1 comments about Residential Landscape Architecture (5th Edition).

1. Very informative and usefull both for the beginer and experienced designer. It is a little high priced but worth it if you are in the design profession.
   Mike

5 comments about Sunset Hillside Landscaping.

1. We bought a hillside property a few years ago and didn't know what to do to beautify our slope and make it more useful for gardening and outdoor living. This book gave us a lot of great ideas plus we tried some of the projects in it. The instructions were easy to understand and everything came out great. We really recommend the book!



2. I live in Southern California where there are hills galore. I thought the book showed very pretty pictures and has nice planting tips, but it wasn't very helpful for homeowneres like my husband and I who wanted to try and landscape ourselves. I also purchased a book called Inspirational Terracing which was able to help my husband and I really landscape our yard ourselves with instructions and wonderful ideas for any situation and the author built all the landscapes himself, using afordable stones that the average person can lift. The book has beautiful pictures and it was very useful. It made me wonder how Hillside Landscaping got all their pictures, I think anyone can drive around and take pictures of landscapes that other people have built and work hard to maintain and beautify and turn around and make money off of other peoples hard efforts. It seemed more like a magazine than a book,it had beautiful scenery but used only materials that top notch contractors with huge equiptment, charging heafty prices could pull off. These landscapes are not for the person with an average house, only the upper class, homeowners could never afford these landscapes and nearly all of them could never be attempted by the homeowner.



3. I was a flat-land gardener most of my life, and when we retired and moved to a house with a backyard that sloped steeply down to a small river, I needed ideas on how to landscape our new property.
   
   "Hillside Landscaping" is a sort of pillow book for gardeners. The majority of its beautiful photographs show landscapes that gardeners of modest means can only dream about. I used the book to point out photographs of steps and retaining walls that I liked to the local landscaping firm, then we'd have a good laugh about the price, and work out cheaper compromises. For instance, instead of stone steps I now have wooden stairs leading down to the river.
   
   Don't misunderstand me, though. There are some very good ideas in this book. For instance, we used the suggestion to zig-zag the stairs down the slope, both to make the climb a bit easier (the slope varies from about 1:6 to 1:2) and to make the journey to the river more interesting.
   
   This book is divided into five sections:
   
   * "Understanding your Terrain"--this section is very important, no matter how much money you plan to spend. It discusses types of hillsides (most especially the severity of the slope) , drainage considerations, and whether or not the landscape needs to be reshaped, e.g. terraced.
   
   * "Inspiring Ideas"--beautiful photographs of slopes, decks, patios, steps, retaining walls, water features, etc. with suggestions on placement, materials, and plantings.
   
   * "It's all in the planning"--a very useful chapter, including the ABCs of garden design, and the mechanics of plotting your property. One of this chapter's suggestions that we plan to implement is a 'dry creekbed' to drain water from our backyard slope.
   
   * "Building on slopes"--Many landscaping features such as fences are more challenging to build on a slope. This chapter explains what factors you need to consider when building or gardening on a slope. I learned NOT to pull up weeds and saplings from their downhill side, after yanking out a small alder, losing my balance, and tumbling over the dry-stone retaining wall and down the steps. It was a cheap way of conducting my own bone density scan, but I wouldn't recommend this procedure to anyone else! I was also very glad that we had decided to build the steps out of wood, not stone.
   
   * "Focusing on plants"--Erosion control. Erosion control. Erosion control. Figure out how you're going to work your beds. Use low-maintenance plants "if you want to avoid scrambling around your hillside to perform tasks such as weeding and pruning." There are suggestions on how to water on a slope--very important, and something I didn't think of when originally planning the beds.
   
   "Hillside Landscaping" is useful as well as beautiful and can be used by do-it-yourselfers as well as those of us who plan to hire the muscle to move the stones and build the steps.



4. Fantastic book. Great succinct overview. Provides clarification of what one can do.



5. I've lived with a problematic hillside on my property for many years. I finally hired a landscape designer to solve the problems. Before I signed the contract, I consulted HILLSIDE LANDSCAPING to be certain I was getting the best solution possible. I recommend this book to anyone with hillside gardening or erosion issues.

