Fine Foliage: Elegant Plant Combinations for Garden and Container

Beautiful photos, logical and helpful organization of information, and lots of new, creative plant pairings that are inspiring even to a Master Gardener.

I bought this book and I am in the process of drooling. Within the pages of this gemstone, the gardener uncovers a delicious palette of color, texture, form, and organic composition fit for a queen. Yes, that would be YOU. Get ready for a brand new definition of eye candy: the kind of candy-laced foliage that shimmers when it's back-lit by the afternoon sun, or the kind that cascades along the sensuous backside of a glazed container. It's enough to make your jaw drop, or at least drop what you are doing and head straight to the nearest garden center and start hoarding plants. Even the most disciplined dirt-enthusiast will be hell-bent on duplicating some of the delicacies pictured in the pages of this book. And that, Dear Gardener, will be an easy task, because this little gem is so well organized and meticulously photographed, that anyone, from novice to professional, will be able to recreate anything from a forested foliage-border to a container filled with scented cedars, fluttering grasses, and scalloped-hued heucheras....with nary a blossom in sight. But whatever you do, don't miss my personal favorite foliage-combo on page.... No, nevermind - my favorite foliage-combo changes every 15 minutes.

I like practical gardening books. Books that make it easy for me to take the information and translate it to my own garden. Even though I've been gardening for years, design is one area where I have challenges. I'm also into foliage, particularly evergreen foliage, because I live in the South, and I can enjoy a nice-looking garden year-round with a bit of effort.The photography in the book is beautiful and nicely illustrates the points. The overall layout makes it easy to pick up, take to the garden center, and really use. Not only do you get lists of plant combinations, you see a photo of the plants together and individual photos of each plant. You learn why the combination works--so you can apply those principles to other areas of your gardening and build upon your knowledge as you look at the book.Fine Foliage is pretty enough to be a coffee table book, but small enough to be easy to tuck into your purse to take with you while plant shopping. Highly recommend!

I am an intermediate gardener, realizing I need more carefully thought-out designs I reach out to blogs and books. This book is fabulous. It's really eye candy. It's true that it can't focus on any one zone and may lean toward the warmer zones, it is still a helpful book. I love the size. I can pop it in my bag and take it everywhere. A downside? It needs to be at least double the page count! Triple! I want more photos! I would also like substitution recommendation plants (same color, or similar texture but for different zone, sun or shade). Or take a dark leafed plant and show me two directions you could go with it. Love it.

Good inspirational book for container designs and combination of plants!!

Disclaimer: The authors are friends of mine and I write for the same publisher, but I didn't see this book until it came in the mail. So, opinions are totally my own unless you buy me a drink, in which case opinions are still totally my own but we'll have a fun evening.This book is like horticultural eye candy--it's not often that I get a book and can't put it down until I see every page. The photography is so gorgeous, and the foliage combinations that Karen and Christina came up with are pure genius. I've long admired their work, and as a designer, it reminds me to up my game when it comes to foliage colors and textures. Thank you for a wonderful book--it will be a trusted resource for me as I put together not only my own landscape but those of my clients'.

I kept flipping through this book, hoping to see more of the amazing photography that so many reviewers raved about. However, I was disappointed--perhaps because I was looking for more content devoted to container plantings, and more photos of entire plantings. A lot of the photos are of close-up leaf contrasts so you don't get a sense of how the plant sizes and growth habits play with each other--and a couple of the plants shown in photos aren't identified in the book. Also, the planting "recipes" aren't organized by container vs. landscape garden. However, I found the "recipes" for container and yard plantings to be informatively detailed and applicable to lots of zones.

Sheila Schultz here... and I must admit to being a Container Garden designer that is addicted to foliage, whether it be in the shape of a traditional leaf or the sword shape of a sculptural agave. I love them all. The colors, the shapes and the textures in foliage allow my imagination go wild with possibilities. If you haven't already been bitten by the 'foliage' bug I guarantee it won't take you more than a few pages of 'Fine Foliage' before you are on the road to being as smitten as I. This book is more than user friendly and the photography is amazing. Chapman and Salwitz have created a visual feast of combinations and I guarantee that you will be inspired to create your own by the time you reach the last page!

A beautiful book, full of wonderful ideas. A great asset for any garden lover. Would make a perfect gift for a gardener.

don't let the title put you off if you think you only need flowers in the summer garden. This little treasure of a book illustrates how good foliage plants can be in different combinations. I have already seen a number of vignettes that I want in my garden.

Beautiful little book both for reference and just to look at. I'm already putting some ideas into reality. Gorgeous photos and easy to follow . A must for anyone who enjoys foliage plants.

Lovely book. I just love the example photos. So easy to follow and create from.

Fabulous - great advice, thorough and an easy guide for anyone