Gardening with Shape, Line and Texture: A Plant Design Sourcebook

By Linden Hawthorne

As more emphasis is placed these days on gardens as artful statements, Hawthorne's sourcebook will add a thoughtful reassessment of plants to the dialogue.

Alice Joyce, Booklist

Gardening with Shape, Line and Texture bridges the gap between garden design books and plant reference encyclopedias. Leading landscaper Linden Hawthorne looks at plants from a designer's perspective (where color is often a secondary consideration) and emphasizes the important roles of plant shape.

Part One reviews fine art principles and shows how they can be successfully applied to plant compositions by grouping plants into three heights: ground to knee, knee to navel, and navel to crown. She identifies different plant shapes — buns, mounds, tiers, fountains, uprights — and shows how the use of them contributes to the success of the finished design. Part Two is a plant sourcebook with plants listed alphabetically within their key plant shape categories.

This innovative plant reference delivers plant information in a form that neatly dovetails with the garden design process and will inspire gardeners to look beyond color and begin to appreciate the whole plant.

Filed under:
  • Format: Hardcover
  • Pages: 280 pp.
  • Book dimensions: 8½ x 11 in. (280 x 215 mm.)
  • Images: 559 color photos
  • ISBN-10: 0881928887
  • ISBN-13: 9780881928884

Media reviews

"As more emphasis is placed these days on gardens as artful statements, Hawthorne's sourcebook will add a thoughtful reassessment of plants to the dialogue."

—Alice Joyce, Booklist

"Written by a professional designer and gardener who clearly loves and understands plants ... the book will be invaluable for anyone who wants to improve the impact of their plant groupings."

—Rosemary Alexander, Gardens Illustrated

About the author

Linden Hawthorne

Linden Hawthorne originally trained as a biology teacher but changed career and took a Higher National Diploma in Horticulture. She has contributed sections to a number of the Dorling Kindersley encyclopedias and worked with Chris Brickell to standardize the cultivation section in the latest edition of the A–Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants.

Read more about Linden Hawthorne

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