cover image Big Ideas for Small Spaces: Creative Ideas and 30 Projects for Balconies, Roof Gardens, Windowsills, and Terraces

Big Ideas for Small Spaces: Creative Ideas and 30 Projects for Balconies, Roof Gardens, Windowsills, and Terraces

Kay Maguire and Tony Woods. Firefly, $19.95 trade paper (176p) ISBN 978-1-77085-869-5

This beautiful and useful guide from Maguire (Grow Your Own Crops in Pots) and garden designer Woods shows it’s possible to grow plants practically anywhere. Their book will help readers brighten even the smallest of spaces— a balcony, a fire escape, a window ledge, or even a wall—with green. It includes everything beginners need to know and also provides advice and tips tailored for experienced gardeners who only have small spaces for growing. Topics include the benefits of gardening, different ways of using small spaces, helpful DIY projects, plant suggestions, plant care instructions, and garden design. The work is comprehensive without being overwhelming and is enhanced by a multitude of attractive photos that help illustrate the concepts. The projects, such as a hanging basket for herbs and pocket planters for a wall, are clever and completely doable, even for the somewhat inept. They can begin with something as simple as putting a potted plant on a windowsill. The authors also devote a chapter to troubleshooting for readers plagued by cats, mildew, and other garden scourges. This book, though slim, is powerful and inspirational in a refreshingly practical way. (Feb.)