Country Garden Planner

Trout displays the gardens of the U.S., from Maine to Minneapolis, Minn., from the deep South to the Pacific Northwest, in a series of photographic vignettes that illustrate a broad range of horticultural styles embraced under the ""country"" concept. Urban, rural and suburban gardens are all represented, as are a wide variety of specific themes, from a garden planted for scent to those specializing in dappled shade, coastal conditions, four-season color, easy care and so on. The text for each stop on the tour is breezy and concise, but the real meat is to be found in the accompanying planting plans that provide highly practical tools for admirers to re-create any one of these visions of loveliness in his or her own backyard. Each illustrated plan is followed by a detailed plant list that includes close-up snapshots of recommended plants, together with thumbnail information on preferred habitat, hardiness zone, requirements and culture (however, only the barest of nods is given to such subjects as compost and soil amendment). Rooted firmly in American soil, this is a planner whose eye-catching design and compelling photographs should send readers running for their spades and seed packets. (Nov.)