Synopses & Reviews
Brandywine Cottage is David Culp's beloved two-acre Pennsylvania garden where he mastered the design technique of layering — interplanting many different species in the same area so that as one plant passes its peak, another takes over. The result is a nonstop parade of color that begins with a tapestry of heirloom daffodils and hellebores in spring and ends with a jewel-like blend of Asian wildflowers at the onset of winter.
The Layered Garden shows you how to recreate Culp's majestic display. It starts with a basic lesson in layering — how to choose the correct plants by understanding how they grow and change throughout the seasons, how to design a layered garden, and how to maintain it. To illustrate how layering works, Culp takes you on a personal tour through each part of his celebrated garden: the woodland garden, the perennial border, the kitchen garden, the shrubbery, and the walled garden. The book culminates with a chapter dedicated to signature plants for all four seasons.
As practical as it is inspiring, The Layered Garden will provide you with expert information gleaned from decades of hard work and close observation. If you thought that a four-season garden was beyond your reach, this book will show you how to achieve that elusive, tantalizing goal.
Review
"So imaginative is Culp's genius and so resourceful his passion for plants and design that his layered garden offers more sensory delights per square foot than most gardens manage to achieve over acres." Library Journal
Review
"Spellbinding writing and Cardillo's breathtaking photos entice readers through Culp's woodland garden. An essential title in the "how I did it" genre of garden writing." The Patriot-News
Review
"A good choice for people trying to correct their jumbled mess of a landscape." The Patriot-News
Review
"A gifted plantsman from Chester County shows us how he turned a neglected 1790 farmhouse on two acres of land into a living lesson on combining plants." Garden Rant
Review
"Teaches and inspires." Susan Harris
Review
'This is one for your must read list...and it would make a wonderful gift for anyone who loves plants and gardens." The Detroit News
Review
"A visual feast of inspiration combined with practical advice on how to put together a garden that shines throughout the year. A great winter read."
Review
"I love the book... it teaches us how to design and maintain a complex, layered garden." A Charlotte Garden
Review
"Culp shares the beauty of Brandywine and some of his garden-design secrets." The Detroit News
Review
"Offers the perfect blend of inspiration and practical advice. Readers will come away with plenty of ideas and guidance to create their own layered, four-season gardens wherever they live."
Review
"Culp shares the beauty of Brandywine and some of his garden-design secrets." The American Gardener
Synopsis
"Gardenmaking, in its finest form, is a celebration of life and of love. David and his book epitomize this." --Lauren Springer Ogden
Brandywine Cottage is David Culp's beloved two-acre Pennsylvania garden where he mastered the design technique of layering--interplanting many different species in the same area so that as one plant passes its peak, another takes over. The result is a nonstop parade of color that begins with a tapestry of heirloom daffodils and hellebores in spring and ends with a jewel-like blend of Asian wildflowers at the onset of winter.
The Layered Garden shows you how to recreate Culp's majestic display. It starts with a basic lesson in layering--how to choose the correct plants by understanding how they grow and change throughout the seasons, how to design a layered garden, and how to maintain it. To illustrate how layering works, Culp takes you on a personal tour through each part of his celebrated garden: the woodland garden, the perennial border, the kitchen garden, the shrubbery, and the walled garden. The book culminates with a chapter dedicated to signature plants for all four seasons.
About the Author
Along with his partner, Michael Alderfer, David Culp is the creator of the gardens at Brandywine Cottage in Downington, Pennsylvania. David has been lecturing about gardens nationwide for more than 15 years. His articles have appeared in
Country Living, Fine Gardening, Green Scene, and many other publications. He is a contributing editor to
Horticulture magazine and served as chairman of the Middle Atlantic Hardy Plant Society.
An expert on herbaceous perennials, David serves as a sales consultant and new plant researcher for Sunny Border Nurseries in Connecticut. He has developed the Brandywine Hybrid strain of hellebores, and was recently cited in the Wall Street Journal for his expertise on snowdrops. The garden at Brandywine Cottage has been featured several times in Martha Stewart Living and on HGTV.