United States
£ GBP
With decades of experience as a nurseryman and designer, the author details all the practicalities of site preparation, plant selection and maintenance; particularly valuable are his explanations of how ornamental grasses perform in different climates and areas. The purpose of the book is to create a new model for gardeners and an alternative to the traditional lawn.
John Greenlee has been creating grass ecologies in gardens of all sizes all over the United States and Canada since 1984. He owns Greenlee Nursery, the oldest grass nursery in California. He has appeared frequently on television and was named horticulturist of the year in 2002 by the Southern California Association of Horticulturists. His previous book is The Encyclopedia of Ornamental Grasses (Rodale 1992). He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in ornamental horticulture from Cal Poly, Pomona, California. Saxon Holt is widely recognized as one of the top photographers in the world of garden photography. His images are in demand from publishers worldwide and he has worked for magazines as diverse as Pacific Horticulture and Architectural Digest. Over the past 20 years Saxon has won awards for his magazine work, calendars, books and his portfolio, including four awards from the Garden Writers of America. Books are his main interest as they provide an opportunity to explore subjects in depth. His book The American Meadow Garden with John Greenlee looks at a changing aesthetic in gardening that is more sustainable and naturalistic. With an understanding of the power of the media to define our gardening style, Saxon seeks to use photography to change the aesthetic of what we expect to see in a garden photograph.
In a book long awaited by green mavens and horticultural enthusiasts, Greenlee's dynamic garden designs are paired with Holt's splendid photographs in a beautifully produced, information-packed volume that looks at meadows in the context of garden spaces large or small. -- Alice Joyce Booklist 20091001 John Greenlee's opening lines ... open up the imagination to the practical and eye-pleasing alternatives to a monochromatic (and water-hogging) sea of turf. -- Debra Prinzing Flower Magazine 20091001 Full of inspiring ideas, Greenlee explores how to combine a spectacular variety of grasses with other plants to make the most of their natural forms, fragrance, leaf, and bloom. -- Valerie Easton Seattle Times 20001231 Here is an entirely new approach to garden-making. It's enticing and informative, and it's presented with polish and pizazz. -- Bob Hornback Pacific Horticulture 20001001 This is the rare species of garden book with a continental-wide scope from a West Coast point of view. -- Joe Eaton and Ron Sullivan San Francisco Chronicle 20091021 Although Greenlee believes every yard should be a meadow, he's also practical. Do the research. The result: less money spent on irrigation and chemicals, and more birds and butterflies in the garden. Not to mention the beauty of the natural meadow. -- Suzanne Sproul San Bernadino County Sun 20091010 If you've ever thought of abandoning your lawn but haven't yet, The American Meadow Garden will surely inspire you to action. ... Take a long look at your lawn mower, and then go buy this book. -- Rick Darke American Gardener 20091101 Are you bold enough to try your hand at a meadow garden? The time for bringing back nature is now! -- George Graine Virginia Master Gardeners Association Report 20091101 After you read this book, you'll wonder why you ever entertained the idea of a lawn. -- Jane Berger Garden Design Online 20091108 Finally, John Greenlee - who is part of America's trinity of Gramineous Gods - has mapped out his lifetime of experience creating successful meadows. I highly recommend this treasure trove of a book. -- Panayoti Kelaidis Denver Botanic Gardens blog 20091108 The meadow garden undoubtedly represents a different aesthetic in landscape design. ... Greenlee's book is a very good place to begin. -- Tom Karwin Monterey County Herald 20091107 You'll be rethinking labor-and-resource-intensive lawns after a couple of minutes with The American Meadow Garden. -- Kym Pokorny Oregonian 20091117 As you turn the pages you will start to imagine that you are sprawled out in the meadow of your dreams, the grasses swooshing over your head. ... It's not every book that lifts you from your reading nook and opens wide the vista of the heavens. -- Barbara Mahany Chicago Tribune 20091122 It's one thing to hear about the ecological benefits of replacing lawns with meadows. It's another thing to see it done effectively. -- Megan Sexton Columbia (SC) State 20091122 This is not a book about how to create the purist's wildflower meadow, but breaks new ground in showing how garden plants can be used to create a meadow-like environment. Saxon Holt's photography is beautiful, and Greenlee's prose the right blend of informative and occasionally provocative. -- Matthew Wilson Gardens Illustrated 20091201 Lays out a vision for the American yard that is so clearly superior that it will become the new standard. Read this book and find out how your neighborhood will look in about 10 years. -- Doug Bergstrom Wenatchee World 20091130 The gold standard when it comes to meadow gardening. ... I've read endless articles on meadow gardening, and none have given me the depth of information that made me feel confident that this would not be a maintenance nightmare. -- Nancy Szerlag Detroit News 20091211 An exquisitely beautiful book on non-lawns. ... A winner. -- Amy Stewart North Coast Journal 20091203 A paean to grassy, no-mow landscapes that shiver, shimmer and wave. ... Greenlee's easy prose welcomes all comers to aim higher than slabs of pool-table green. -- Ketzel Levine NPR.org 20091217 Photos of gorgeous meadows replete with tall grasses, butterflies and blooming wildflowers take a big step in convincing gardeners that their two-dimensional patch of lawn has become passe. -- Susan Smith-Durisek Lexington Herald-Leader 20091216 This revolutionary book of glorious meadows in harmony with nature will inspire you to begin your own lawn transformation. -- Jeanne Santangelo Novato Advance 20091216 John Greenlee knows his meadows like Babe Ruth knew baseball. -- Charles Poling Su Casa 20090101
