Discover how to change the world from your back garden.
Leading horticulturalist Marian Boswall has worked on some of the UK's most ambitious and innovative regenerative landscape projects, and now she shares her wisdom in this trail-blazing guide. A step-up from sustainable gardening, which focuses on minimising our impact on the Earth, regenerative gardening is about making an active contribution to the health of the planet: improving and replenishing biodiversity through our gardens.
Whether you have a large plot of land, a shady patio or a windowsill, you can make an impact by simply picking up a spade. Drawing on lessons from forward-thinking farmers, foresters, rewilders and nature itself, The Kindest Garden shows you how to create a garden that is both a beautiful sanctuary for yourself and also a place where nature can thrive.
For eco-conscious gardeners who want to make a real difference, this practical and accessible guide gives you all the tools you need.
Marian Boswall is a leading landscape architect and horticulturalist, was a lecturer in Historic Garden Conservation at Greenwich University for several years and is a co-founder of the Sustainable Landscape Foundation. Her projects invest in the land for the very long term and wellness is a deeply embedded ethos: Marian works with the way the land can heal and connect us on all levels; in early 2020 she gave a TedX talk on how our gardens can care for us and the earth. Marian writes and lectures on sustainable design and was awarded the Garden Columnist of the Year in 2019. She has also been featured as a Country Life ‘Top 50’ Garden Designer, House & Garden ‘Top 50’ UK Garden Designer and Country and Town House ‘Top 10’ Garden Designer.
What is regenerative gardening?
Taking inspiration from large-scale regenerative projects
Practising kindness
Top ten insights for regenerative gardeners
How to use this book
PART ONE: RELATIONSHIPS –THE ELEMENTS OF THE GARDEN
SOIL: WHAT I S IT?
Taking inspiration from the soil network
Weeds
WATER: HOW DOES THE WATER CYCLE WORK?
Wetland regeneration: what we can learn from large-scale projects
Water in our gardens
ECOSYSTEMS: THE NETWORK OF LIFE
Understanding garden ecosystems
Creating a haven: a practical guide to planning an ecosystem garden
MATERIALS: HOW TO CHOOSE MATERIALS TO WORK WITH
Understanding materials for gardens and landscapes
ENERGY: RENWABLE ENERGY
How to work with natural energy
How to work with land energy
RESILIENT PLANTING
Inpsiration for our gardens: large-scale woodlands
Meadows
Prairie planting
Mediterranean planting
Establishment and management
PART TWO: MEASURING OUR IMPACT
WHY SHOULD WE MEAUSURE OUR IMPACT?
What can we assess in our own gardens?
PART THREE: CONNECTION – THE KINDEST GARDEN
OUR NEED FOR CONNECTION
How gardening for nature can be gardening for ourselves
How to build community through gardening
Reconnecting with ourselves
Sharing knowledge: a final note
Appendix 1: Comparison of pond liners
Appendix 2: Grey water recycling
Resources and further information
Index
Acknowledgements
Other versions by this Author