We garden in soil, and we garden in our dreams.
I am often unsure which gardening I prefer. Certainly, I am thankful for both.
Here is a book from my collection that is helpful for the real, dirty work of gardening as well as the imaginative play of garden dreaming.
1001 Plants To Dream of Growing edited by Liz Dobbs is exactly what it sounds like: a sourcebook for garden dreams. With beautiful photographs and sections on everything from “Annuals” and “Perennials” to “Bulbs, corms, and tubers” to “Indoor and patio,” this is an incredibly comprehensive catalog.
What I especially love about it though is that it doesn’t dabble in generalities.
For instance, it doesn’t recommend Brunnera (bugloss) or Hemerocallis (daylilies) generally, rather it recommends very specific varieties to dream of growing. Anyone who has ever gone to a garden center looking for a daylily only to be confronted by two dozen varieties with very different descriptions on their labels will appreciate this approach.
So, 1001 Plants to Dream of Growing doesn’t simply recommend camellia but gives descriptions of two very desirable varieties: ‘Donation’ and ‘Bob Hope,’ along with a few other alternatives if you’d like a different color or your climate is slightly different.
1001 Plants to Dream of Growing doesn’t suggest you dream of herbs in general or even thyme in general but specifically recommends thyme of the Coccineus group for a flowering carpet effect or Thymus vulgaris for good looks and good flavor.
This book is specific, and that’s exactly what we need to turn our general, hazy dreams into reality.