Have you ever wanted to “peek over the fence” into someone's garden? That “secret garden” holds such mystery and fascination for us. How has the space been designed? Are there unique plantings or special features to be seen? Could we create some of those elements in our own garden? We can satisfy some of that curiosity about others' gardens by visiting botanical gardens, community gardens and fine nurseries, or going on local garden tours. Each experience gives us a special peek into the inner workings of a variety of horticultural wonders. Or, without ever leaving home, we can take an intimate look at the gardens of the world by finding them in a wonderful book.

A perfect place to start is with an historical overview of “the garden”. An excellent example is
Writing the Garden: A Literary Conversation Across Two Centuries by Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, 2011 (David R. Godine, Publisher: ISBN978-1-56792-440-4) Reading this book is like walking through the arches of history into a beautiful garden of our imaginations. Ms. Barlow Rogers, a garden historian, is the president of the Foundation for Landscape Studies and the founding president of the Central Park Conservancy and the perfect guide to lead us on our tour.

In her book, the author brings to life a selection of gardeners' writings from across the past two centuries—writers as accomplished with their pens as they were with their pruning shears. Their writings range from the practical to the philosophical and always reveal the culture and attitudes of their times. Each writer displays an understanding and passion for the subject, and, as Ms. Rogers claims, each selection is a “classic among books about gardens and gardening that we can read and reread simply for pleasure.” Her compilation begins with some of the earliest and most influential gardeners and writers of their time, including Gertrude Jekyll (1843-1932), who viewed gardening as “horticultural picture making”. Writing the Garden makes its way through two centuries to finally capture the ideas of today's devoted gardeners and master garden writers. In the final chapters we hear from, among others, Michael Pollan and Allen Lacy. Each selection in Ms. Barlow's fine book reaches across time and space to draw us into the infinite pleasures and possibilities of “the garden”. Filled with lush historical paintings to highlight the inspiring verbal pictures, this little book is a gem.

Tell us about your favorite books, essays or articles related to gardening, horticulture or botany.
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