1 comments about The Penguin Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture: Fifth Edition (Dictionary, Penguin).

1. From Aalto to Ziggurat, the bounty of information provided in this well illustrated and value priced volume will keep you informed for a very long time. A great general reference of architecture and landscaping for both the student and the home owner alike.

1 comments about Fallscaping: Extending your Garden Season into Autumn.

1. It past years, the fall season was considered as one of harvesting and getting flower beds and gardens cleaned up and ready for the winter. However the autumn of the year with its rainbow of foliage colors, visually attractive fruits, berries, and seedheads, and mild climatic conditions have changed the thinking of dedicated gardeners and landscapers as to what can be accomplished before the setting in of winter snows. This new concept of continuing to garden and brighten late-season landscapes is called 'fall scaping'. Now there is an illustrated instruction manual called "Fall Scaping: Extending Your Garden Season Into Autumn" which is a collaboration by horticultural experts Nancy J. Ondra and Stephanie Cohen featuring ten complete garden plans that combine flowers, trees, shrubs, ground covers, and grasses that are not only visually impressive in the fall, but designed to provide three-season appeal over a wide range of post-summer growing conditions. Of special note is a 'Fall Garden Care Primer' offers tips and techniques on planting, transplanting, staking, pruning, and maintaining gardens all year long. There is also cogent counsel on preparing plants for winter, as well as properly cleaning and storing gardening hand tools and power equipment. Thoroughly 'user friendly' and profusely illustrated by the full color photography of Rob Cardillo, "Fall Scaping" is very strongly recommended for any gardener with an interest in continuing to maximize their gardens during September, October, and November.

5 comments about Edible Estates: Attack on the Front Lawn.

1. I like the idea of growing more of our own produce in our yard, but I was somewhat disappointed in the quality of this book. Not disappointed in the condition mind you - it just wasn't what I was looking for.



2. My husband and I want to convert most of our front and back yard to fruit trees and gardens, as we have long thought that most people do not make use of their grass anyhow. Most of the book made the case for using property for food production, but the book was short on ideas for plants and layouts. The layout on the front cover is good, but there are a few such suggestions contained in the book. I would have liked a book full of ideas that I could use to help me plan my own edible estate.



3. I wanted to like this book. I think the idea is great but the gardens shown are not very pretty and the tone of the book is somewhat hostile. If you want to see a PRETTY vegetable garden suitable for a front yard check out "Rosemary Verey's making of a Garden". Look at the chapter entitled "The Potager". Now THAT's a beautiful vegetable garden. If it's too ambitious try just planting a border of red & green lettuce. It looks as beautiful as any other foliage plant. Put down a layer of wood chips. It really is a nice look. When you start getting into netting and wire fencing in the front yard that's when you leave many people behind. No one want to look at raggedy tomato plants in August.



4. have to agree with "wendycat". all of the photos i have seen of the edible estates are not very pretty, no offense to anyone but some are even somewhat hideous for a front yard garden. anyways, i've read the author has moved on to something else - animal estates....



5. This book reads more like a book report, or maybe a master's thesis than a full-blown book. You can get through it in an hour or two, and although it is an interesting read, it's not something you'll turn to again and again. Honestly, I haven't thought about it since I read through it weeks ago. Thankfully it's not as mind-numbingly verbose as Slow Food Nation, but it also doesn't have the depth of, say, a Pollan book.

5 comments about Rain Gardens: Managing Water Sustainably in the Garden and Designed Landscape.

1. As some of you may know, the LEED building rating system focuses on 6 key areas: Sustainable site development (SS), water savings/efficiency (WE), energy & atmosphere (EA), materials and resource (MR), indoor environmental quality (IEQ), and innovations & design process (ID).
   
