A one-stop reference for greening a garden.
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The environmental benefits of gardens are well-known: trees and plants capture carbon emissions, help to moderate the urban climate, promote health and well being, and help reduce energy consumption. But some garden practices are downright damaging, like using leaf blowers and other power tools, installing impermeable paving, and choosing plants that require excessive water or artificial fertilizers. High-Impact, Low-Carbon Gardening is a one-stop reference for making a garden more green. From simple actions like composting household waste, installing a water barrel, or eliminating pesticides to more long-term investments like choosing permeable, locally sourced paving, and planting the most water-wise plants, there are hundreds of large and small choices home gardeners can make to reduce the environmental impact of designing, planting, and tending a garden. High-Impact, Low-Carbon Gardening goes beyond organics and compost and gives serious gardeners all the information they need to make their garden truly green.
Media Reviews
Cogent and informed example of a new generation of practical guides to responsible gardening... The author's infectious enthusiasm explodes from every page.
Written with great knowledge and enthusiasm, the book is full of pragmatic advice, peppered with sparks of innovation and style.
This book is packed with information which you might not find in other "how to" books and there are affordable tips on every page. Here's one of my favourites: "Grow hostas in poor sandy soil if you want to avoid slug attack". Genius.
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It is exciting to see a garden designer tackle environmental issues in such as unapologetic way. Bowe argues that there is no need to abandon good garden design in order to create a garden that makes careful use of natural resources. She covers all aspects of the garden, from water use to landscaping to green roofs.
A very readable and practical book with lots of eye-catching pictures, hints and tips, plus quick reference information in the book's margins. There's a comprehensive glossary at the back to help with jargon busting, plus an extensive further reference section should you want to delve more deeply into a particular subject.
Alice Bowe has produced a book that in my opinion deserves to be read and treasured by all gardeners of the 21st Century. This perfectly compiled booked details 1001 ways to garden sustainably. The book is punctuated with delightful photos that neatly accompany the informative and well structured text that is innovative and inspiring. As a professional it has me thinking about how I work and how I can do it differently in future projects.
This in-depth, comprehensive book is for the advanced sustainability-conscious gardener.
The sequencing of the book is well thought through; an overview being followed by a decent section on water management and compost - possibly the two most important areas in any gardening book, but of even greater significance here. Bowe then moves on to hard landscaping materials and provides what is probably the most comprehensive overview yet published on the environmental impacts of such. [...] Throughout the book there are plenty of helpful fact boxes, backing up the running copy with a well-quoted expert source - such as the amount of food we waste, or the etymology of the phrase 'sustainable development' - and green tips to dip in and out of. Bowe's writing style is warm and encouraging, rather than the shrill voice of an evangelist, and is reassuring rather than scaremongering.
Alice Bowe specialises in sustainable landscape design and her book, High-Impact, Low-Carbon Gardening, is an excellent reference for creating an environmentally friendly plot.
