A Garden Miscellany

Staubach takes a series of short essays on gardening terminology and turns them into a wonderland. Each essay is accompanied by some of the most beautiful artwork I’ve seen in any book. Gorgeous watercolors transport readers into the garden of their dreams in this highly recommended book

This book is a glossary of sorts -- it explains the meaning, etc. or various garden implements, features, etc. The content is informative, but the illustrations are what I found particularly enjoyable. The whole presentation is charming, though light-weight. I would certainly enjoy flipping through this book periodically while garden dreaming.

This is beautifully illustrated book! While I didn't get much information-wise, I loved just looking at the illustrations throughout the book.

*Book received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

This book is such a treat. I think I should just go ahead and pre-order one for myself.

I don’t think I fully read the overview before requesting permission to review this book. I expected it to be about the various elements of a garden. Indeed, it is about these various elements and their history. I cannot believe the amount of historical information the author is able to include in such a small amount of space. And the information is extremely interesting without being too complex or boring. In fact, sometimes she gives you just enough information to nudge you to investigate further (i.e. I have never considered how a glass tax in England affected the advances in greenhouse construction).

The alphabetical listing of garden terms includes the usual – bed, fence, path, trellis. The interesting elements for me are items such as folly, ha-ha, caravan, railroad garden. I also like how elements such as ornament and scarecrow are given the same attention as greenhouse and courtyard.

Gardeners of all experience levels will delight in the details and historical context of each garden element presented here. Personally, I found myself contemplating additions to my existing home garden – perhaps a summerhouse and a stumpery. It certainly is a sweet collection of garden information that you can turn to time and time again and always find something new.

I received an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own. A blog post reviewing this book can be found at https://patch405.com/2019/06/06/10-things-i-learned-today/

This was a complimentary copy from netgalley - thank you

This is a beautiful book.

I am not much of a gardener and will confess, the cover attracted me. Wow, what a stunning book. This is one that I will dip into again and again.

Great ideas for gardeners of all levels

Would make a great book club book

This is a lovely encyclopedia of garden terms, from aalee to yard. Each entry tells you the history of that garden feature in a one or two page essay. Color drawings accompany some but not all of the entries. I would have loved even more illustrations. Many of the entries don't really need to be explained (yard, shrub, etc.) but there are neat little trivia tidbits and history for them, and helpful advice. Others were new to me, such as "pleach" (to intertwine one or two rows of shrubs so they grow into each other and form a wall, or to braid tree trunks together). This is an interesting book and would make great winter reading for gardeners.

My rating system:
1 = hated it
2 = it was okay
3 = liked it
4 = really liked it
5 = love it, plan to purchase, and/or would buy it again if it was lost

I read a temporary digital ARC of the book for the purpose of review.

"Garden Miscellany" by Suzanne Staubach, is a collection of common and not so common words you would use to describe an assortment of garden landscapes. It not only gives a brief description of the word, but also the history behind it , which I found fascinating. I have been an avid gardener for 20 years and some of these words, let alone the meanings, were unknown to me. I enjoyed learning extraordinary, unusual history facts about common garden words. There were beautiful illustrations for the reader to gaze at, while enjoying this well written book. For every gardening enthusiast, this simply is a must read. #Gardenmiscellany #Netgalley

I love that this book is a glossary of garden terms and elements that incorporates short essays and gorgeous artwork. It can be a bit mundane to read about fixtures and parts of gardens but when you combine it with the quaint and whimsy artwork, you are transported into something that is homey and almost secret garden-like. The art also makes the text itself approachable, so it's not too technical but something that you could just read and enjoy.

I would easily use some of the art in this book for framed pieces or just display this as a coffee table book.

4.5 stars.

This book was very helpful and informative. It has almost everything there is to know about gardening (if not all, I'm not sure) and some history to each one. Some of the topics have some famous garden names set as examples.

As for the illustrations, they're very cute and beautiful. They're my favorite out of everything in the book.