   "Rain Gardens: Managing Water Sustainably in the Garden and Designed Landscape" is a very useful book on water savings/efficiency (WE). It described various ways of caturing, channeling, diverting and re-using water from rain and snow, including permeable paving, storm-water chains, bioretention ponds and green roofs. Rain gardens create great environment for wild life. They are visually pleasant, economical and sustainable. I live very close to several of the retention ponds of my local water district. They are fine examples of rain gardens, I always love to visit them and see the beautiful birds and plants in or near the retention ponds. Nigel Dunnett and Andy Clayden described many of the techniques that are used by my local water district. These techniques are unconventional and can be useful all over the world. They can effectively capture the storm water and let the water settle and clean itself through the natural process and save it for drought period, instead of using concrete-paved flood channel to rush the storm water to the ocean.
   
   "Rain Gardens: Managing Water Sustainably in the Garden and Designed Landscape" has 188 pages and many line drawings and beautiful interior color photos. It is a great book on sustainable design.
   
   Gang Chen, Author of "LEED AP Exam Guide" & "Planting Design Illustrated," LEED AP, AIA



2. Let me first state that this is an excellent book. However, it is really a book about taking things to the next level. If you are looking for solid how-to information about installing a rain garden in your back yard, you might be disappointed.
   
   Landscape architects, designers and accomplished amateurs with advanced skill sets looking to handle water both innovatively and creatively will delight in this book. I did ... but then I already have three rain gardens in my own landscape and teach how-to classes on installing them. If the concept of rain gardens intrigues you and you are looking for the basics on a DIY level, the free, downloadable rain garden manual from the University of Wisconsin is still the best source of that information, as of January 2008.
   
   This book has a decidedly European flavor to it. And why shouldn't it? It is written by a couple of Brits. Although I am hard-pressed to see how some of the models given in the book will pass muster with the Americans with Disabilities Act, codes and other regulatory bodies, they should indeed stimulate the mind. The examples (of which there are many) also include public and even larger municipal installations. I find this a good thing for Americans to be exposed to. The Europeans are far ahead of us in green thinking. Included are some examples of essentially, municipal civil engineering projects both implemented and functioning with panache.
   
   This is a book that I value having in my personal library. Someone looking for basic information may not.



3. A thorough treatment of all possible ways of dealing with storm water run-off, not just rain gardens. No detailed instructions on "how-to" which I had expected.



4. This book only covers about 16 pages of rain gardens out of ~175 pages. A more appropriate title should be its subtitle, not rain gardens. If you're looking for rain garden info, this is not the book. It is a good reference for other sustainable water practices - standing water retention, swimming ponds, green roofs, etc.



5. A very informative book on an important topic. Pictures are used well to illustrate.

5 comments about Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls.

1. Greenroof professionals and enthusiasts alike will be delighted with the easy reading and scope of content offered in "Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls" by Nigel Dunnett and Noël Kingsbury. Very well organized, the book's forte and major value is as an essential resource - especially in terms of plant description, characteristics and specification. It's also a great bargain in that the book is filled with color photos, drawings, charts and reference material. This indispensable hard cover reference guide contains a truly massive collection of appropriate plant information, and perhaps most importantly, extensive plant directories are provided for both greenroofs and façade greening.
   
   Organic Architecture with Plants
   Greenroofs, living walls, and various other bio-engineering techniques are introduced and the authors cite the associated benefits and reasons why we should be integrating these measures of organic architecture into our built environments. The authors refer to current international research and technology; background and history are touched on; and benefits and applications of these "ecotechnologies" are discussed at length. Yet, a "How-To Build" book this is not; basic principles are set out and tools for further research are provided.
   
   Benefits at a Range of Scales
   The section "Why Build Green Roofs?" explores hard evidence and the various benefits operating at a range of scales from amenity and aesthetic values to economic and environmental aspects. Increased roof life, insulation and energy efficiency, green building assessment and public relations, biodiversity and wildlife value, water management, air pollution, and fire prevention and risks are discussed with supporting evidence.
   
   Although previously well known, the biodiversity and wildlife value of greenroofs is expanded upon here, including the new British models of "brown" or "rubble" greenroofs - those which recreate the thin, infertile landscapes of disturbed brownfield sites. Spontaneous colonization is presented as an important natural occurrence.
   
