The Curious Gardener: A Gardening Year

by Anna Pavord

In The Curious Gardener , Anna Pavord brings together in 12 chapters - one from each month of the year - 72 pieces on all aspects of gardening. From what to do in each month and how to get the best from flowers, plants, herbs, fruit and vegetables, through reflections on the weather, soil, the English landscape and favourite old gardening clothes, to office greenery, spring in New York, waterfalls, Derek Jarman and garden design, Anna Pavord always has something interesting to say and says it with great style and candour. The perfect book to guide you through the gardening year and, on days when the weather keeps the most courageous gardener indoors, the perfect book to curl up with beside the fire.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Memoir, Essays

352 pages, Hardcover

First published October 26, 2010

About the author

Anna Pavord is the gardening correspondent for THE INDEPENDENT and the author of widely praised gardening books including PLANT PARTNERS and THE BORDER BOOK. She wrote for the OBSERVER for twenty years, has contributed to COUNTRY LIFE, ELLE DECORATION and COUNTRY LIVING, and is an associate editor of GARDENS ILLUSTRATED. For the last thirty years she has lived in Dorset, England where she is currently making a new garden. Constantly experimenting with new combinations of flowers and foliage, she finds it a tremendous source of inspiration. -http://www.bloomsbury.com/author/anna...

Reviews

[Sophy H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book showcasing a year in the gardening diary.

Although Anna Pavord is posh, rich, clearly comfortable and therefore the antithesis of many of her readers ie me (!!), she finds total pleasure in the garden, which can transplant truly to the life of everyone and all of us can achieve no matter what size outdoor space we have.

There is something so satisfying in watching the slow progress of something you have had a hand in nurturing.

This book encompasses so many different things, visits to gardens in other parts of the worlds, gardening history, arguments with her husband (!), moving house, loss and acceptance, and the inevitable impermanence of everything; in fact the book feels almost Buddhist in its approach.

A favourite sub chapter of mine was "slow gardening", which contained these gems:-

"Surely, though, most of us garden to escape the clock. At the very heart of the business is the feeling that, when we garden, we abandon a timetable............"

"The point of gardening is the doing of it, not having got it done. It's the process that matters, though it is of course directed towards an end result...............continuity produces a tangible effect in a garden: hedges bulge, trees cast ever-longer shadows over a lawn, wisterias send out tendrils to close up the windows......"

"We should be planting slow, steady, sustaining things. In the garden at least, if in no other part of our lives, we can dream a future........."

Beautiful words Mrs Pavord, I heartily agree.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horticulturally erudite, with a strong sense of place and a wry, well-defined voice. This is not a what-to-plant book, unless you are in Dorset, or a how-to book, except in the most generic sense.

Pavord on supplying flowers for her daughter's wedding ("Getting to the church on time" in the April section of The Curious Gardener):

Our garden is thick with moss, which likes the damp and the shade. Nevertheless, I bought in supplies from our local florist. I used our own moss at our last party. A mesmerising cavalcade of insects climbed down from it during dinner and marched across the white damask clothes of the various tables: beetles, woodlice, centipedes, ants. We ended up racing woodlice between fork finishing posts but they hadn't drunk as much as we had and kept veering off course into the butter dishes.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I come from a family of gardeners, but I didn't have a yard of my own until three years ago, so I still have a lot to learn. Ms. Pavord's book is a delightful read, and is inspiring me to research different plants, growing conditions and possibilities for our future landscaping project. I'm reading it quite leisurely with my tablet in hand to look up photos, tips and additional information, and have learned loads, both from the book itself and from the places it has led me. Entertaining, full of anecdotes, tips and garden lore. Highly recommendable.

[Pat Morris-jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best gardening books I’ve read in a long time. Not really about the gardening completely. I think you do need to like gardening a little to understand the jokes but not sure that is strictly true. A good mixture of a book written beautifully. Made me appreciate some of the gardens she described too, one of which is not far from me but I have never visited as didn’t realised how gorgeous it is.

[Deb]

I started to read this book as an ebook through Overdrive but my loan period expired. What I read I really enjoyed. It's a casual read about an English woman who grew up having to garden, hates it, then as an adult figures out that gardening is actually very enjoyable. I will definitely checkout the book again to finish reading it.

