The Profitable Arte of Gardening
by Thomas Hill (c.1558)

Thomas Hill’s Profitable Arte of Gardening was the first dedicated gardening manual to be published in English – a milestone in horticultural literature. The author recognised the growing popularity of gardening in England and that a guide in the vernacular tongue was long overdue.

Hill’s gardening manual aimed to share the pleasure and profits of tending a garden in a cheap, accessible and practical work “for the commoditie of many”.

The book satisfied the appetite of an increasingly literate readership hungry for gardening knowhow and ran to many further editions. While Hill draws heavily on classical writers such as Aristotle and Theophrastus, it is his own passion for gardening that shines through. 

Describing himself as a ‘Londoner’, Hill was an established writer and translator of popular books on science and the supernatural.

Thomas Hill went on to write an even more successful book on gardening in 1577 using the unusual pseudonym, Didymus Mountain. This woodcut from the volume shows garden watering techniques.

The Gardeners Dictionary
by Philip Miller (1731)

Philip Miller’s Gardeners Dictionary captures the more scientific approach to gardening that had emerged by the 1700s. It reveals an Enlightenment appetite for understanding the biology of plants, their natural habitats and cultivation requirements. It also reflects the boom in plant introductions from the Americas, which had led to significant strides in the study and practice of horticulture.

The many editions of the Dictionary published throughout the 18^th century provide a fascinating record of the evolution of gardening at the time. This highly influential work also appealed to an expanding demographic, with its extensive list of subscribers ranging from high society gentlemen, to ladies and professional gardeners.

The City Gardener
by Thomas Fairchild (1722)

Thomas Fairchild (c.1667-1729) was a renowned nurseryman and horticulturist from Hoxton in London. His book, The City Gardener (1722), was the first to deal specifically with urban gardening and its challenges, from space restrictions to pollution. Fairchild introduced his readers to a world of plants and trees that could thrive in the often harsh conditions of the city.

The creation of a successful book of gardening advice was of course also a perfect way for Fairchild to advertise his nursery business in Hoxton and to raise his public profile. The use of gardening manuals for commercial promotion had become increasingly common amongst nurserymen and professional gardeners at the time.

The Ladies Flower Garden by Jane Wells Loudon (1840)

The Ladies Flower Garden was not the first gardening text aimed at women. However, earlier attempts had tended to be written by men with very traditional ideas of ‘proper’ feminine gardening pursuits. Jane Wells Loudon (1807-1858) challenged such views by writing highly practical guides to gardening aimed specifically at a female readership.

From the early 1840s, she wrote numerous books accessible to the female amateur that were not afraid to tackle the grittier aspects of gardening. Her clear and conversational style encourages women to take up their spades and confidently undertake tasks that they might have previously thought ‘beyond their capabilities’. Loudon went on to found the Ladies Magazine of Gardening and was a self-taught artist who illustrated many of her own books

House Plant Expert
by D.G Hessayon (1961)

After the Second World War, the boundaries of gardening shifted beyond the garden borders into the home. A vogue for houseplants and indoor gardening took hold.

Inspired by Scandinavian modernist interior design, David Hessayon created the Expert Series of books, publishing the first, Be Your Own Gardening Expert in 1958. The House Plant Expert was a worthy addition to the series in 1961. Its bold and informative illustrations capture everything you could ever need to know about houseplants and their care. The book went on to sell over 10 million copies and is still one of the bestselling guides to houseplants in the world.

The Dry Garden
by Beth Chatto (1979)

Beth Chatto (1923–2018) was one of the most influential gardeners and eminent horticultural writers of our time. She pioneered a wider cultural shift towards more environmentally friendly gardening techniques.

Chatto’s doctrine of “right plant, right place” is at the heart of her classic work The Dry Garden. She shows that plants thrive best in conditions similar to their natural habitat where they will require less attention and less watering to flourish. Chatto argues that this approach to ‘sympathetic’ planting will allow us to garden in a more sustainable way in the future.

How to Make a Wildlife Garden
by Chris Baines (1985)

Published over a century apart, How to Make a Wildlife Garden (1985) takes a very different approach to that proposed by Thomas Robinson in The Wild Garden (1870). Chris Baines’ focus is not on the visual appeal of a ‘wild’ garden but instead on the value of its biodiversity. Rather than trying to master nature, we should work with it to nurture the wildlife that is so essential to a balanced ecosystem.

Chris Baines launched How to Make a Wildlife Garden at the 1985 Chelsea Flower Show – which was also the year that he designed the Show’s first ever wildlife garden. The book continues to be a popular and much sought after work for keen gardeners seeking to work in harmony with nature.

The RHS Plant Finder,
The Royal Horticultural Society
(published annually since 1987)

Since 1987, the RHS has published The Plant Finder – a treasure trove of horticultural information. This comprehensive guide offers expert advice about the myriad plants that are available today and how to find them for your garden.

The current edition lists 81,000 plants and 530 nurseries, but the directory is reviewed each year to provide the gardener with up-to-date information. Used by amateurs and professionals alike, The Plant Finder shows how far modern gardening manuals have come, easily available both physically and digitally – something that Thomas Hill could never have imagined back in the 16^th Century!