   A Vast Array of Planting Opportunities
   The authors rightly note that "The majority of guides to green roofs and roof greening concentrate on the technical and construction aspects but have relatively little to say about planting opportunities - mainly because most authors are not plant specialists." Well, Noël - a well known writer of plants and gardens, and Nigel - a senior lecturer in the Department of Landscape at the University of Sheffield, most certainly are plant experts, and an entire 47-page chapter is devoted to the wide range of planting opportunities for extensive greenroofs, beyond the ubiquitous albeit hugely successful use of Sedum species.
   
   Prevailing site conditions will always dictate the plant selection, so designers need to know what plant species will not only survive but thrive in extreme local conditions. Desirable physical attributes of plants and how they may be established and managed are presented. Considerations of monocultures, single plant combinations and mixtures, and plant communities are useful as planting design tools. The form and physiology of suitable greenroof plants are nicely covered from a botanical as well as functional and aesthetic perspective. Issues of viewing considerations are pondered and design solutions are offered relating to the roof function and visual criteria. "Methods of vegetation establishment" is particularly detailed and thus extremely valuable. The authors point out, however, that current research is insufficient to show how long each species will live and how each species will interact over the years atop roofs.
   
   The very important aspect of different growing medium properties and functions is addressed in-depth, and comments are provided about particular types of materials, substrate depths, and accompanying vegetative possibilities. Maintenance issues and requirements are briefly noted, touching on feeding, plant protection, drainage, and weeding.
   
   Considerations of Natives and Introduced Species
   The unexploited opportunities of testing and using native vegetation are explored, in terms of increasing biodiversity and aesthetic benefits. Regionally native plants should be tested for many reasons, including ecological restoration. Non-native plant species with invasive tendencies can be a problem, therefore careful selection is critical to maintain healthy ecosystems. Yet many introduced species are appropriate, and there are many circumstances where non-natives offer considerable local wildlife value.
   
   Certain natural plant communities and their soil types are explained and presented as an argument for further study as suitable models for successful roof plantings. Trialing of appropriate local plant communities is therefore recommended and encouraged so as ultimately to be able to introduce more natives into the greenroof matrix of plant species.
   
   "The natural habitats of potential roof-greening plants" explores the potential to discover and trial the world's flora found in similar harsh habitats. Mountain, high latitude, coastal, limestone, sclerophyllous woody vegetation, semi-desert environments, and species whose plants are exposed to climatic extremes are regions with potential for testing of new roof greening plants.
   
   The Task Has Just Begun
   Philosophy and advice to greenroof plant enthusiasts can be summed up with these reflections by the authors: "With roof greening becoming an important part of the new built environment, it is increasingly important that more attention is paid to sourcing new plant material from habitats in the wild where conditions approximate those on rooftops and other problem urban situations...The task of selecting suitable plant species for roof greening has arguably just begun, and it offers potentially enormous rewards."
   
   They are quick to point out that the globalization of our knowledge base and the ready availability of certain aggressive species can threaten entire ecosystems, and care must be provided to the selection of greenroof environments (just as at ground level) so as to avoid invasive and potentially destructive non-natives or introduced species.
   
   Façade Greening and Living Wall Structures and Surfaces are the final two chapters of the book, offering both visual and ecological climbers, clingers, ramblers and scramblers. New support structures, materials, technologies and details provide practical and interesting information for this older yet equally fascinating design element of green architecture. The authors examine how the design of façade greening can equally disguise unattractive features while at the same time enhance existing surfaces. In either case, education and care are necessary to promote vigorous growth that is supported by a variety of vertical and/or horizontal structures.
   
   At the end of the book, 49 pages are devoted to the Roof-Greening and Façade-Greening Plant Directories, listed by botanical names, common names, cultivars and related species. The horticultural and cultural aspects are presented with definitions and listings of many specific plant characteristics.
   
   A minor grumbling on my part about the book is the absence of identifying greenroof project photo captions for the geographic locations and the building application types. It would be beneficial to know not only where each is located, but also whether the project is commercial, industrial, residential, etc.
   
