Book Review: New Small Garden by Noel Kingsbury

New Small Garden by Noel Kingsbury published in 2016 published by Frances Lincoln.

This is one of my favorite garden design books. I’ve checked it out several times from my local library.

Noel Kingsbury is a famous British garden designer and has written quite a few books. He is largely known for his naturalistic planting design and his collaborations with Piet Oudolf.

In this book, Kingsbury goes through different elements of garden design and how to use them within a small garden space. Kingsbury also gives tips on how to use plants to accentuate form, shape, and texture throughout the garden.

There are some plant recommendations at the end of the book. Some of the plants may not be pertinent choices for the US. Some of the plants I would consider planting in my region. I personally tend to gloss over plant recommendation lists because I like to choose native plants to my region above other plant choices. However, there are only a few pages in this book with plant recommendations.

The style throughout this book is mostly contemporary, but the plantings are lush and little on the wilder side. There is a small section of the book devoted to container plantings and edible plants in small spaces.

Another good feature of this book is that it gives importance to being environmentally conscious. There’s design ideas on how to incorporate rain gardens, drainage swales, and permeable surfaces. I really like the section that encourages the use of salvaged and recycled materials in the garden.

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