Synopses & Reviews
Midwest Home Landscaping Approximately 475 full-color photos and illustrations
46 designs covering the most common situations, such as front entries, foundation plantings, patios, and steep slopes.
Detailed descriptions of more than 200 plants that will grow well in your region, plus all you need to know to select, plant, and care for them.
Step-by-step instructions for building structures, such as paths, patios, ponds, walls, fences, arbors, and trellises.
Synopsis
46 designs by area professionals, over 200 plants that are proven performers, and 430 color photos and drawings. Now includes coverage of 4 new states.
US: IA, IL, IN, KS, MI, MN, MO, ND, NE, OH, SD, WI
Canada: Ontario (southern)
Synopsis
Contains 46 designs created by Midwestern landscape professionals, with more than 200 plants that are proven performers. Provides detailed instructions for projects such as paths, patios, ponds, and arbors. More than 430 color photos and drawings.
Synopsis
Midwest Home Landscaping, Including Southern Canada, shows how to beautify 23 common landscape situations, such as front and back entries, walkways, borders, slopes, and patios. After presenting 46 design variations, the book explains how to install and care for the plants, ponds, walls, and fences involved in the landscape designs. Plants that are proven performers in the Midwest are used in the designs and described in full detail. Step-by-step instructions provide the essential knowledge to tackle each project.
US: IA, IL, IN, MI, MN, MO, OH, WI
Canada: Ontario (southern)
About the Author
Roger Holmes is the founding editor of
Fine Gardening magazine. He co-edited the monumental
Taylor's Master Guide to Gardening and other highly regarded gardening books, and produced the seven-book regional landscaping series of which this book is part.
Rita Buchanan is a lifelong gardener with degrees in botany and an encyclopedic knowledge of plants. She worked with Roger Holmes to edit Fine Gardening magazine and co-edit several books, including Taylor's Master Guide to Gardening. She is the author of numerous award-winning books and is a contributor to many gardening magazines.
Table of Contents
MIDWEST HOME LANDSCAPINGTable of Contents
About This Book 8
Seasons in Your Landscape 12
As Your Landscape Grows 16
PORTFOLIO OF DESIGNS
First Impressions 20 Make a pleasant passage to your front door
A Step Up 24 Plant a foundation garden
Up Front and Formal 28 Garden geometry transforms a small front yard
Angle of Repose 32 Make a back-door garden in a sheltered niche
A Neighborly Corner 36 Beautify a boundary with easy-care plants
Streetwise and Stylish 40 Give your curbside strip a new look
Landscaping a Low Wall 44 A colorful two-tier garden replaces a bland slope
Around Back” 48 Dress up the familys day-to-day entrance
Beautify a Blank Wall 52 Paint a picture with plants
A Shady Hideaway 56 Build a cozy retreat in a corner of your yard
Create a Living” Room 60 A patio garden provides privacy and pleasure
A Big Splash with a Small Pond 64 Add an extra dimension to your landscape
Garden in the Round 68 Create a planting with several attractive faces
A Beginning Border 72 Flowers and a fence make a traditional design
Back to Nature 76 Create a wooded retreat in your backyard
Make a No-Mow Slope 80 A terraced planting transforms a steep site
A Pleasant Passage 88 Reclaim a narrow side yard for a shade garden
Down to Earth 92 Harmonize your deck with its surroundings
A Woodland Link 96 Create a shrub border for nearby woods
Gateway Garden 100 Striking structure and plants make a handsome entry
A Pleasing Postal Planting 104 Provide a perennial setting for the daily mail
Elegant Symmetry 108 Add a formal touch to your backyard
GUIDE TO INSTALLATION
Organizing Your Project 114 Introducing the tasks involved in a landscape installation. How to organize them for best results.
Clearing the Site 116 Removing turf, weeds, and other unwanted material.
Making Paths and Walkways 118 Choosing materials, preparing the base, installing edgings, laying the surface.
Laying a Patio 124 Employing the same materials and techniques as for walks and paths. Ensuring proper drainage.
Installing a Pond 126 Siting, excavating, installing a flexible liner or fiberglass shell. Growing pond plants.
Building a Retaining Wall 130 Laying out, excavating, and assembling a precast modular wall system and steps.
Fences, Arbors, and Trellises 134 Selecting wood, layout, setting posts, basic construction. Plans for building the fences, trellises, and arbors shown in the Portfolio of Designs.
Preparing the Soil for Planting 148 Digging and improving the soil. Edging for beds.
Buying Plants 152 Where to go, what to look for, how to get the best quality and price.
The Planting Process 153 When to plant, steps in the planting process, spacing. Annuals as fillers.
Planting Basics 155 Plants in containers, balled-and-burlapped plants, bare-root plants, ground covers, and bulbs.
Basic Landscape Care 157 Mulches and fertilizers. Controlling weeds. Watering.
Caring for Woody Plants 161 Basic pruning for trees, shrubs, vines, and roses. Making a hedge.
Caring for Perennials 166 Routine care, pruning, dividing.
Problem Solving 168 Understanding common problems with animal and insect pests and diseases. Winter protection.
PLANT PROFILESDescriptions of all the plants shown in the Portfolio of Designs, plus information on how to plant and care for them.
Glossary 214
Photo Credits 216
Index 216