   A Dovetailing of Living Plants, the Building, and Its Human Users
   Whereas Ted Osmundson's excellent 1999 "Roof Gardens: History, Design, and Construction" is considered the bible for the intensive greenroof crowd, Nigel Dunnett and Noel Kingsbury's "Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls" is simply a must have for extensive and intensive greenroofers worldwide.
   
   "Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls" is a comprehensive argument for integrating nature and architecture, and I highly recommend it. It's obvious that Kingsbury and Dunnett are first and foremost dedicated, ecologically minded plantspeople; here, then, is a very important work for those of us in the greenroof industry. ~ Linda S. Velazquez, Publisher Greenroofs.com



2. This book is great for those who may have trouble visualizing the possibilities of what you can do with a green roof. There are many examples of what you can grow, and what types of vegetation are suitable. The book is however not very technical about the architectural detailing considerations involved. Some sections and detail drawings would make this book much more valuable as a design resource.



3. Planting Green Roofs and Living Walls is an excellent book for any landscape architect who has not yet designed and detailed either. For myself, the most helpful bit of information was the data collected and presented from various green roofs.
   
   The living wall section on the other hand was thin. There was no mention of the living wall system Patrick Blanc developed which is much more interesting than putting up a wire trellis and planting vines next to it. The other comment i would have is that almost all of the examples are from Europe. We have fabulous examples in the US with more relevant plant materials and weather conditions.
   
   Finally I would say that the authors didn't seem interested in exploring native plant materials and instead focused on a few cookie cutter plants commonly planted all over the northern hemisphere. Not unlike McDonalds.



4. I am a big advocate on using plants to create green walls and roofs. They can reduce the urban "heat island" effect and create usable green open spaces. I found this book's discussions on Intensive Green Roof, Extensive Green Roof, Ecoroof, Brown Roof, etc interesting. This book is a serious attempt on a difficult subject. The color photos inside the book are helpful also.
   
   There are still technical difficulties in using green walls and roofs: water proofing, how to handle the structural weight of large trees, how to integrate large plants with building structure, etc. All these technical discussions are needed, and they could be the subject of another book.



5. Wide range of examples of designs presenting different approaches to green roof and living walls planting. Examples rarely accessible in other books. Described methods, plants selections and names of producers give real help in daytime work. Book for interesting reading! not only for looking on photographs.

5 comments about Site Engineering for Landscape Architects.

1. This is a great book to have on your shelf. Kept referring to it for my Site Technology classes and I know I'll be referring to it in the future. I found it very helpful and clearly written. Would highly recommend it.



2. I was a bit tentative when I started to use this text. The book has some minor editing problems, but if your desire is to really understand site design with an emphasis on drainage and grading plan design this text does the trick and does it well. I would recommend this book to any Jr. land development designer/engineer as a must have reference.



3. Site Engineering is a difficult subject for many landscape students and designers, yet it is a very important aspect of landscape architecture. As a landscape architect, you probably do not have to produce a grading plan (it can be done by a civil engineer), but you do need to have some basic site engineering knowledge to be able to coordinate your work with civil and other consultants. You do need to be able to read and visualize an ALTA survey map, or a grading plan; you do need to be able to understand what a concave or convex landform is, what a swale or ridge is, how to read contour or spot elevations, etc.
   
   "Site Engineering for Landscape Architects" will give you a very comprehensive knowledge of site engineering. It covers contours and form (constructing a section, contour signature and landform, characteristic of contour lines), interpolation and slope, grading constraints, grading design and process, earthwork, grading landform and architecture, storm water management, the methods to determine the rates and volumes of storm water runoff, natural resources conservation services, required detention storage, designing and sizing storm water management system, horizontal road alignment, vertical road alignment, and various case studies. It is so comprehensive that you can probably do a civil engineer's work after your read it. My suggestion is to buy this book, and look through it to have a general idea of what it covers and know where to find the information when you need it later. You can also look through the portions that you already know and focus on reading the portions that you are not very familiar with and improve your site engineering knowledge.
   
   "Site Engineering for Landscape Architects" has 352 pages and many line drawings and interior black-and-white photos. It is a great site engineering reference book for architects, landscape architects, urban planners, and engineers.



