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Coastal Gardening Books

Some suggested reading for you......

Note: Click on the Highlighted Links to find out more on each title and purchasing information

Seaside Gardening: Revised and Explained

by Theodore James and Harry Haralambou


This new, updated edition shows astonishingly beautiful spaces in a range of shoreline settings, including ocean dunes, rocky coasts, and wetlands. In addition to including 65 new photographs, this edition features a completely revamped and expanded Plant Encyclopaedic, with a new section on tropical plants and tender perennials. The book's lush photographs of seaside oases offer gardeners ideas for using colour, fashioning landscapes, creating patio and deck garden; and constructing ponds, paths and trellises. And a Practical Guide, comprising up-to-date information about sandy soil, salt water, deer, and other seaside predicaments, makes this a complete resource for anyone who gardens in this demanding environment.

 

 

 

Coastal Gardening 

by Julian Slatcher

This book explains the techniques and introduces the plants that will help you to make the most of your coastal garden. The author takes you through the processes of designing, building and maintaining a garden by the sea.

Subjects included in the book :The Living Windbreak, Use of Colour in the Garden, Laying Patios and Paths, Positioning of Plants, a Garden Calendar and advice on over 150 plants that thrive in Coastal Gardens.

Gardening on the Edge: Drawing on the Cornwall Experience (Hardcover)

by Phillip McMillan Browse (Author)

full of exciting new suggestions for the adventurous gardener-well illustrated with photographs -some a little grainy being from native habitat locations-but still marvellously evocative and inspiring-makes most garden books look distinctly light weight-a marvellous book...a must for any aspiring plantsperson. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  The Seaside Gardener

 by Richard Mortimer

 

A comprehensive guide for those who have to contend with wind and drought on sandy soil. It contains invaluable advice for the beginner as well as providing more than 750 plant descriptions which is excellent source material for the experienced coastal gardener, as well as for the Garden Planner.

 

 

   Gardens by the Sea

by Barbara Segall (Author), Jerry Harper (Photographer) "The garden at Lamorran House in southwest Cornwall overlooks the sheltered Fal estuary ..."

This book highlights 21 of the world's most inspiring coastal gardens - among them a clifftop garden in Devon, a garden in California that appears to dissolve into the sea; blazes of colour on the shores of New Zealand, islands off the coast of Massachusetts and elegant terraces with stunning views over the Meditteranean sea.

The author profiles 150 plants that thrive in coastal gardens and explains the techniques for dealing with drought, sun, wind and salt, shingle and sandy soil, and much more.

 

 

 

 

  Derek Jarman's Garden


by Derek Jarman (Author), Howard Sooley (Photographer)
Derek Jarman created his own garden in the flat, bleak expanse of shingle that faces the nuclear power station in Dungeness, Kent. A passionate gardener from childhood, he combined his painter's eye, his horticultural expertise and his ecological convictions to produce a landscape which mixed the flint, shells and driftwood of Dungeness; sculptures made from stones; the area's indigenous plants; and shrubs and flowers introduced by Jarman himself. This book, the last he ever wrote, is his own record of how this garden evolved, from its beginnings in 1985 to the day of his death in 1994.
 
 
Seascape Gardening by Anne Halpin
 
Gardening by the sea is unlike any other gardening experience in the world. The gentle, misty light, moderate climate, and natural beauty of the coast only make seaside gardens more beautiful. Add to that the pleasant memories of summers spent by the sea as a child, and the allure is irresistible for most any gardener or ocean-lover. But aside from the scenic landscape and romantic setting are serious challenges to be overcome. The Coast is known for its extreme weather - storms blow in during the winter with gale-force winds, spraying sand and salt on every plant in their path. Even during the summer, high winds, fierce sun, and periods of drought challenge the toughest plants. Seaside gardens must be able to tolerate the elements and still look good. Author Anne Halpin is a renowned garden designer and writer. She navigates the rocky shores and sandy dunes, showing readers how to plant and care for seaside gardens that work with the elements, not against them. Keeping in mind those who only dream of living by the sea, Halpin also offers portraits of successful seaside gardens up and down the coast, with stunning images from award-winning photographer Roger Foley.
 
 
Coastal Gardening by John Bickerton
 
 
Many of us dream of living by the sea, but how to tackle the sometimes tricky planting conditions that coastal gardening demands? This inspirational and practical book explains how to design, plan and plant up your garden by the sea, making the most of the coastal microclimate. An exposed situation, extremes of weather, soil type and salty air can be difficult to deal with. Learn how to design and choose the right plants that will thrive, whether it is for a windswept, sheltered, container, productive or tropical or exotic-looking garden.
 
 
Gardening at the Shore by Frances Tenenbaum

 An informative guide to everything from preparing for hurricanes to planting in the sand. It includes listings of public coastal gardens, hardy species, and advice from experts.This has useful chapters on invasive plans, tips and advice from the pros, a host of useful places-to-ask, ... and a text that is wondrously readable and inspirational, even for those of use whose gardens are mostly of the mind.

 
 
Contact us here for more good reading suggestions.