Gardening : Craft of Gardening

“The Practical Gardener” (Little, Brown; $18.95) is by an author well known to those who watch public television’s “The Victory Garden.” He happens to have a New England seafarer’s accent that is thicker than the fogs that plague the Grand Banks, so there is no doubt where Roger Swain is writing from.

But in this case, the information is mostly of the kind that is almost universal, not about plants so much, as about the craft of gardening. No matter where you live, you will have to agree with the author’s statement that “There are no pacifist gardeners. To decide to grow anything--be it strawberries or snapdragons--is to join in a never-ending war with weeds.”

Still, there is much talk about cold and cold frames, but the writing is witty and wise, and well worth reading.

Read and Dream

While “The Practical Gardener” has no photographs, “Antique Flowers” by Katherine Whiteside (Villard Books; $29.94) has almost nothing but. They are by photographer and husband Mick Hales and are spectacular and very dreamy.

And, since we cannot grow many of the old-fashioned plants pictured, dream is all we can do for much of this book. Most of the photos are from the East Coast or England, and the information given on them is spotty (often frustrating, when a particularly beautiful flower is not even identified).

There is a list of sources for the featured plants, and the book does tell what USDA zones they will supposedly grow in (we live in USDA Zone 10), but the lack of information doesn’t really matter in this case because it is the dreamy photos that will give you food for thought, and perhaps a few ideas for fall planting.

Imitating Nature

“The Natural Garden” by Ken Druse (Clarkson N. Potter; $35) is another elegant book from back East (though it does include some photos from California) and like many books on the market today, it attempts to do too much.

If it simply discussed the design and goals of a “natural garden” it would be a gem because these ideas are nicely stated and beautifully illustrated.

But it also attempts to discuss plants in detail and how to grow them, and this kind of information simply cannot be done except on a regional basis--there are simply too many climates in this country. But the idea of a garden that seeks to imitate nature more is inspiring and rapidly becoming a hot topic so that side of this book is worth the cost.

Experienced California gardeners will spot in the photographs what will grow here and what will not, or will at least be able to take a guess if a plant is worth the gamble, but beginners beware. Before you get too excited about a particular plant or combination, consult a regional guide, such as the “Sunset Western Garden Book” to see if it really will grow here.