The book of garden design

A practical manual for designing and arranging gardens, presenting general principles—comfort, convenience, and simplicity—alongside site selection, paths and lawns, formal versus naturalistic planting, kitchen-garden and orchard layout, water features, hardy herbaceous perennials, alpine, aquatic and bog plants, flowering trees and shrubs, and climbers. The author emphasizes learning from nature and personal gardening experience, warns against slavish use of stock plans, and advises tailoring designs to soil, aspect, shelter, and existing timber. Illustrations and plant lists support guidance on grouping, borders, terraces, walks, and maintenance, with cautions against undue complexity, excessive formality, and overuse of evergreens.