find information on cutting edge work in ornamental gardening, particularly in Europe. Its emphasis on design of plantings for reduced maintenance in parks and public areas is not at all off point for the home gardener - certainly for this home gardener. I am 61, have only weekends for gardening, weekends often interrupted by other of life's demands, I garden on a difficult site with heavy wet clay and lots of deer. So any gardening approach that holds out a way to have a beautiful, sustainable garden, using plants suited to existing conditions, that I can create and maintain with minimal effort and time is certainly of value. Moreover, Kingsbury introduces me to some exciting names in gardening and to exciting gardens I've not known of: the work of Cassian Schmidt at Hermanshoff in Germany is only one example. This book is a window into a world of planting design and gardening that most of us have no access to (much of the published literature is in German) and Kingsbury brings it to light. I heartily recommend this book. It is a serious book, and gives more and more on successive readings. If your time is limited, you can reread sections that interest you and find more of value each time. I'm not sure what part Piet Oudolf actually played in this book, but he's certainly the preeminent practitioner of this style, and his apparently loose association with Kingsbury should continue. They are doing exciting work, and this book puts their work into a larger context and gives it a theoretical framework.