About this item

Stone in a garden adds an authentic feeling that nothing else can match. Whether it is a low wall, a standing stone, a dry stream or a walk, stone enlivens a space and adds a sense of permanence. Until recently, stone was an overlooked element in the landscape, but now we are rediscovering this most ancient of materials. Isamu Noguchi, the artist and landscape designer, summed it up nicely, "Any gardener will tell you that it is the rocks that make a garden. They call them the 'bones' of the garden."

In The Spirit of Stone, award-winning landscape designer Jan Johnsen presents a richly photographed, authoritative guide to creative and practical uses for stone and gravel in the landscape: rock gardens, steps, drainage areas, paths, garden walls, benches, and more. Stone's durability, coupled with its sustainable uses, make it especially appealing to homeowners looking for innovative ideas for conserving water and keeping it on site. A special chapter is devoted to plants and stones to showcase how these two complement each other beautifully in a garden.

The Spirit of Stone is an essential idea book for anyone looking to add dimension to their outdoor space - the down-to-earth tips and descriptive photos will inspire designers,gardeners, stonemasons, and homeowners alike.



About the Author

Jan Johnsen

An engaging writer and speaker, Jan Johnsen has been in the landscape design and horticulture professions for over four decades. She has worked in Kenya, Japan, Hawaii and across the US. She was awarded the 2019 Award of Distinction by the Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) . Her garden design book, Gardentopia - Design Basics for Creating Beautiful Outdoor Spaces (Countryman Press, 2019) joins her other books, Floratopia (Countryman Press, 2021) , Heaven is a Garden (St Lynn's Press, 2014) and The Spirit of Stone (St Lynn's Press, 2017) . Here is an April, 2019 review of Gardentopia from Marianne Willburn in her Small Town Gardener site (link is below) - "Maybe all you'd like to do this year is add some professional touches to your garden. Gardentopia by garden designer Jan Johnsen can help you do that. It's elegant, beautifully laid out and easy to read - quite simply one of the best design books for gardeners who aren't designers.Johnsen provides a huge array of design tips and doesn't make them unnecessarily complicated - encouraging the reader and sparking their creativity.It's the type of book you can pick up for 20 minutes or 2 hours and come back to again and again. I'm extremely lucky that sometimes I get a sneak preview of some of the best new books out there" - Link- https://mailchi.mp/e0903f3349a3/happy-first-day-of-spring? e=ae575dbf83Jan is co-principal of Johnsen Landscapes & Pools, www.johnsenlandscapes.com. She was an adjunct professor at Columbia University and teaches at NY Botanical Garden. In 2014 the Association for Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) awarded her firm a Merit Award in residential landscape design. Her Facebook pages are 'Heaven is a Garden' and 'Serenity in the Garden blog'. She lives in Westchester County, NY.For a schedule of upcoming lectures and workshops, please visit http://www.serenityinthegarden.blogspot.com. She is available to speak to groups: jan@johnsenlandscapes.com.Jennifer Jewell of the NSPR program,'Cultivating Place', said in a September 2016 review:"Even on a Monday - Heaven IS a garden.... Enjoyed so many things about @jan.johnsen 's book on garden design concepts entitled Heaven is a Garden(@stlynnspress) , but perhaps my favorite was the way she covers the idea that all gardens have a "power spot". This caught me and rang so true to every garden with which I've had a relationship: that one place where the energy causes pause, where the light gathers or simply where you are drawn or re-freshed by being there for no reason you can put your finger on. In my own little new suburban garden I'm considering the way we shape space - find and cultivate this moment of energetic exchange or pause. Thank you Jan Johnsen for the thought provoking pages! "The 2016 summer issue of Garden Design magazine featured Jan's design tips. In their website they also shar



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