This illustrated reference covers the history and design of gardens all over the world, from the earliest recorded examples to the present day

Australia has an enormously rich heritage of gardens and gardening and there has never before been a reference work of this scale with this diversity covering this wide-ranging subject. Ten years in the making, The (Oxford) Companion to Australian Gardens covers all aspects of Australiangardening from Aboriginal land management practices to modern garden design.Interest in gardening and garden design has increased over the last few years. The aim of the Companion is to further the understanding of gardens and gardening and provide a useful reference tool for anyone with an interest in gardens, landscape gardening, art, and architecture.With around 400 entries, the text covers topics such as designed landscapes, agriculture, architecture, art, botany, ecology, forestry, horticulture, landscape architecture, town planning, and viticulture.With the help of their team of over 200 expert contributors, Richard Aitken and Michael Looker have produced an authoritative and comprehensive reference work. The main text is lavishly illustrated and many of the illustrations have never before been published.This is a must-have reference work for anyone working in or studying garden design or landscape design, particularly those who have an international interest in the subject.

Now available for the first time in paperback, the magnificent Oxford Companion to the Garden illuminates the history and design of gardens all over the world, from the earliest recorded known examples to the present day, encompassing everything from small private gardens, to the secret gardens of Arab princes, to the vast public park at Versailles. With hundreds of photographs and illustrations, the book's broad sweep make it the perfect reference for garden-lovers everywhere, offering in 1,750 alphabetical entries wide-ranging coverage that sheds light on virtually every aspect of the topic. The writing is authoritative and engaging and there are sumptuous color photographs by some of the world's best garden photographers as well as elegant engravings of historical subjects. Well over half of the entries are devoted to individual gardens, many of them open to the public. These include every kind of garden from palace gardens to botanic gardens and arboreta, late 20th-century land art, and contemporary gardens everywhere. The volume also provides biographies of garden designers, nurserymen, and others, entries on the worlds of horticulture and plant science, and articles that range from garden elements and styles to scientific issues and social history. Central to the book are the garden cultures of Italy, Britain, France, China, Japan, and the USA, but the coverage is worldwide, including such far-flung regions as Turkey, Peru, and Bali. The contributors include leading authorities and top garden writers from more than 25 countries. Many of their entries include suggestions for further reading and the work's usefulness is further enhanced by a general bibliography, a thematic listing of contents, and an index of gardens, individuals, themes, and features. "Put plainly, this doorstop of a reference book is worth its weight in gold." --The Los Angeles Times "The perfect guide for anyone who wants to learn in an entertaining way about magnificent classical to contemporary gardens of the world.... Can be displayed on your coffee table." --The Washington Post "Liberally sprinkled with handsome full color photographs that catch the spirit of the individual landscapes." --National Gardener "A word of warning--there's no quick escape from this marvelous book." --Hugh Johnson

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The story behind the creation of one of the world's most breathtaking public gardens--Les Quatre Vents in Charlevoix County, Quebec. Featuring photos by five of today's leading garden photographers, this is one of the most beautiful books on gardens to appear in years. Over 400 photos.