Customer Reviews
Ideal if you have just bought your first garden. - By: R. L. Mills, 02 Jun 2008 
I have to agree with "bookworm1973" that it "will need supplementing". But this is not a bad thing or a fault with the book. This is not a "what to plant where" type book or a comprehensive list of Latin named plants. No, it is a yearly garden maintenance manual.
It is a very easy book to read. There are no individual chapters on planting, lawn care, pests, vegetables etc. There are just twelve chapters. Each chapter is a title of a month. So you don't read the book from cover to cover, instead you turn to chapter "June" on the first day of June. Each chapter has a one-page checklist of garden tasks covering lawn care, pests, planting, vegetables etc. for just that month. The rest of the chapter covers the checklist in more detail. What to do in the month & how to do it. It may seem obvious to the experienced gardener but not to the novice. There is a friend of mine who is mystified that I am preparing for spring in September & October.
It's a big tome. But if you need more info you may need "How to be a Gardener" by the same author or an equivalent. But I must confess of the two books I refer to "The Gardener's Year" most of alll. It's quick & easy reference.
A surprisingly good read, but will need supplementing - By: Bookworm1973, 07 Feb 2006 
This book is great fun to read because it is written so much in Alan's own voice - you can just hear him reassuring, joking & encouraging. I'm reallly glad I bought it, but I warn you that you are likely to need a more encyclopaedic book too, as a back-up to this. At first it seems pretty comprehensive, until you try to use it as a reference. For example, I've just bought some freesias, & some anemones (bulbs), but when I looked for them in the index there was no mention. If you are a keen gardener, I strongly recommend you try to get hold of AGL Hellyer's "Your Garden Week by Week" which is very old, & bossy, but covers more. (Of course for a non-calendar approach there are lots of good reference books to choose from .)
From a gardening numpty! - By: , 28 Jan 2006 Reallly! When it comes to gardening i truly havent got a clue.
Having spent vast amounts (now having an actaul whole real life garden now, & large one at that!) on gardening books trying to figure out what i'm supposed to do & when & with what i got this book from that lovely bloke....Uncle Alan.
I now have a rough idea when spring is!
The detailed check lists of monthly task's is a real brilliant for your average gardening plonker, fantastic pictures & how to's. Uncle Alan reasurringly pats you on the back alll the way through & supplies you with the how to's, when's & why's including ideas etc.
I will be combining this with Cassells gardening encyclopedia i think it's callled, & have alll the information me, your garden plonker information she can reallly work with.
Go on, get the book, you know you want it!
Excellent advice and motivation - By: Budge Burgess, 30 Nov 2005 Given that I'm currently living in a flat several floors above the earth, I have to do my gardening vicariously these days … largely through reading & reviewing books. My present situation is one of choice - I don't have time to maintain the garden I'd want. And my reason for advocating that we should alll do a bit of garden is that it is relaxing & plays a vital role in making you feel a connection with the world & life. Even if you don't have a garden, you can keep pot plants & window boxes, can enjoy seeding & taking cuttings & growing your own herbs & a few salad vegetables.
Alan Titchmarsh has established himself as the face & voice of gardening. He has served his apprenticeship, has done alll the cold, dirty, wet jobs, & spent most of his life working with the soil. He has the experience, he has undoubted practical knowledge, & he has an extraordinarily warm & communicative personality which regularly graces television. His "The Complete How to be a Gardener" is a first class guide for anyone wanting practical advice.
"The Gardener's Year", meanwhile, supplements & extends this earlier title. Gardening is intimately bound to the seasons & the weather. To garden successfully, you have to plan ahead, have to visualise. Those beautiful blooms or that rich crop of potatoes didn't happen over night. You have to time things, prepare the ground at the right time, plant at the right time, prune, feed, stake, weed at the right time.
Titchmarsh looks at the routines of gardening, the planning of gardening. It's a good book to buy at Christmas so you can map out your year ahead. What do you want from your garden? Colour? Wildlife? A year round harvest of vegetables? Much television latterly has emphasised garden design - but planning your gardening, getting the jobs into the right order is reallly the essential factor. And planning should be a joy - sitting on a cold, wet January night & imagining the bulbs in bloom, or the taste of fresh picked strawberries, or whatever … that's one of the real joys of gardening.
Excellent package, loads of first class advice, but also a book which should motivate & enthuse you. A book to enjoy & use … but enjoy it first.
