This is an inspiring look through the key-hole at gardens of the world's leading garden designers.  If you're an aspiring garden designer, or even just looking for ideas for your own garden this is a good christmas buy for any gardening enthusiast or professional garden designer.  The gardens featured belong to and have been designed by: Patrick Blanc, Fernando Caruncho, Kate Cullity, Jim Fogarty, Ludwig Gerns, Adriaan Geuze, Isabelle Greene, Bunny Guinness, Ron Lutsko, Shunmyo Masuno, Dan Pearson, Antonio Perazzi, Tony Smith, Ted Smyth, Tom Stuart-Smith, Andy Sturgeon, Jacques Wirtz, Ute Wittich, Made Wijaya and Stephen Woodhams. The book presents the gardens of designers from the UK, France, Spain, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Belgium, Australia, New Zealand, The United States, Japan, and Indonesia.

The first two sentences of the Introduction are:  The ‘new’ English garden?’  That’s a big claim.  Tim then goes on to explain what makes his selected gardens new: ‘flicking through the pages it becomes apparent that the trend over the past few decades has been towards a more naturalistic approach to garden making’. This has more to do with planting design than with the geometry or functionality of gardens.

A new palette of repeated grasses and large drifts of perennials (frequently tall or daisy-flowered) began to have an influence, in a movement initially known as the ‘Dutch Wave’, occasionally as ‘matrix planting’ but later more commonly as ‘New Perennials’.

As with Roman, Norman, Renaissance and Baroque design ideas, the new perennials trend started in continental Europe. It began with the work of Karl Foerster in Germany and Piet Oudolf in Holland. For Tim ‘The high watermark of the New Perennials-inspired naturalist planting movement in Britain might be considered Trentham, which includes the work of both Oudolf and Tom Stuart-Smith’.

Piet Oudolf is probably one of the world's most acclaimed garden designer-plantsmen, based in the Netherlands but working and teaching internationally. He has recently been awarded an honorary fellowship by the Royal Institute of British Architects. Noel Kingsbury   is one of the UK's leading experts on naturalistic planting. 'Planting: A New Perspective,' is their third collaboration.  (Also See Noel Kingsbury's Online Planting Course)

Fully revised and updated edition of the world's finest and most authoritative source of gardening advice, from the experts at the RHS.  Marking 20 years since first publication, the updated edition of the RHS Encyclopedia of Gardening is the classic reference for keen gardeners. Packed with unrivalled gardening advice you'll find guidance and step-by-steps on everything from pruning to propagation. Plus new topics reflect current trends including how to grow fruit and vegetables in containers and green roofs.

Whatever your level of skill in the great outdoors, expert tips and guidance from editor Christopher Brickell and a team of specialist contributors, the RHS Encyclopedia of Gardening will help you create and keep your garden perfect all year round.

Clever... valuable introduction to the study of plant science.' - Gardeners Illustrated.  RHS Botany for Gardeners is more than just a useful reference book on the science of botany and the language of horticulture - it is a practical, hands-on guide that will help gardeners understand how plants grow, what affects their performance, and how to get better results.

Illustrated throughout with beautiful botanical prints and simple diagrams, RHS Botany for Gardeners provides easy-to-understand explanations of over 3,000 botanical words and terms, and show how these can be applied to everyday gardening practice. For easy navigation, the book is divided into thematic chapters covering everything from Plant Pests, and further subdivided into useful headings such as 'Seed Sowing' and 'Pruning'. 'Botany in Action' boxes provide instantly accessible practical tips and advice, and feature spreads profile the remarkable individuals who collected, studied and illustrated the plants that we grow today.

Aided by this book, gardeners will unlock the wealth of information that lies within the intriguing world of botanical science - and their gardens will thrive as a result. This is the perfect gift for any gardener.

If you can't make the trip to Beth Chatto's famous Essex garden, looking at A year in the Life of Beth Chatto's Gardens  is the next best thing... Rachel Warne is someone to watch, with a feeling for how things grow and the way light falls. Add words by Fergus Garrett and you have a book that is useful as well as beautiful.

(BBC Gardens Illustrated)  Rachel Warne has trained her lens on the vivid foliage and flowers that dominate these beautiful spaces. Fergus Garrett's words are a perfect companion and really help to bring out the character of the images.

(Amateur Photographer)

For visual food for thought, A Year in the Life of Beth Chatto's Gardens is a sumptuous photographic guide to her Essex gardens.