[Audrey Driscoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read by a knowledgeable gardener with a sense of humor. Ms. Pavord gardens in England, so her opinions are distinctly British, as are the monthly tasks at the end of each chapter. I'm not sure that I would recommend this to a beginning gardener (frequent use of Latin plant names), but it may just be the book that converts one to gardening.

[Nazary · Rating 1 out of 5]

I rarely can't finish a book but this is one such example. A disjointed collection of random anecdotes with advice so specific that unless you plan to buy her old house it's useless. Might be enjoyable for a devoted gardener. Prepare to come into this with a wide knowledge of plants and gardening or you'll get lost amongst all the terms and nicknames.

[CarrieAnne · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF Very specific advice for specific cultivars/plants. Lots about flowers. Climate and geographical advice for certain area of UK. Stories filling the chapters were less than interesting to beginners. Strangely info about astrology and zodiac planting included in this mature magazine writer’s 12 chapter book—not for me at this time. Doubtful to take superstitions into account in future gardens.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed a copy from the library and really enjoyed reading sections of this. I would recommend owning or gifting a copy of this book to friends who enjoy garden-themed, short readings over a year or a long period of time. I also enjoyed learning about some plants and reading gardening tips from a British author’s point of view.

[Larn E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Useful almanac in some ways, but really lacked specificity and focus. Also quite excluding in some ways (lots of naming plants in Latin or just listing without explanation) and too serious in respect of things like clearing dead leaves etc. Not the most eco friendly approach to gardening

[Georgina Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read. I enjoyed how the book was organised (by month)Also, I really liked how Pavord talked about gardens that she has visited as well as the list of ‘jobs to do in the garden’ for each month and the end of a chapter.

[Janine · Rating 2 out of 5]

From the description, I thought this would be a gentle introduction to gardening and connecting with nature. Some pieces met that, but the majority required a preexisting knowledge of gardening terms and plant varieties. Ehh. Didn’t enjoy.

[IE · Rating 2 out of 5]

Clearly I’m not the target demographic for this book but I picked it up out of interest… Being in New Zealand I didn’t understand the British references, and then I realized I didn’t even understand the general references either! DNF

[Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very well written series of essays about gardening.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5🌟

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and Anna's writing style. I tend to use it as an almanac making notes of jobs that need doing month by month. It's always on the table (when I'm not reading it!)

[Karen Floyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of columns Pavord wrote for the Independent newspaper as its gardening columnist. Informal and informative, opinionated (all gardeners are) and entertaining. The columns are collected under monthly headings, and at the end of each month there are lists of things one should be doing in the garden that month. There are also boxed inserts with more specific details on subjects written about in the columns, such as how to prune clematis, a much debated practice, a beginners' guide to sowing seeds, a brief history of mazes. The first essay, on gardeners' astrology signs, was priceless. Fortunately there are several of Pavord's books that I haven't read so I can spend more time in her company.

[Adrian Werner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Understanding that this is a collection of her writings from other places became critical in getting into the rhythm of this book. I felt that some stories were very engaging while others were either flat or else didn't seem to tie into the way the book was organized (by season). Some of my favourite chapters included "Villa Lante", "Seeds of the Good Life", and "Butterfly Ball". Ones I could have done without included "Costa Rica Railway" and "Sign of the Times". I will refer back to a couple of the "tasks for the month" tips even though I care for a zone 3 garden. Overall, good but not great.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best reads I've had in recent months. Pavord's voice is marvelous—sharing knowledge without being snobbish or know-it-all. She is self-depricating, funny, wise, smart.... Just loved this book so much that I may start to reread it right away.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting book, and among other interesting aspects of the book, she mentions little facts like this one, "If grown in freshly manured ground, carrots and parsnips fork into multiple roots... "

She has a wry, mildly snarky voice and is always interesting.

[Marla]

She's hilarious and delightful!

[Vaudeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the humor in this book but it referred to gardening in England which isn't relevant to me.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't finish and ran out of renewals from the library. Not compelling enough to compete for my time with Malcolm Mackay, but what is? I will borrow this one again to finish it.

[Merry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good book about being a gardener - like sitting down for many cosy chats with an entertaining expert! Loved it. Highly recommended.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anna Pavord is amazing - I love her writing and her clear in-depth research.