Grasses for gardens and landscapes will expand your horizons on how to appreciate the possibilities of growing these truly beautiful plants.

Growing up in a midwest prairie environment, I've always been attracted to grasses. As a homeowner, I continue to plant more ornamental grasses (and less turf). So, this book is of great interest to me.

The first half of the book contains prose-style descriptions of various habitats along with grasses that would work in such areas. I'm impressed by the lavish amount of photographs that illustrate grasses in these varied scenarios. Unlike many landscape design books, the writing style is easy to read and also easy to imagine what the setting would look like. Each habitat description comes with a text box that contains a "planting palette" list of grasses as well as other compatible landscape plants.

The second half of the book contains a directory of grasses that would be a very good resource for any gardener. You will find photos of every variety mentioned.

I had sworn not to purchase any more garden books, but this one has caught my fancy! This will be a good investment for me as I work toward removing all my turfgrass and use more ornamental grasses in my landscape. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has a landscape!

Thank you NetGalley and Timber Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Grasses are some of my favorite plants to include in my flower gardens and the landscaping of my property! They add a lot of depth without being too overwhelming! Grasses for Gardens and Landscapes was an incredibly informative guide to different grass types, which grasses would be best for your location and property and how to care for your grasses! It was filled with great pictures and great information! The book is a great tool for anybody beginning their grass gardening journey!

Grasses for Gardens and Landscapes by Neil Lucas is an excellent resource for anyone interested in incorporating more grasses into their landscape. The book is filled with beautiful photographs and practical advice on how to choose and grow a variety of grasses that are both aesthetically pleasing and environmentally friendly.
Neil Lucas, a renowned expert on grasses, shares his wealth of knowledge in this book, offering detailed information on the different types of grasses and their characteristics, as well as tips on how to plant and care for them. He also discusses how to use grasses in different landscape settings, such as meadows, borders, and containers, and how to combine them with other plants for a harmonious and sustainable garden.
Overall, Grasses for Gardens and Landscapes is an informative and inspiring read that will be of great help to anyone looking to enhance their landscape with grasses. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned gardener, this book is sure to provide you with the knowledge and inspiration you need to create a beautiful and sustainable garden.

Grasses for Garden and Landscapes features a very large variety of ornamental and wild grasses. Sadly most of the pictures featured them in a way that made them difficult to distinguish from the surrounding vegetation. And the grasses were shown in an overgrown landscape or what would be termed a wild garden area. I personally found it difficult to determine hue I could personally incorporate the grasses into a more formal and structured garden. I loved the information on where and how the plants could thrive but I would consider this a book better suited for those that prefer a more natural and wild landscaping environment. The book is filled with a great variety of information about grasses.

Thanks for the advance copy of this book.
I am trying to incorporate more grasses into my landscape as my home is backing up to a preservation area.
This book will help in the choosing of the right plants that will be tolerant in my landscape.

After spending some serious time with this book, I have come the conclusion that this is (so far) the penultimate book on designing and landscaping with grasses. Neil Lucas strikes the balance between inspiration and instruction in one beautiful book. You can visit all the Piet Oudolf gardens and try to figure out how he does it or you can buy this book (but still visit the gardens because... you know... gardens are fun to see!)

Two things stand out:

First, this book incorporates design thinking. For the home gardener/landscaper who is looking to move towards using grasses in their landscaping, the author works through the thought process using examples and careful explanations of how the design is worked into the space/landscape.

Second, the author takes a generous cross section of climates and challenges and shows you not just how to plant, but what to plant. I live in a high desert climate, and read this book because I wanted to move towards a lower water landscape solution, and wanted to give my property modern, plant based xeriscape that looks high end instead of just dumping a pile of rocks on my lawn and calling it a day. I found a great starter plan, plant recommendations, and ideas for matrix planting all in the pages of this book. I could have used this book when I lived in the humid American Midwest with a shady lawn and also when I lived in an urban home just outside of Seoul, South Korea. If you can identify your climate zone, you'll be able to use the information in this book to work out a plan.