The Garden Refresh: How to Give Your Yard Big Impact on a Small Budget

by Kier Holmes

Grow more, spend less

So you want a stylish, healthy, and productive garden that is budget and Earth-friendly? Of course you do. Garden designer Kier Holmes shows you how, in this accessible and spunky guide. She shares everything you need to create a productive and lush garden that can truly be used and enjoyed. Packed with hundreds of tips on design, plant selection, and how to address problematic situations, it also has information on which hardscape elements are worth the splurge, how to decide where to start, and how to reduce maintenance through design. Inspirational, practical, and endlessly creative, The Garden Refresh is destined to become the book you turn to again and again for the best insider ideas.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Reference

256 pages, Paperback

Published June 7, 2022

Reviews

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

cost-effective guidelines

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contained some helpful tidbits, but tried to cover too many areas - everything from growing herbs to water propagation to lighting. Topics that would warrant an entire book were addressed in a single paragraph. The photography was nice; a good starter for someone getting started with gardening but too broad to be helpful with region specific gardening issues.

[Michelle Mallette · Rating 5 out of 5]

See my full review here.
This new title at our library caught my eye, and it’s an absolute gem. Garden designer Holmes encourages people to spend more time enjoying their yards, by flatly rejecting the chore-filled time-sucker garden and offering inspiration for creating quirky, quiet spaces for enjoying the outdoors. And on a budget! Topics include lawn alternatives, food production, making your own soil amendments, weed control, solar lighting and water-wise options. She discusses when to consider hiring a professional, and offers DIY solutions and pro tips for when you don’t need to. There are garden lists galore, and instructions on transplanting, dividing, and seed sowing and collecting. The book is loaded with full-colour photos, often three to a page, and each has a caption that gives you all the information you need to try it yourself. Along with advice on dealing with common challenges, Holmes provides – you know I’m going to check this – an excellent, 12-page index to help you find what you want right away, all in a beautiful book of just 250 pages. My thanks to the Grand Forks & District Public Library for including this in its nonfiction collection.

[Annarella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any Timber press gardening book I read made me learn something new and useful. This is another book that made me learn a lot. Well written and informative.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Selena (Life of a Random) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this book! It's great for beginners to gardening as it touches on all kinds of background things too like composting, soil quality, watering systems, different materials to use for your garden and still be earth-conscious. Very digestible.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much in this book! From soil to seeds to maintenance to best plants for location to reusing/recycling products! This is on my wishlist to purchase.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fine. The author is from the Bay Area in California and her climate and priorities are pretty different from mine.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has all kinds of fun ideas for my back yard! I thought it was very helpful for spurring new ideas, for which I can get details in other books.

[tin_foil_tinnu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good amount of information, I took notes :)