WHEN a book is reprinted for the 43rd time, and sells more than seven million copies, you know it must be a good one.
Yates Garden Guide is the oldest Australian book in continuing publication and has been released in a fully revised and updated format to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the company in Australia.
- Yates Garden Guide, by Judy Horton, HarperCollins, rrp $39.99
This guide, like those before it, is one of the country's most comprehensive sources of advice for a green thumb.
Illustrated throughout its 500 pages, it details more than 1000 plant species, new problem solving charts, as well as chapters on designing a range of garden styles.
Hints from gardeners even include one from The Weekly Times' Tony Fawcett, who recommends: "Never give up on a clay soil. If you keep on working at it and introduce plenty of gypsum, it's amazing what nutrients you can unlock".
This edition also features a pictorial history of Yates in Australia. When the garden guide was first released, gardens were more formal and Victorian, with segmented areas.
At the beginning of the 20th century, and the Edwardian era, our gardens had timber paling fences, with hedges and a collection of shrubs.
Now, says the book, the trend is for shrinking gardens, with the dominance of larger houses.
Let's hope we don't abandon the garden entirely - although this book will help stem the tide of that trend.
