Put your desert eyes on, is Scott Calhoun’s first advice to gardeners facing arid Southwestern regions with extreme climate conditions. Then he shows how to translate the natural beauty of the region – mountains, canyons, sculptural succulents, and incandescent sky – into gorgeous yet water-thrifty landscape designs that complement existing architecture as well as the environment that surrounds it.
Hot Garden: Landscape Design for the Desert Southwest
• 11 years ago
Excellent reference I live not in the Southwest but on a hot, dry Caribbean island. This book is a great resource for gardening ideas and lists of plants to try, together with lovely pics.I already grow agaves, yuccas etc. but I liked learning about the drought tolerant flowers I can add to complement these such as desert senna, Mexican poppies, gallardia etc. There is also a a neat section when discussing any plant with edible parts. I wish there were more landscaping idea pics but the focus of the book is a basic how to for gardening in hot, dry climates, and in that repect it excels.
Good Title for Desert Dwellers I have long been a fan of Scott Calhoun’s. Indeed, long before I knew whose house it was, I used to drive by Mr. Calhoun’s Civano property and take notes on the design. I heartily recommend The Hot Garden to gardeners (or would-be gardeners) who dwell in the desert. My only complaint with this particular title is that in a couple of instances the text refers to non-existent photos. I found this particular aspect annoying since the missing photos were ones I really wanted to see for clarification. Whether this lapse was due to an editorial oversight or space limitation, it should not have slipped through the final edits (speaking as an author myself). Even so, it is a worthwhile read for those new to desert gardening.
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