Decided to read this book after reading the “Gardening Basics for Dummies” as I have been getting hot and heavy into raised-bed container gardening.

There are pros and cons of gardening in containers. I like the portability and the modular nature of containers (less prone to normal soil diseases) but dislike the time consuming, manual watering. For lots of people living in high rise, this may be the only choice. Like most for-dummies books, it’s a good basic book that cover the basic but I think it’s probably good enough for most people who live in the city and small gardening space. The unique challenges of the container gardening are highlighted to be overcome.

Part 1 is about getting ready for potting. Pros and Cons are discussed in Chapter 1. Chapter 2 covers the climate. I learned that pots are exposed to more temperature extremes due to its small mass. How to pick the pots is considered in Chapter 3. Chapter 4 gets the soil right. The author recommends 1/2 cubic yard of sphagnum peat moss, 1/2 cubic yard of vermiculite, plus 10 lbs bone meal, 5 lbs, dolomitic limestone, 5 lbs, blood meal. Then Chapter 5 gives you all you need to plant it into the pot.

Part 2 covers the annuals, plants, vegetables, herbs, and bulbs.

Part 3 covers the perennials and indoor gardening.

Part 4 helps you maintain the plants’ health on watering, fertilizing, repotting, pests and diseases.

Part 5 goes into the designing and decoration with the container plants.

Part 6 contains the part of ten or the top 10 ways to make gardening more accessible, 10+ categories of plants for easy annual flowers, easy vegetables and herbs, to start from seeds, attractive & edible plants, fragrant plants, deer-resistant plants, gift plants. There are more plants you can’t go wrong with for full sun, and part shade, and shade, and annual flowers by shape (tall, shrubby, and trailing).

Borrowed this book from the library and pave the foundation for my newly acquired hobby: gardening. I learned a few things. Most of them are general enough and give you a broad view of the gardening discipline. Gardening is hard work. No doubt about it and yet there are so much science and myths around them. This is a good reference book who enjoys a little gardening. It’s not detailed enough for you to know anything in great depth but most flower gardener will find this book useful.

Part 1 familiarizes you with anatomy of plants. Defines the basic terms: annuals vs. perennials, bulbs, shrubs, trees and etc. So many different kinds of flower can be overwhelming. Would be good to have a picture for each of the flower. There is a chapter on planting your garden to suit your purpose. Now I come to appreciate the landscape architect. They have to know all the different plants and when each plant bloom and how they co-exist with others and their projected mature look. Takes a lot of experience. That’s why they call him/her “Master Gardener.” One must account for the climate and how each plant adapt to the local climate. Chapter 4 covers what the plants need: soil, compost, mulch, watering system, and drainage. Chapter 5 goes into the gardening tools/gears. I learned about hoe, dibbles, lopper, and others.

Part 2 goes into great lengths in flowers and foliage. I believe this is the strength of the book. The author seems to be specialized in flowers, which most people are interested in. Chapter 6 covers the annuals and Chapter 7 perennials, Chapter 8 bulbs (informative as I wasn’t familiar with bulbs especially there are true bulbs, corms, rhizomes, tubers, and tuberous roots). Chapter 9 has lots of information about roses. There are so many different kinds of roses.

Part 3 entails the “permanent landscape.” All about lawn in Chapter 10. And then Chapter 11 is all about trees and shrubs. A bit skimpy in details but trees are a wide topic. Chapter 12 covers the climbers and crawlers.

Part 4 touches on vegetables and produces, herbs, fruits, berries, and nuts. There are general tips and avoiding pests for each kind of plant. Very general.

Part 5 touches on container gardening, which is just a special case of gardening. There is another for-dummies book on container gardening that’s better. Chapter 17 mentions gardening with ponds and fish.

Part 6 is called “Part of Ten” – the bonus section: top 10 common questions are answered, ten quick projects, and ten gardening projects for kids.