Before the snake, the apple, and the Ten Commandments, God created a garden… “Spiritual environmentalism” did not start out as an oxymoron–it was an invitation. Yet today, many believe God’s first job description for humankind has been replaced by other “worthier pursuits”. Why has this simple instruction become so controversial? How does one sort through all the mixed messages? Is changing our lives to save the world really our responsibility–or even possible? Gardening Eden invites you to consider a new, spiritual perspective to practical environmentalism. The question is not whether our souls find expression and inspiration in our incredible planet, but how best to preserve that fundamental connection. Green living is no longer a fad–simple lifestyle solutions are now available to everyone. Discover creation care as an act of worship and a call to deeper harmony with our Creator, our fellow gardeners, and our living Earth. Gardening Eden is the primer in how this shift will transform not only our world, but your very soul.

"Though an old man," Thomas Jefferson wrote at Monticello, "I am but a young gardener." Every gardener is. In Gardening in Eden, we enter Arthur Vanderbilt's small enchanted world of the garden, where the old wooden trestle tables of a roadside nursery are covered in crazy quilts of spring color, where a catbird comes to eat raisins from one's hand, and a chipmunk demands a daily ration of salted cocktail nuts. We feel the oppressiveness of endless winter days, the magic of an old-fashioned snow day, the heady, healing qualities of wandering through a greenhouse on a frozen February afternoon, the restlessness of a gardener waiting for spring. With a sense of wonder and humor on each page, Arthur Vanderbilt takes us along with him to discover that for those who wait, watch, and labor in the garden, it's all happening right outside our windows.

Art meets science in this far-reaching catalogue of botanical illustration. Drawn from the vaults of the National Library of Vienna, these exquisite color reproductions range from 6th-century manuscripts to 19th-century masterpieces and celebrate both the skill of botanical artists and the abundance of natural flora.

A lovingly photographed tour of internationally renowned writer Umberto Pasti's famous hillside garden in Morocco. Italian writer and horticulturist Umberto Pasti's passion for the wild flora of Tangier and its surrounding region led him to create his world-famous garden, Rohuna, where he has transplanted thousands of plants rescued from construction sites with the aid of men from the village. Planted between two small houses is the Garden of Consolation: a series of rooms and terraces with lush vegetation, some rendering homage to the paintings of Henri Rousseau, others inspired by invented characters. Surrounding the Garden of Consolation are the Wild Garden and a hillside devoted to the wild flowering bulbs of northern Morocco, where indigenous species of narcissus, iris, crocus, scilla, gladiolus, and others bloom. With its stunning vistas and verdant fields, Rohuna is a garden of incomparable beauty with the mission to preserve the botanical richness of the region. Captured here in detail by celebrated photographer Ngoc Minh Ngo, the poetic beauty of this special and unique place is lovingly rendered for all the world to see and share.

Seeking Eden promotes an awareness of, and appreciation for, Georgia’s rich garden heritage. Updated and expanded here are the stories of nearly thirty designed landscapes first identified in the early twentieth-century publication Garden History of Georgia, 1733–1933. Seeking Eden records each garden’s evolution and history as well as each garden’s current early twenty-first-century appearance, as beautifully documented in photographs. Dating from the mid-eighteenth to the early twentieth centuries, these publicly and privately owned gardens include nineteenth-century parterres, Colonial Revival gardens, Country Place–era landscapes, rock gardens, historic town squares, college campuses, and an urban conservation garden. Seeking Eden explores the significant impact of the women who envisioned and nurtured many of these special places; the role of professional designers, including J. Neel Reid, Philip Trammel Shutze, William C. Pauley, Robert B. Cridland, the Olmsted Brothers, Hubert Bond Owens, and Clermont Lee; and the influence of the garden club movement in Georgia in the early twentieth century. FEATURED GARDENS: Andrew Low House and Garden | Savannah Ashland Farm | Flintstone Barnsley Gardens | Adairsville Barrington Hall and Bulloch Hall | Roswell Battersby-Hartridge Garden | Savannah Beech Haven | Athens Berry College: Oak Hill and House o’ Dreams | Mount Berry Bradley Olmsted Garden | Columbus Cator Woolford Gardens | Atlanta Coffin-Reynolds Mansion | Sapelo Island Dunaway Gardens | Newnan vicinity Governor’s Mansion | Atlanta Hills and Dales Estate | LaGrange Lullwater Conservation Garden | Atlanta Millpond Plantation | Thomasville vicinity Oakton | Marietta Rock City Gardens | Lookout Mountain Salubrity Hall | Augusta Savannah Squares | Savannah Stephenson-Adams-Land Garden | Atlanta Swan House | Atlanta University of Georgia: North Campus, the President’s House and Garden, and the Founders Memorial Garden | Athens Valley View | Cartersville vicinity Wormsloe and Wormsloe State Historic Site | Savannah vicinity Zahner-Slick Garden | Atlanta

There are twenty million acres of lawns in North America. In their current form, these unproductive expanses of grass represent a significant financial and environmental cost. However, viewed through a different lens, they can also be seen as a tremendous source of opportunity. Access to land is a major barrier for many people who want to enter the agricultural sector, and urban and suburban yards have huge potential for would-be farmers wanting to become part of this growing movement. The Urban Farmer is a comprehensive, hands-on, practical manual to help you learn the techniques and business strategies you need to make a good living growing high-yield, high-value crops right in your own backyard (or someone else's). Major benefits include: Low capital investment and overhead costs Reduced need for expensive infrastructure Easy access to markets Growing food in the city means that fresh crops may travel only a few blocks from field to table, making this innovative approach the next logical step in the local food movement. Based on a scalable, easily reproduced business model, The Urban Farmer is your complete guide to minimizing risk and maximizing profit by using intensive production in small leased or borrowed spaces. Curtis Stone is the owner/operator of Green City Acres, a commercial urban farm growing vegetables for farmers markets, restaurants, and retail outlets. During his slower months, Curtis works as a public speaker, teacher, and consultant, sharing his story to inspire a new generation of farmers.

A gardening history discusses greenhouse gardening, western gardens, and gardening science