Homeowners who want practical information, ideas and solutions will find this guide an unmatched resource; Creative design solutions and plant selection lists for a variety of landscape situations; Inspiring photographs and illustrations provide easy-to-follow instructions; Installation procedures for every landscape planting project; Helpful hints and do-it-yourself techniques from America's leading gardening and landscaping authority.
This comprehensive guide delves into the profession of groundskeeping, offering detailed insights and practical knowledge for both beginners and seasoned professionals. It covers the fundamental aspects of groundskeeping, from its definition, history, and importance, to essential tools and techniques. Key sections include soil testing, lawn care, plant maintenance, and specialized areas such as sports turf and cemetery groundskeeping. The book also provides valuable guidance on starting and managing a groundskeeping business, including marketing, financial management, crew management, and safety principles. Additionally, it addresses modern aspects such as irrigation system design, outdoor lighting, and water features, ensuring readers are well-equipped to handle diverse groundskeeping tasks.
Everything you need to know to create the perfect landscape. Loaded with dazzling ideas and clear step-by-step instructions, this book makes is easy to design, build, plant, and care for the landscape of your dreams. Illustrated throughout in full-colour.
Reveals the vital components of landscape design, offering advice on choosing a site, selecting plants, creating garden accessories, and maintaining a landscape.
A TODAY SHOW #ReadWithJenna BOOK CLUB PICK • An indelible love story about two very different people navigating the entanglements of class and identity and coming of age in an America coming apart at the seams—this is "an extraordinary debut about the ties that bind families together and tear them apart across generations" (Ann Patchett, best-selling author of The Dutch House). In the run-up to the 2016 election, Owen Callahan, an aspiring writer, moves back to Kentucky to live with his Trump-supporting uncle and grandfather. Eager to clean up his act after wasting time and potential in his early twenties, he takes a job as a groundskeeper at a small local college, in exchange for which he is permitted to take a writing course. Here he meets Alma Hazdic, a writer in residence who seems to have everything that Owen lacks—a prestigious position, an Ivy League education, success as a writer. They begin a secret relationship, and as they grow closer, Alma—who comes from a liberal family of Bosnian immigrants—struggles to understand Owen’s fraught relationship with family and home. Exquisitely written; expertly crafted; dazzling in its precision, restraint, and depth of feeling, Groundskeeping is a novel of haunting power and grace from a prodigiously gifted young writer.
Create an eye-catching outdoor oasis with this no-nonsense guide to landscaping As families spend more time at home, they're expanding their living space to their yards, decks, and patios. When you're ready to upgrade the look of your landscape, Landscaping For Dummies offers advice on installing fences and walkways, choosing hardy plants and trees, and enhancing natural habitats for the critters and creatures lurking in your neighborhood. You'll find out how to make your backyard a relaxing retreat space and discover the enjoyment and satisfaction that comes from working in your yard. Landscaping For Dummies includes: Lists of recommended plants and varieties, including the best ones for privacy plantings, low-maintenance groundcovers, and small gardens Advice on how to deal with special landscaping concerns, including fire-prone areas, bee and butterfly gardens, and drought-tolerant and native landscapes Instructions on installing permanent features like decks, patios, fences, and more Pointers on how to water more efficiently, including the latest tools and technologies that can save you time With a little bit of planning and some digging, trimming, or planting, you'll be set to enjoy your yard whenever the mood strikes. Let Landscaping For Dummies be your guide to making the most of your outdoor space.
Explains how to make a lawn safe and environmentally friendly using organic methods, and how to pick the best grass for each climate and sunlight situation.
As the world heats up and we become more and more conscious of our place in the natural scheme, the appeal of the native plants of the Southwest becomes ever more compelling for gardeners. In addition to providing year-round beauty with relatively little maintenance, landscaping with native plants contributes to the repair of the natural ecosystem and brings us closer to our environment—and the array of native plant material available to the Southwestern gardener is diverse and spectacular, providing seemingly endless opportunities for creative and attractive landscapes. In Landscaping with Native Plants of the Southwest, George Oxford Miller provides the definitive guide to choosing the best of the best among the native plants of Arizona and New Mexico. Covering wildflowers, shrubs, trees, vines, groundcovers, and cacti, this comprehensive, richly illustrated book selects the species whose ornamental qualities, growth habit, adaptability, maintenance needs, and beauty add up to the highest landscape value. The illustrations, maps, and charts provide guidelines for species selection and planting, ongoing maintenance, landscape design, and water and energy conservation. In-depth plant profiles describe the habitat requirements for more than 350 native plant species, subspecies, and varieties, with lush photographs illustrating how each plant looks and responds to landscape conditions. As the interest in native-plant landscaping and xeriscaping continues to grow, this book will find a place on the shelf of every gardener and landscaper in the region—or of anybody interested in recreating the beauty of the Southwest in a hot, dry corner of the yard.
Are you ready to turn your yard into a beautifully landscaped paradise? Of course, you are! Before you dive headlong into making over your yard, you should consider where you live and how that impacts your options. This beginner's guide to landscaping will give you a step-by-step process to transform your backyard with gardening, hardscapes, and botanicals. Regardless of where you live in the United States, you'll need to know the basics of what plants, trees, and materials will hold up in your climate and weather conditions. This is an important step when it comes to ensuring that your landscape endeavors are successful and leave you with a feeling of pride rather than frustration. You've probably seen plenty of gardening and landscaping businesses in your area advertising that they can make all your landscaping dreams come true. However, the easiest and most economical way to transform your yard is to take on the landscaping and gardening yourself! Fortunately, you have Landscaping for Beginners, to be your guide. Not only will you be taken through the process of planning your perfect landscape, but you will have access to lists of plants, including fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs, and even vines, that you can grow in your specific region. You'll be given ideas for constructing the best hardscapes for your climate and guidance about the materials that will ensure the longevity for your constructions. These tips and tricks also come with different design ideas so your creativity and imagination can conjure up the perfect landscape for your yard. Believe it or not, you are fully capable of designing and building exactly what you want in your yard. The best part about taking on a do-it-yourself landscape project is that you won't have to rely on someone else to make your designs a reality. Most landscaping projects don't even require a lot of specialized equipment, just the commitment to get it done! Do you have a small yard that you don't think is even big enough for a garden? That's okay, too! There are a lot of options for landscaping and gardening in small spaces, such as container gardening. So, regardless of what size your yard is, the skills you have, or where you live geographically, you can take the information in this book to completely makeover your yard. Use Landscaping for Beginners to make your yard the perfect place for your kids to play in, your friends and family to hang out in, and for you to hold your neighborhood barbeques in.
