Böcker av Shirley Hibberd

First published in 1871, this is a 'handy guide' to amateur gardening written by Shirley Hibberd (1825-90), a highly influential Victorian expert. Of enduring interest to enthusiasts and horticulturalists, the book offers advice on a diverse selection of flowers, types of garden, and gardening methods.

James Shirley Hibberd (1825-90) was a journalist and writer on gardening, whose popular works had great influence on middle-class taste. Although not a trained horticulturalist, his many books were based on practical experience. He developed a succession of gardens in North London, concentrating on particular types of plants, and his books reflected this work, with this book of 1864 and The Fern Garden (1869) being particularly successful. He also wrote on garden design, flower arrangement, garden furniture and architecture, and his Rustic Adornments of 1856 (reissued in this series, together with The Fern Garden), is an interesting document of social history. He edited the magazine Floral World until 1875 and later The Gardener's Magazine, and was even consulted by the government about potato blight. His engaging and very personal style made him a popular forerunner of modern celebrity gardeners, and set a fashion for highly decorative and ornamental gardens.

James Shirley Hibberd (1825-90) was a journalist and writer on gardening, whose popular works had great influence on middle-class taste. This 1869 book on ferns was particularly successful; Hibberd also wrote on floral arrangements, water gardens, ferneries and greenhouses in Rustic Adornments (1856), also available in this series.

James Shirley Hibberd (1825-90) was a journalist and horticultural writer who worked as a bookseller before devoting his time to researching and lecturing and publishing on gardening. An active member of the Royal Horticultural Society, he edited several gardening magazines including Floral World, and his writing was widely enjoyed and respected. This book, first published in 1856, is Hibberd's carefully researched and practical guide to decorating the home and garden. Hibberd explains the practical aspects of garden design, the pleasures of bee-keeping, and how to construct a pond or aquarium. Full of useful advice on everything from preserving cut flowers to the ideal species of bird to keep in an aviary, this is a charming and enjoyable manual for the Victorian gardener which was very popular in its time, and remains a useful source for the cultural historian as well as an entertaining treat for the general reader.