Understanding Garden Design: The Complete Handbook for Aspiring Designers

by Vanessa Gardner Nagel

Designing a garden is a complex task. Where do you start? What kind of skills do you need? What are the logical steps in creating a design? How do you communicate your ideas to a client, and how do you accommodate a client’s requests while maintaining the integrity of the project? The answers to these questions, and many more, can all be found in Understanding Garden Design .

Most books on garden design focus on only one or a few aspects of garden design―choosing plants or creating a hardscape, for example. This comprehensive, accessible book lays out the entire process from start to finish in clear, precise language that avoids the pitfalls of “designspeak.” In fact, garden owners and clients of garden designers who want to understand more about the designer’s craft will be able to profit from the book’s lessons.

Among the many topics covered are how to document a site, how to determine what a client needs and wants from the garden, how to take architectural features into consideration, how to think about circulation and lay out paths, how to use basic design principles, how to work with plants, and how to create a final design. Practical aspects are clearly laid out, including working with contractors and staying on top of the various phases of construction.

This thorough handbook is profusely illustrated with helpful photographs and diagrams. A particularly interesting tool is the hypothetical garden plan that appears in each chapter to show how to apply the topics at hand.

A practical, logical approach to the planning, design, and installation of a garden, this volume will be an invaluable resource for students, landscape professionals, and garden designers.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction

235 pages, Hardcover

First published August 18, 2010

Reviews

[Deborah Makarios · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is interesting to see the cultural differences in approaches to garden design.
This book (American) assumes a fairly large property, and expects the garden will probably be installed in one go (probably by a contractor). The garden is seen as somewhere to carry out one's desired activities, such as entertaining, meditating, or sports - but not necessarily gardening.
So if you want to have a nice surrounding for your house, want to design it yourself, but don't fancy doing any gardening, this could be the book for you.

[Lily C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once you get past the why I wrote this book, this is an excellent introduction to garden design. Walking you through the process of deciding what you want in the garden, working out spaces and fitting dreams to reality plus an introduction to design theory. It doesn't go into construction and skims materials but does point out a number of things that should be considered. In a highly readable way.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vanessa Gardner Nagel, APLD, writes a 235-page guide to home garden design in twelve chapters, for new home garden designers with an emphasis on gardening in the United States. The chapters explain design considerations in the order that they appear when garden planning: determining the garden's purpose, documenting the space's physical characteristics, identifying garden design needs and wants, prioritizing garden needs and wants with functional sketching, how design principles impact garden design and use, selecting garden furniture and accessories, incorporating irrigation, incorporating changing plant structures, incorporating garden lighting, editing a final garden design, how to work with garden contractors, and how to use the garden after construction. The book balances textbook explanations with photographs and drawings of gardens and garden designs. While some readers seeking design ideas beyond a US context will not find that in this book, most readers should find this to be a helpful introduction for first-time or early-career home garden planning.

[Casey Rutledge · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best garden design book or book about visualizing the outdoors from a design perspective. Great diagrams and mostly easy to follow!! Highly recommend for those trying to DIY your garden makeover!!

[Onceinabluemoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 really enjoy this~

[Annie Oosterwyk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my style of gardening, but good for those just creating one.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detailed suggestions for planning outdoor spaces, with an emphasis on entertaining spaces. Lots of food for thought.