Fish and Lloyd rule

Mrs Be over at Carrots and Kids is yet again on the money in this post about how hard it is keeping your garden in shape at this time of year. And she knows what she's talking about when it comes to time pressure, with five children to my more manageable one.

My excuse is that I move house in less than four weeks - so while the lawn will be mowed once more (possibly for only the third or fourth time this year - yes we do prefer the "meadow look" in my household) and I'll cut back the ivy threatening to engulf the neighbour's garden, but beyond that, my time is going to be taken up packing and conducting bad-tempered calls to utility companies for the next few weeks.

I have, however, been daydreaming about my new garden and plans thereof, and continuing my project to read the entire works of Christopher Lloyd and Margery Fish (as an aside - how did Margery fail to throttle her know-it-all husband?). They both beat anything from the last few years into a cocked-hat writing-wise, and are providing much food for thought in terms of planting for my soon-to-be 70ft north facing plot, but how did we cope before full colour photography was the norm? Having said that, my own book wasn't exactly replete with pictures and that did well.

What gardening book/s are you reading at the moment?

Comments

[emma townshend]

Aw, I read Margery Fish for the first time this year and I thought that actually there was a strangely English vein of deeply suppressed love for him in all her comments about him. In "We Made a Garden" she keeps saying how he advised such and such, she didn't listen, but in the end he was proved right. I thought it read like a very stiff upper lip love story - which it must have been I think - falling in love with the boss etc. So that would be my explanation of how she avoided throttling him!

God I'm so glad I'm not moving. Apart from anything else like the stress of mortgage arrangements and moving vans, the idea of having to go through all my stuff and books and be reminded of all my past ambitions (Buongiorno Italia, Train to do a half Marathon, How to Become Rich etc) would be traumatic I imagine. Plus all those old love letters and teenage outfits I've still not thrown away....

[Liz]

I'm on the Christopher Lloyd trail as well at the moment - "Cuttings" is particularly good to dip into and "The Well Tempered Garden" is great as well. And trusty Monty Don and Joy Larkom are never far away in my house.

[Liz]

I'm on the Christopher Lloyd trail as well at the moment - "Cuttings" is particularly good to dip into and "The Well Tempered Garden" is great as well. And trusty Monty Don and Joy Larkom are never far away in my house.

[Andy]

Hi Jane,

I found Andy Sturgeon's "Planted" and "Gardening in your nightie" by Helen Yemm to be great for a down-to-earth, no nonsense approach to gardening.