The Thoughtful Gardener: An Intelligent Approach to Garden Design

by Jinny Blom

‘The most romantic, creative person in garden design I know.’ Piet Oudolf

‘Jinny's genius is to marry a beautiful vision to an extraordinary empathy with the landscape into which that vision will fit, resulting in a pastoral harmony second to none’ – Victoria, Lady Getty

Prolific designer Jinny Blom embraces a wide variety of styles, from large garden spaces to formal walled gardensand contemporary installations. What defines her work is her skill with plants and her ability to create a garden that responds to the history of the site and the wider landscape. The gardens Jinny creates are as different as their owners and their locations.

In this book, Jinny shares her insight into the creative process she has developed while designing more than 250 gardens around the world. The Thoughtful Gardener contains modern takes on traditional forms, and is split into six sections: seeing, understanding, structuring, harmonising, rooting, and liberating. All of Jinny's gardens share a commitment to beautiful craftsmanship and considered planting. Structure and detail are important, and receive close attention. The styles vary considerably – logical, calm, beautiful, romantic, naturalistic, formal, sometimes spare – but the principles remain firm. Jinny designs for the long term, with consideration for the environment; these gardens are built to last.

Reflecting Jinny‘s highly individual character, there is plenty of wit and quirkiness alongside the expert knowledge, and it will appeal to the widest audience of garden lovers. Thoughtful and beautiful, yet practical and informative, this book marries artistry with functionality.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Nature, Landscape Architecture, Plants

256 pages, Hardcover

Published March 16, 2017

About the author

Jinny Blom is one of Britain’s foremost landscape gardeners. Her multi award winning career spans 25 years. She and her London based studio work in Europe and across many parts of the world. She has created medal winning gardens at Chelsea Flower Show for King Charles III and Prince Harry amongst others.

“Commissioning a landscape is no different to commissioning a work of art or a piece of music- it is a sensitive, erudite process, not a commodity” says Jinny.

Jinny is Artist in Residence for CW+ at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. She sits on the Gardens Committee for the Rothschild Foundation at Waddesdon. Brother Jinny Blom member of the Artworkers Guild. A longstanding member of the Garden Media Guild and a board member of the Therapeutic Landscapes Network in the USA.

The Thoughtful Gardener; 'An intelligent approach to garden design’ Jinny Blom's bestselling first book and was published in March 2017 by Jacqui Small Publishing.

She lives in Oxford and London with her husband, Marc Fox.

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of lovely pictures from the estates of millionaires. Advice was banal.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful book but it's not very applicable to anyone who isn't landscaping for the 1% or for a public garden.

[Lana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book before finalizing the structural part of my first and only landscape design. It is full of beautiful and inspiring illustrations. I find the author's romantic approach charming. I think, it is a perfect book for those who are already in love with gardening and just want to keep reading about it. I didn't find any practical advice, but it helped me with understanding how I would want to feel both about and in my garden.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Jinny Blom's voice as she writes about the principles behind what makes a garden beautiful, practical, and enjoyable. Though her gardens are of a scale that I can only dream of, it's an inspiring work.

[Emily Nehrt · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars, 10 stars, all the stars. This is the best gardening book I've encountered. It really feels, as is said in the forward, that the reader is "personally included as a friend in a long conversation with the writer." I love Jinny Blom's design aesthetic and sensibilities - her love of landscape and her approach as a passionate Renaissance woman really resonated with me.

If you enjoy classic English gardens, naturalistic landscaping, or garden design in general, you'll love this book. It has excellent and often witty text that takes the reader through her design process, from understanding the land, to building the structure of the garden, to the complexities of planting - all with an absolute feast of gorgeous photographic inspiration.

[romney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good coffee table book. Contains gorgeous photographs, some basic garden plans, lots of simple garden design advice. Some plants are mentioned specifically, but I would have liked more. You can guess at most of it though, she keeps schemes quite simple. The gardens are lovely and though many are gigantic there are plenty of usable ideas here. Overall, an inspirational book.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars for the pictures alone. Total garden porn with a fabulous title slapped on the cover. If I were a multi-millionaire, I would definitely hire Jinny Blom to design my garden. Didn't pay much attention to the words after reading other reviews that mentioned it was a bit short on practical advice for amateur garden hobbyists such as myself.

[Ines Lizárraga Olague · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful photographs
You can tell she has a lot of experience and shares his knowledge.
Thanks to this book, I have learned several things and I am encouraging myself to introduce wild plants that do not need watering all year round and bloom very well.
Yes, there are photographs of all kinds, from simple, low-maintenance gardens to large, budget gardens.

[Mark McTague · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely a book for gardeners of some experience. That said, it was informative though aimed at those with space for expansive gardens. It was also a reasonable balance of concept and process of garden design with the specific details of plantings.

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely to read and admire the pictures, but I often felt I was expected to be familiar with many of the projects which I wasn’t. No practical advice, full of gardens for the 1%, but still interesting. Lured me into thinking more about how gardens make me feel vs how they look.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I came to know Jinny through her Chelsea Flower Show entries, then her short-lived but spectacular podcast. She explains how she approaches each project design, her rationale and philosophy. She may be the poshest gardener I know, but she's a very reliable source, practical and reasonable.

[Bentley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!! Her design sensibilities resonate highly with me. I loved her descriptions and learning about her process.

[Rey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Definitely personal and a decent read. However it Didn’t change my life and had to push myself to finish. Being more real with my ratings from here on out.

[Valeria Isabel · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s lovely, the garden is the gardener was funny. I was seduced by the pictures 🤍

[Bookish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful photos, excellent advice on plantings, and I'm ready to tackle my own garden this spring.