Gaining Ground: Dramatic Landscaping Solutions to Reclaim Lost Garden Spaces

Rating:
Summary: Upper-incomers only
Review: Gaining Ground is perhaps the first gardening book that I've actually read (as opposed to just looking at pretty pictures). Even though the photos illustrating what the author has accomplished are beautiful to the point of being daunting, the IDEAS are usuable even in my own scrawny patch. This book points out basic concepts that can help transform a garden. How one implements these concepts is up to the wallet, personal taste, and climate.

Rating:
Summary: High-end, but worth it
Review: I was inspired by past reviews and the great title to order this book. I was disappointed, and, sadly, have to agree at least in part with the critic from Rochester MN. Whether this book appeals to you may depend ultimately on what you think of as gardening, or, perhaps, what you think of as "Ground." This is a book with suggestions on how to make your garden more usable by filling it with stuff--tables, pots, statues, etc. My own idea of gardening is filling it with plants.

Rating:
Summary: High-end, but worth it
Review: In northern California -- where we pay a fortune for a small plot of land -- we want to maximize every inch, regardless of the cost. I found "Gaining Ground" inspirational and extremely useful for maximizing my tiny little plot. The pictures are beautiful and the text does a good job describing the design and the use of the different objects in the design. These are not inexpensive gardens, but they are beautiful!

Rating:
Summary: Classic re-do's
Review: Michael Glassman's landscaping ideas, which are presented in this book, take their inspiration from very classical sources. There is nothing kitschy or trendy here, so if dramatic to you means 'funky' you should look to other sources. The designs show immense skill and judgment. The examples for seemingly hopeless spaces are a joy to behold, and the problem yards are both small and large. If you can't afford a landscape designer of Glassman's stature (and many of us can't) you will still enjoy reading the book many times over, and probably will find at least one or two ideas that you can adapt for your own yard.

Rating:
Summary: Dramatic solutions--absolutely--and not much else
Review: This book may appeal to a small niche audience: folks with sub-urban homes in planned communities who have a great deal of money and want "instant beauty." No doubt, the pictures are lovely and the spaces shown have been creatively transformed, but I found the examples out of reach for one with a mortal-size wallet. The authors have suggestions in getting around CC&R's in planned communities, which are helpful. However, this book seems to be a portfolio of Glassman's work, rather than a plantsman's book. In an early edition I had, the index was non-existent and some of the plant labeling was incorrect. The title held such promise (good job, editor!), but the book failed to do its job.

Rating:
Summary: Dramatic solutions--absolutely--and not much else
Review: This book may appeal to a small niche audience: folks with sub-urban homes in planned communities who have a great deal of money and want "instant beauty." No doubt, the pictures are lovely and the spaces shown have been creatively transformed, but I found the examples out of reach for one with a mortal-size wallet. The authors have suggestions in getting around CC&R's in planned communities, which are helpful. However, this book seems to be a portfolio of Glassman's work, rather than a plantsman's book. In an early edition I had, the index was non-existent and some of the plant labeling was incorrect. The title held such promise (good job, editor!), but the book failed to do its job.