Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
By Lauren Camilleri and Sophia Kaplan, Smith Street Books, $59.99.
Summer is upon us and the wonder of gardening is having your hands in the dirt, the smell of things growing in the soil and having your heart with nature. It doesn’t matter that your head may not be in the sun in the great outdoors, but being indoors also has many rewards.
In Plantopedia, Lauren Camilleri and Sophia Kaplan― both with professional backgrounds in interior architecture and as innovators behind the Sydney-based interior design nursery Leaf Supply ― present the definitive guide to keeping happy, healthy house plants in any space.
As they point out, for many of us living in inner-city apartments with limited access to greenery and even for those living in some suburban or rural areas, caring for and tending to plants in our homes is something we should eagerly embrace. “Growing and looking after an indoor garden is rewarding: a therapeutic endeavour that can help foster a better relationship with the natural world”.
House plants have the power to transform any room. With their lush foliage and structural beauty, they help create and indoor oasis that brings a sense of tranquillity to our busy lives.
There are plants for all levels of indoor gardeners, from budding novices to green thumbs and beyond. Included are more than 130 plant profiles together with foliage plants, succulents and cacti, as well as, rarer gems of the plant world.
The obvious love for indoor plants by the authors is evident in this 416-page hardcover tome. It includes detailed information regarding care, trouble-shooting and some extra tips and tricks to ensure that the house plants thrive. In addition to colourful illustrations and a general index, there’s a glossary, a visual index, more insight for those with a green thumb and a plant care index.
It is rightly said that the “love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies”. However, you first need to understand it in a very real sense. Plantopedia is the only book on house plants you’ll ever need. Now you’re set to … ready, set, grow!