4. I am a first-year BLA student, and this text is required for an introductory course in site grading and drainage. This book is very difficult for me to read and understand. Descriptions of calculations are very poorly presented in paragraph narrative, which is mind-numbing to read and comprehend. If the calculations were presented in a step-by-step format, like a math text, they would be dramatically more clear and understandable. I agree with a previous reviewer, as well, that the layout is dysfunctional because the text and corresponding graphics are not on facing pages. This problem is particularly annoying, considering that landscape architecture is a design profession that emphasizes legibility in graphics and presentation material. I would welcome anyone's recommendations for a text that explains this subject in a more helpful way.



5. I bought this book to help me better understand how to do grading, evaluate contours, etc. All well and good. I begin doing the problems at the end of a chapter, and there is no answer key anywhere in the book. Can't find any reference to answers anywhere.
   
   I would have rated the book higher but for this little issue.

5 comments about The Essential Garden Design Workbook.

1. I am using this book as a textbook for a Garden Design class. I have several years of garden design experience and have many more years of gardening experience. This book explains the design process in an easy to understand and inspiring way. I have found that it addresses planting and design in subtley different ways that jog my mind to be more creative. It is well written, well designed and very informative.



2. I have been looking for a garden design book for some time that would be heavy on how to lay out the design professionally on paper. This book goes through the progression of the design process and shows each step in the process. It has been extremely helpful in my designing of a three acre property.



3. This book covers all phases of garden design, from original research, obtaining the owner's requirements, site survey sketch, checklist and inventory, to conceptual diagrams, presentation plans, theme plan, preliminary garden layout plan and final planting plans.
   
   It discusses space, light, proportion and scale, color plates, ground plane, vertical plane, overhead plane, materials, texture, principles of planting design, planting styles, practical considerations, seasonal effects, and rendering techniques for various plans. It also has a plant list and plant hardiness zones at the end. This is one of few books that actually discuss the design aspect of gardens / landscaping. Very practical!



4. Whether you're a landscape designer or hands-on gardener, this is an excellent step-by-step workbook. There are many such guidebooks on the market but this is the most comprehensive. It's packed with sketches to illustrate each point the author makes and offers a space-planning system for anyone suffering moments of 'writer's block.' Having worked as a landscape desginer for many years, I pick up this book regularly and rediscover something new each time.



5. Very good book! This is a must have book for a beginner landscape design. A lot of examples to understand a process of garden design. I would most definitely recommend this book!!

5 comments about Design with Nature (Wiley Series in Sustainable Design).

1. Anyone studying environmental planning or LA should read this book.



2. this highly recommended book started out as a compelling read, but became something i had to force myself to finish. it seems to be a series of lectures strung together, which may have been interesting as lectures, but is not cohesive enough to be a book. the good information is lost amidst the rambling style.



3. No has estudiado arquitectura si este libro no ha caido en tus manos. Sin Ian Mcharg la arquitectura sostenible no seria posible. Por lo menos la arquitectura sostenible pensada a escala regional."



4. As a former colleague of McHarg's at the University of Pennsylvania during the 1960's, and currently working in a planned community he designed (The Woodlands, TX), I decided to buy this book to try to understand the strange idiosyncracies of The Woodlands, TX.
   
   The book is very wordy, but it is well illustrated. McHarg successfully blended community design with natural boundary conditions (watershed management, geology, forestry, slope properties, etc) with the case histories he presented (some of which I remember when serving on an invited basis on jury's in McHarg's academic program). The book's strength is his advocacy of melding human planning needs with nature's boundary conditions.
   
   BUT, does it really work? Only at the expense of the time of people working and living in such a planned community. The inconvenient practices that go with such a planned community require a lot of adjustment that asks a bit much of people who work in such places but don't live there.
   
   But it works fine for the affluent and the unhurried who can afford it.



5. My husband is a landscape designer and architect. So, he loves this stuff! I bought it for him as one of his birthday gifts. He has been wanting something of high quality and loves McHarg. I would recommend this book. We keep it on the coffee table because the pictures are wonderful and the design shows through. My husband and I love it!