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From the Archives
Review: The Gardener’s Color Palette
The Gardener’s Color Palette: Paint Your Garden with 100 Extraordinary Flower Choices
By Tom Fischer
Photography by Clive Nichols
Timber Press, 2010
ISBN 978-1-60469-084-2
I’ll admit it: I’m a sucker for pretty pictures.
I suppose that’s why, instead of tossing The Gardener’s Color Palette, by Tom Fischer, on top of the pile of books on my desk that I’m writing reviews for (eventually) I sat down and looked through it instead. And while Clive Nichols’ phenomenal photos were what attracted my attention, Fischer’s writing was what kept me reading. Encouraging, informative, and with just the right touch of humor, Fischer has managed to make a concept I’ve seen a few times before into something fresh and new. For example, here’s what he has to say about the color pink in the garden:
“Pale pink inevitably carries associations of youth, freshness, joy, and spring. As it deepens, however, it sheds the chaste veils of innocence for the low-cut, slinky evening gown of experience.”
Fischer likens using purple in the garden to using just the right amount of butter in your mashed potatoes and dares to refer to all-white gardens as “a cop-out” (I couldn’t agree more!)
Essentially, The Gardener’s Color Palette is the story of ten colors, with ten plants chosen to represent each one. Fischer notes that he tried to choose the ten plants that were the essence of whichever color he was writing about, and that were fairly easy to find and grow in most parts of the U.S. Each plant is allotted a two-page spread– a one-page description (often complete with suggested companion plants) paired with one of Nichols’ stunning photos.
The only problem with a book like this, at least for this particular gardener (who tends to be more “collector” than “designer”) is that it’s like going through the Christmas catalog as a kid: “Oh, yes. I want one of those, and one of those, and one of those….” The sections on green plants and brown/bronze plants are especially dangerous in my case.
All in all, The Gardener’s Color Palette was an enjoyable read that inspired me to try making a few changes to my garden, and opened my eyes to possibilities I hadn’t considered before. Highly recommended for anyone stymied by figuring out which colors to use in the garden, as well as anyone who has maybe been shying away from real color for fear of offending “good taste.” Fischer makes it clear that color is a joy that should be wholeheartedly embraced in our gardens.
ITGO Rating:4 out of 5 trowels
About the Author:
Before moving to Portland, Oregon in 2004, Tom Fischer was the editor of Horticulture magazine in Boston, Massachusetts. His experiences as a bi-coastal gardener and his inexhaustible curiosity about plants have shaped his new garden, which in 2008 was profiled in The Oregonian. A prolific writer as well as an editor, his articles have been featured in magazines such as Garden Design, Gardens Illustrated, and Martha Stewart Living.
Disclaimer: I was provided with an advanced review copy of this book by the publisher with the understanding that the decision to review the book, and the contents of that review, were solely my own. This review encompasses my own opinion of the book, and has been influenced in no way by the publisher or the fact that they provided a copy for review.