From design to DIY: Top gardening books to read this winter
Winter is the perfect season to slow down, cozy up and enjoy a good book. For gardeners, it’s an great opportunity to gather fresh ideas, gain inspiration, and build knowledge to put into practice for the next growing season.
Whether you’re dreaming of a beautifully designed landscape, wanting to attract birds and wildlife with hand-crafted birdhouses, or exploring the world of fragrant, edible, or medicinal plants, the right book can spark creativity and provide practical tips to elevate your gardening game.
To help you make the most of this quiet season, we’ve rounded up a selection of must-read gardening books. From timeless design advice to DIY projects and plant care tips, these titles are sure to inspire and inform. Add them to your winter reading list!
Making Bird-Friendly Birdhouses
By Melvin Toellner and Matthew Maguire
Learn how to attract 15 different types of birds, from tiny wrens to owls and ducks (and even bats!) by providing the right type of birdhouse. In this book you’ll find plans and step-by-step instructions to build 13 birdboxes your winged friends would love to call home.
(Paperback; 128 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
Beginner’s Guide to Garden Planning and Design
By Helen Yoest
Gardening information can be overwhelming. This book breaks the process into manageable pieces, from elements of design to practical techniques even an experienced gardener can use. Yoest weaves her personal experiences into each chapter and inspires the reader to create a garden with confidence.
(Paperback; 208 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
The Fragrant Flower Garden
By Stefani Bittner and Alethea Harampolis
Peruse these pages to meet 55 fragrant plants. Get tips on how to grow, harvest and use their aromatic foliage and flowers in the landscape, arrangements, scented gifts and beauty products.
(Paperback; 224 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
The 10-Minute Gardener
By CaliKim
If you think vegetable gardening is too time-consuming, you need this book. It is filled with time-saving tips, broken down into achievable tasks to help you get the most out of your garden without becoming overburdened with work and produce.
(Paperback; 192 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
A Year Full of Pots
By Sarah Raven
Loaded with colorful photos and horticultural insights, this book will inspire you to follow in Raven’s footsteps and create container gardens for every season. Get design tips, plus month-by-month plant recommendations and care advice.
(Hardcover; 416 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
FalconGuides®
Gardeners and nature lovers can have tons of information at their fingertips with these handy reference field guides authored by experts. FalconGuides topics include wildflowers, birds, foraging and insects, as well as a line of hiking, travel, camping and outdoor recreation books.
Pollinators of the American West
by Denver Botanic Gardens and Butterfly Pavilion
Profiles of 300+ beneficial pollinating insects include photos and facts.
(Paperback; 287 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
Wildflowers of North America
by Damian Fagan
More than 500 wildflowers, organized by flower color, help readers identify and learn about the plants.
(Paperback; 312 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
Medicinal Plants of North America
by Jim Meuninck
Photographs and descriptions help readers identify plants that have historical and modern medicinal uses, along with cautionary notes about each one.
(Paperback; 226 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
Edible Wild Plants
by Todd Telander
Colorful botanical illustrations accompany detailed descriptions of 120 common edible plants, with notes on how they have traditionally been consumed.
(Paperback; 125 pages)
Buy the Book on Amazon or at Local Bookstores