The only things I didn't like in the book are the
orange texts in the corner of the paragraphs because they don't provide any new information. They're just the same sentence from the ones in the paragraphs. Despite the book being informative, sometimes it can be info dumpy.

Overall, I think this book is a must read for anyone who wants to be serious about gardening and wanting to add some decorations.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with the digital copy for an honest review.

Most gardens have the same basic elements. You expect certain things from a garden. We've all met luxury additions in the landscape, but some things are ... well, what make a space a garden.

And in Staubach's book, you'll find delightful illustrations that feel familiar, no matter where you are gardening. You might find new ideas of how to take your garden to the next level. You may also find out what was missing - that thing that would make your space complete.

This artsy visual encyclopedia of gardening is a delight for the eye as well as the mind. It's equally interesting as a coffee table book, a art illustration idea book, and a gardener's go-to.

Enjoy it!

This book is beautiful! I love it just for browsing and admiring, and I can imagine using it in a technical writing course for specific students who are interested in combining descriptive writing and illustrations. The book is a wonderful example of that form of writing.

With a mixture of garden history and style and structures that form a garden. It covers such things as roof gardens, rooms, fairy garden, rockery, parterre. paths, grottos, focal points, furniture, foundation planting and many more structures and gardening ideas. The book is beautifully illustrated with a guide to elements of the garden.
Any interesting book, one to dip into at will, with some really interesting information, history and ideas.

A Garden Miscellany is a beautifully illustrated piece with fun and informative anecdotes on a plethora of topics related to gardening. A perfect gift for the nature or garden enthusiast, they will be mesmerized by the lovely illustrations. A wonderful book to curl up with on a lazy afternoon, or to pick up now and then for a tidbit of information.

A Garden Miscellany is a gorgeous book filled with watercolor eye candy. These lovely illustrations are so plentiful that some will truly enjoy just looking at them. They are also so beautiful that I would love to frame the cover as well as many other illustrations inside the book. But above and beyond the artwork, there is a wealth of information in A Garden Miscellany — it is a very comprehensive review of all things garden.

The subtitle of A Garden Miscellany says exactly what it is - An Illustrated Guide to the Elements of the Garden. There are a total of 85 topics, each with its own section consisting of a few pages. Each section covers the definition, history, components, purpose, usage, famous examples, today’s versions, how it differs from similar terms (such as arbor versus pergola), how-to, and much more.

Some of the subjects are ones you would expect, such as greenhouse, statue, trellis, focal point, gate, lawn, fence, meadow, hedge, and shrubbery.

There are also some you wouldn’t expect to find in such a book, including labyrinth, sun dial, geometry/mathematics, scarecrow, grotto, beehive, cloche, and compost bin.

There are several topics were completely new to me, such as pleach, stumpers, parterre, folly, ha-ha, allee, cold frame, and espalier.

Not surprisingly, one of the most common subjects is Gardens, which includes 17 variations — Japanese, herb, Italian, kitchen, memorial, rock, roof, community, sunken, knot, railroad, bog/rain, fairy, landscape, walled, botanical, and woodland.

Thank you to Timber Press and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Fantastic for any gardener in your life!
As an amateur gardener I learned quite a lot and feel that this is an invaluable addition and likely going to save future outdoor projects for me in the future. :)

This book needs 5 stars for each of the elements included and explained. Suzanne Staubach has taken the "art" of gardening and broken into steps that are simple to follow and easy to replicate. She does not try to dictate a certain style or method as gardens should be as diverse as gardeners. The most lovely gardens look as if they were just thrown down and grown instead of the hard labor of love that a garden really is. The beautiful photos and illustrations are enough to recommend this book to any gardener. This book is a well thought out example of someone who loves gardening sharing their love with others.

I received a free electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Suzanne Staubach, and Timber Press. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read A Garden Miscellany of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion on this work.

