How to be a Gardener: Book One: Back to Basics

Publisher and industry reviews

Jacket review

'I want you to get a feel for gardening...to use all your senses - touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing - to make you a good gardener.' Alan Titchmarsh

UK Kirkus review

This book accompanies the BBC TV series of the same name and provides an interesting and informative guide for the novice and more experienced gardener alike. Like Delia Smith's How to Cook, the book takes its readers back to basics, assuming no knowledge whatever, and yet Titchmarsh, with his trademark down-to-earth and chatty style, is never patronising. His infectious enthusiasm will inspire those who have never before wielded a spade, while his relaxed authority, born out of years of experience and many books on the subject, makes this a reliable reference work for those with rather greener fingers but still needing pointers and reminders. The book is well laid-out with an interesting and helpful first section dealing with the basics of gardening: its history and science and suggestions for getting started and choosing equipment. There then follow chapters on planning and planting, routine maintenance and lawns. The emphasis is always on the practical with a useful seasonal checklist of things to be done and a series of step-by-step 'How to' guides, covering areas such as digging, pruning, making compost and creating a lawn, each illustrated with photographs showing the various stages of the process. The book also contains chapters on the vital subjects of weeds and pests. Concise descriptions and clear photographs identify these garden enemies, demonstrate the damage they do and suggest ways of dealing with them. Titchmarsh is encouraging rather than prescriptive; he recognizes that in the modern world we do not all have unlimited time and shows how it is possible to manage and enjoy a garden with just a couple of hours to spare at the weekend. While he favours organic methods where at all possible, he does not make us feel guilty if throwing down some weedkiller seems like the only practical option. With its accessible style and beautiful photography this book is both a pleasure to read and an invaluable reference work and leaves the reader in eager anticipation of Book Two. (Kirkus UK)

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