The Art of Gardening by R. William Thomas & The Chanticleer Gardeners

The Art of Gardening by R.William Thomas & The Chanticleer Gardeners

This lovely book came out in 2015, and the subtitle is Design Inspiration and Innovative Planting Techniques from Chanticleer.

Chanticleer is a 35-acre public garden outside of Philadelphia, regarded as one of America's top gardens.

Chanticleer has a staff of six gardeners, each responsible for the design, planting, and maintenance of a section of the garden. Thus, this book was written by all of the different gardeners.

As the garden's Executive Director likes to say,

“Chanticleer is essentially a large demonstration garden. Our guests take away ideas on gardening in their own home spaces.”

 

This is the perfect book for the off-season. It's loaded with beautiful photos and fantastic ideas for planning next year's new landscaping projects. This is a beautiful book for browsing and dreaming—and it would make a lovely gift for the holidays.

I love what Executive Director R. William Thomas says in the introduction about the value of walking through the garden. He wrote:

"[The son of the garden's founder, Adolf Rosengarten Junior, began each day with a walk around the garden accompanied by his corgi.

He greeted the staff, encouraged them to work hard, grabbed a snack at the Apple house, and reviewed the property.

I, too, begin each day with a walk around the garden with my corgi.

It’s much more than a lovely stroll. It’s an inspection tour, a remembrance of what the property was, and most important, a meditation on what it can be.

 

I stop frequently looking both up close and into the distance.

What does this part of the garden look like to a first-time guest?

Is it as good as it can be?

How will the area look in a month? In three months? A year? In a decade?

Could this bed be better?

Is it time to try something new?

Should this path be moved?

Is that tree going to block the view in 20 years?

Would a tower draw guests up the Bulb Meadow, the hill above the Asian Woods?

Can we illuminate steps to improve accessibility?

Do all the garden areas hold together as one garden?

I also pull a few weeds clear the spillways, prune an occasional branch, pick up the litter, and check the restrooms."

 

These are great questions and a great practice to follow in our own gardens. 

You can get a copy of The Art of Gardening by R. William Thomas & The Chanticleer Gardeners and support the show using the Amazon Link in today's Show Notes for under $4.