Product Description

Eighty per cent of young people live in concrete cities where space is at a premium. Fewer and fewer of us get the chance to flex our green fingers, but gardening is not just for the Titchmarshes and the Dimmocks. If you fancy a flat full of greenery, homegrown fruit and veg, a window box that's the envy of the street, or you've just acquired your first, much coveted Outside Space but don't have a clue what to grow, this is the book for you. THE VIRGIN GARDENER is a jargon-free plant recipe book divided into five sections: Grow, Decorate, Eat, Drink and Luxuriate. Would you like to sip homemade elderflower bubbly, grow your own garlic, or distil your own rosewater? With simple, step-by-step advice, Laetitia explains how. For the busy and stressed, find quick ideas for turning garage flowers into the perfect posy and tips on which herbs to harvest all year from your windowsill. For the more adventurous, learn how to grow chillies, pineapples and jungle greens. For the perfectionist, discover the secrets to ageing terracotta pots and having bulbs in flower on Christmas Day. And whose flat wouldn't be transformed by mossy pots, a mini alpine meadow or a chocolate bower? Irresistibly sassy, stylish and beautifully illustrated throughout with full-colour photography, THE VIRGIN GARDENER will seduce you into a life of roots and shoots. As Laetitia says, 'Go forth and grow!'

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5699 in Books
• Published on: 2009-03-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 272 pages

Review
'aspires to do for gardening what Jamie Oliver's Naked Chef did for cookery...a must-have aspirational lifestyle bible'
--Bookseller

Review
'A delightfully fresh new voice in the horticultural world that is completely authentic and convincing'

Review
'A delicious book that taps into an overlap of two consuming, evergreen domestic passions: cooking and gardening'

Customer Reviews

Not just for the first-time Gardener!
Firstly this is a beautiful book. Obviously a labour of love for Laetitia - one that I am glad she undertook so that we can all enjoy it! Chapters include:

Basics - the gardening basics: simple recommendations for what you need (and what you need to know) to get started. Laetitia bases this on the things she wanted to know when she got started; she has a point that many of these basics are left out of other gardening books on the assumption that gardeners buying them will somehow just have the knowledge.... Advice on essential items, buying plants and definitions.

Decorate - this is about planting ideas and flower displays. She is very thorough in recommendations of plants and advice. Ideas include a wall of ferns and how to cheat with garage flowers.

Eat - yes, lovely things to eat! Includes peppermint creams made with real garden mint, strawberries, cherry tomatoes, gooseberry lollipops. Mmmmm.

Drink - you probably don't need anymore explanation of the theme! Includes rosewater, rose geranium punch, rosehip syrup and elderflower bubbly.

Grow - sweetpeas, spring bulbs in baskets, kitchen sink cloning and dahlias.

Luxuriate - Growing things that are a little different or special. Includes growing chillis, growing pineapple (I'll be giving this one a go - I'll let you know if I get any fruit...) and a little meadow for private sunbathing.

Extras - answers to some gardening questions that my arise as you work your way through the previous lovely chapters! Includes plant names, the science of how plants grow, soil, feeding and plant husbandry.

The Lust List - a list of plants that Laetitia would like. Of course everyones' list will be different - but this gives lots of gorgeous plants to look through to get your list started!

This is a simply delightful book. The sort to warm your soul and reaffirm your belief in getting out there, enjoying what you have in the garden and making the most of it. It's a joy to read and feast for the eyes - I hope she writes more.

A little gem
I have never felt a need to review a book before but The Virgin Gardener has inspired me to put pen to paper or should I say key-pad to screen! The virgin gardener has it all: wonderful little nuggets of green tips and tasty, simple reciepes, gorgeous photos, inspirational party tips and is amusingly, delightfully written. It has encouraged me to look at the opportunities of gardening in the confined space of my London flat and think organic about life. It is a perfect gift for both boyfriends and girlfriends and is now sitting pride of place on my coffee table. Buy it, enjoy it, and see your life blossom into a happier place.

Antidote to cultivation confusion
If, like me, you have visions of your small patch of outdoor space looking like Kew Gardens, but in reality it looks a little less attractive than a car park, this is a brilliant book to get started. The author has broken down everything into gardening "recipes" and it demystifies the chaos of gardening in a brilliantly simple way. It is totally the opposite of the stack of obtuse gardening books that I have collected over the last 5 years of horticultural genocide. I am enthusiastic about my garden again and that's priceless. Highly recommended.