The City Gardener's Handbook: The Definitive Guide to Small-Space Gardening

by Linda Yang

This comprehensive guide has everything you need to know to successfully design and maintain an urban garden in whatever space and conditions you have available. As Katherine Powis writes in the foreword, "City gardeners are up against the concrete and grit, the lack of light, the cramped spaces, and sun-scorched, wind-burned rooftops. And that's just what this book is about." Linda Yang gives you the information and guidance you need to create beautiful gardens and outdoor spaces, profiling dozens of beautiful, hardy plants that thrive in cities and offering expert advice on everything from preparing your soil to managing pests. Filled with charming anecdotes and stunning photographs, The City Gardener’s Handbook will inspire you to bring the joys of the garden into your metropolis. 

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction

336 pages, Paperback

First published June 16, 1990

Reviews

[Neal Alexander]

Other than the author’s enthusiasm, perhaps the most useful aspects of the book are the pictures and scale layouts of several gardens at ground level and, more interestingly for me, on balconies and terraces. Although not explicitly, the book seems intended mostly for readers at latitudes towards the north of the USA which for me limits the applicability of the specific plants described.

[Narariel]

I felt the book's title was a bit misleading as it seemed to focus primarily on small backyards and rooftop gardens, but didn't really cover balconies and other really small spaces. (Perhaps that was all covered in the author's earlier book on terrace gardening?) There was a great deal of helpful information though, with many lists of plants arranged in different ways. The resources section is likely very out of date, as well as the focus on mail-order catalogs. Many of the pictures were interesting and while the main focus was on plants, there was some thought given to "hardscape" aspects in one chapter.

A decent reference book.

[R.J. Gilmour]

Recommended by a FB friend, Yang's book really is the definitive source for anyone wishing to garden in the city. She outlines how to garden in all forms of city gardens, including balconies, terraces and stoops. The book offers a breakdown of what to do when, the best types of plants for city gardens and some colour photos for ideas. A really great resource the city gardener.

[Amanda Judd]

Maybe it was just the 1990 edition my library had, but I couldn't get past the layout and organization of this book.

[Sophie]

Not really what I was looking for but it has a lot of advice. It has nice diagrams and pictures.

[Simon Gosselin]

Well it’s outdated and information not always still accurate. Great schematics and pictures .

[Alexis]

I foolishly assumed that a book for city gardeners would have a lot of information about houseplants--which was what I was actually after. In fact, the author is serious about _gardens_. I kept reading because it was so charmingly written and I did get some inspiration.
Granted, it's easy to come close to anger when someone outlines the _difficulties_ of having a small yard, terrace, or rooftop, something most of us New Yorkers can only dream of. Also I am at a loss to explain the page of snark on how difficult starting seeds is. It's strange to hear digs about how hellishly difficult it is and how much easier it must be in a spacious suburban home from a woman who carefully measured the _diagonal_ of her building's elevator to get a _tree_ that she really wanted up to her apartment and hauls sacks of manure past her sniffing doorman every spring and in all other ways shows her utter disregard for what some might consider insurmountable difficulties of gardening in the city. I just wouldn't want anyone to not bother trying seeds based on this. Anyway, delightful book. I particularly liked the chapter and section heading names and the almanac at the back where she categorizes all the tasks she's previously explained into seasons so you can check to see what you're supposed to be doing right now without having to re-read the whole book.

[Marcella]

This has a lot of great information. Its helping me as I plan planting for my balcony. I could use more pictures. I don't know what the plants look like, so its hard for me to visualize them and how they'd impact the area.

[Colleen]

More dorking it out with gardening!

[Erin]

This was a good read. Really.