A Garden Miscellany is an excellent guide for setting up or improving your home garden, helpful for both beginning gardener and old pro. Suzanne Staubach brings to mind the simple things that make a garden special - things we often overlook in our frantic world today. This is a book I can heartily recommend for friends and family. It makes for a nice break into nostalgia for even the life-long gardener.

This book was a wonderland of garden vocabulary with small illustrations spread throughout. I have always loved gardens and its great to read a book describing all the elements that are in those massive gardens you see around the world. This is a book you can teach vocabulary words from as well for my son when we start to garden together.
#agardenmiscellany #Netgalley

When I first saw this book based on the title and that it was illustrated I thought that it was meant for children, but I was pleasantly surprised that it is more for adults. I think adults need to read more books with pictures and the illustrations in this book are certainly beautiful. I love this look through different areas of gardens and learning about their history and how they are used throughout the world. There were some items that I had heard of before, but others that I learned about for the first times in this book. This will be a great book for garden and nature lovers alike.

A Garden Miscellany is a whimsically illustrated alphabetical glossary of gardening terms and features by Suzanne Staubach. Released 29th Oct by Workman on their Timber Press imprint, it's 220 pages and available in hardback and ebook formats.

Although it's a simple concept (a thematic alphabetic glossary), this charming book offers quite a bit more. There are definitions for 85 garden concepts from allée to yard. There is also a wealth of trivia and history interspersed with beautifully rendered garden scenes and action shots including double page spreads which include detailed artistic narratives. I really loved the community gardening scenes complete with friends and neighbors, herb beds, cat and dog, lush fruits, and a prosaic compost bin. Everything looks so energetic and harmonious.

This is a beautiful book. It would make a superlative gift (housewarming?) for a gardening friend. The entire 'vibe' is upbeat, positive, and friendly.

Four enthusiastic stars.

Five stars for the charming illustrations in the book, A Garden Miscellany. It is may be the prettiest book ever published. Four stars for the organization and content. A Garden Miscellany presents an encyclopedic wealth of information about the architecture of the garden. Three stars for the pedestrian and at times sophomoric writing. There were times the book felt intended to capture a juvenile audience. Overall though a privilege to read and relish A Garden Miscellany! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an electronic copy of a Garden Miscellany in exchange for this honest review.

This is the perfect present for a friend of mine who's a garden architect and I want one for myself because I loved it and fond the illustrations amazing.
I learned a lot about the different elements in a garden and I liked how it was organised and the the style of writing.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Timber Press and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

"A Garden Miscellany" provides small bits of information on a large number of varied topics related to gardens. As with any miscellany, this book is not meant to be read from cover to cover. Rather, it is intended for readers to dip into when the mood strikes them. While it might serve as a reference book or dictionary of garden terms, I like to think of it as a series of short articles that provide new information and diversion for those readers interested in gardening. Little known historical facts about gardens and their uses also give readers a new aspect in which to view garden terms. The colored illustrations add interest and delight to the book.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

This book would be a welcome addition to any gardener's library. It's a sort of glossary of gardening terms, more about aspects of gardens, types of gardens, decorative elements, etc, than plants, making it a less-than-usual reference. Arranged alphabetically, each entry includes a range of information, including historical details, advice, and more. The accompanying illustrations are charming, and suit the text well. Quite a treat!

#AgardenMiscellany #NetGalley

For the serious gardener or garden aficionado, this book may contain everything you ever wanted to know about gardens all around the world and throughout history in snippets. There are beautiful illustrations throughout but could use more. I reviewed the book in electronic form so the physical book could be more impressive. What is impressive is the large content of garden elements discussed. From arboretum to bog garden to bee skep to stumpery; close to 100 terms are presented in a very interesting fashion.

We are so lucky here in the UK with so many beautiful gardens to visit but sometimes it is difficult to know exactly what it is you are looking at. So many garden features that add to the overall look but what are they?

This book takes away the mystery and explains all those quirky things that make gardens individual and add to the overall beauty.

Great illustrations! Interesting stories!

A Garden Miscellany was the first book I read by this author. Looking forward to reading more in the future.