Author(s): Monty Don

Gardening

New Zealand content: Ayrlies Auckland and Te Kainga Marire New Plymouth. Monty Don travels the world in search of its greatest gardeneing treasures, looking at how each garden integrates and harmonises with its landscape and how its plants have been chosen. The book accompanies a BBC television series and Monty Don writes of his travels as well as his knowledgeable observations on each garden. The gardens chosen include recognisable places of supreme beauty and interest as well as Monty's personal eclectic choice. He looks at how each garden is connected to the climate, geology, flora and culture of the place, and tells the stories of the plant hunters and spice traders who brought many of the exotic plants from other countries. He seeks the answer to questions that cross all races, creeds and cultures. Why do people garden? Where does a garden begin and end? Are there definitions that make a garden universal? He looks at the setting of each garden and the plants that grow within, putting the garden in context, abandoning many horticultural preconceptions and searching out the unexpected. He visits places as varied as the winter ice gardens of Russia, the Aztec terraces of South America, the floating gardens of the Amazon, the Alpine flower meadows of New Zealand, a fusion garden in Australia, the street gardens of Havana, the Villa d'Este in Italy, Tokekiko (the smallest Zen garden in the world), the Monsoon Garden at Deeg in India, Net Loo in the Netherlands and Stellenberg in Cape Town. This is a riveting story of gardens, travel, adventure, beauty and the pursuit of knowledge.