Originally published in 1870, The Wild Garden was a sensation, up-ending the conventions of Victorian garden-making, sweeping away formal ideas and artifice, and replacing it with a naturalistic approach, favouring native plants. William Robinson’s book effectively introduced the idea of the cottage garden and the herbaceous border. Practical, beautiful and occasionally argumentative,The Wild Gardenincludes chapters on wild roses, bog gardens and ‘Wild Gardening on Walls, Rocks, or Ruins.’ Truly ahead of its time,The Wild Gardenchanged gardening for ever and remains a key work. Our new edition, the most recent addition to the Nature Classics series, has an introduction by the writer, journalist and gardener Alice Vincent.
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William Robinson(1838-1945) was an Irish gardener, writer and journalist. His writing influenced a generation of gardeners and he became a friend and collaborator with Gertrude Jekyll. In 1884 he purchased the Elizabethan house Gravetye Manor, where he worked to transform its gardens.
Alice Vincentis a writer, journalist and gardener. Her books includeRootbound, Why Women GrowandHark.
Cover byCedric Morris(1889-1982).
"One of the classics of gardening…he’s worth listening to today, and noting."—The Daily Telegraph
"‘…the boldest attack on unnatural art."—Robin Lane Fox
![The Wild Garden [Paperback]](/itemImage/2/5/2/1/2_6995123.jpg "The Wild Garden [Paperback]")