When we moved into our current house many years ago, as a new build we were faced with a patch of mud and rubble we laughingly referred to as the garden. With a baby just beginning to crawl and summer approaching, the first priority was to lay some lawn but after years of living in flats, the novelty of having a proper garden was just too tempting and I couldn't wait to start planting it up. Some years later when the children had moved on to playing out, I decided to change the garden from just lawn and a few flowers into something more ambitious. At that time I joined a book club and picked the RHS Encyclopaedia of Plants and Flowers as one of my introductory choices. Over the years it's proved to be an invaluable point of reference.

Price and availability:

My edition was published in 1989 but the book has been reprinted and I assume, updated several times over the years. Currently, early editions of the book can be bought from Amazon for the bargain price of 1p plus postage. The 2010 edition currently retails for approximately £19.

My opinion:

When I first began gardening, like most novices I didn't have much of a clue and my gardening choices were pretty hit and miss and resulted in some rather expensive mistakes. These included buying a leylandii which soon outgrew its allotted space and had to be felled. It was pretty obvious that I really needed a book to which I could turn to answer my questions. This encyclopaedia has more than proved itself up to the job over the years.

The editor-in-chief is Christopher Brickell, a man who comes with the highest credentials. He's a horticulturalist who for many years worked for the RHS, initially as Director of Wisley Gardens and ultimately becoming Directory General of the Society. He has a CBE for services to horticulture. If he can't help people with their gardens, I don't know who can!

The first thing I should mention about this book is that it is huge and heavy! This makes it not the easiest book to read but as it proclaims on the cover, it's 'the definitive reference work for every gardener.'

The book is laid out in a way that makes accessing information easy. After the contents page there follows a few short chapters informing the reader how to use the book and information on plant origins and names, which isn't as patronising as one may think but informs the reader in such a way that they can use the book with ease. Next is a chapter on creating your garden giving tips not only on style and structure but also on how to achieve year round colour, all of which is accompanied by details photographs demonstrating how this can be done.

One of the most useful chapters is The Planter's Guide which details what plants work well in a particular situation such as what grows in dry shade (always a difficulty) or what to plant for quick cover and the like. This is only six pages but one I've referred to many times over the years.

Then we get to the real meat of this book: The Plant Catalogue. This is divided up so that it's easy to find that specific plant for your garden with each section divided into every conceivable permutation of plant from trees, conifers and shrubs to perennials, bulbs, rock plants and everything in between. Whatever type of plant you're looking for, this book has it covered. Each of these sections are further sub-divided into height so, for instance, if you're looking for a medium sized tree which has autumn interest, you can turn straight to that section without having to wade through details of lots of other totally unsuitable trees. An extra feature in the tree and shrub sections is that as well as a photograph each plant has a drawing showing the outline shape and eventual height. This is especially useful if you're planning on planting underneath the tree or shrub in terms of the amount of light they would receive depending on whether the tree grows upright or has over-hanging branches.

In the perennials section, looking up the perfect plant is even easier because this is divided up not only into height and seasonal interest but also by colour. If you're looking for a white flowering plant for the centre of the border which flowers in spring, that section will offer you plenty of choices and furthermore give you additional details such as whether they thrive in full sun or partial shade and water requirements. As well as the usual plant groups, the encyclopaedia offers detailed information on some specialist groups such as roses, holly, carnations, chrysanthemums and the like.

Each plant has an accompanying colour photograph and a short description to guide the gardener when making their decision on which plant to buy. The book will certainly help prevent making an expensive mistake, especially with costly items such as trees and large shrubs. The encyclopaedia also gives details of plant hardiness showing the minimum temperature each plant can endure. This is useful even for British gardeners because a plant which may thrive in the slightly warmer temperatures of Cornwall could very well turn up its toes and die in the north of Scotland.

At the back of the book is the Plant Dictionary which details the characteristics and cultivation of over 8000 plants, all of which are suitable for growing in temperate climates and offers suggestions for cultivars within each plant genus. The book ends with a glossary of terms and an invaluable index of common names which allows gardeners who only know the English name for a plant to discover its Latin equivalent. For instance if you're looking for a cowslip, the index will tell you it's Latin name is primula veris and the page number for plant details.

Despite my copy of this encyclopaedia being almost thirty years old, it's more than proved its worth over those years and though more up to date editions undoubtedly give modern cultivars which hadn't been developed back in 1989, it is still a great reference book. If you're a budding gardener looking for just one book to help you design and grow a garden perfect for your needs, make this encyclopaedia the one you buy.