The Grove

The First Non-Fiction Book From An Award-Winning New Voice, Hailed By Gardeners World Magazine As The Millennial MontyThe Best Gardening Book Of 2022. The TelegraphA Book To Make Even A Quick Trip To The Corner Shop Endlessly Fascinating. Dark Has Been Dubbed The Millennial Monty Don For This Beautifully Written Study Of The Oft-Overlooked Nature On Our Doorsteps...Dark Teases The Drama, Humor And History From Even The Most Commonplace Buddleja, Box And Tulip. George Hudson, Evening Standard, Favourite Gardening Books Of The YearThis Enjoyable Read Throws A Spotlight On The Everyday. Rachel De ThameS 10 Best Gardening Books Of 2022, The Sunday TimesGardening For A Billionaire Taught Ben Dark That Plants Alone Are Not Enough To Make A Garden Special. Instead He Finds Special In The People And The History, As Well As The Plants, That Fill 19 London Front Gardens. A Soulful Read. Tom Howard, Rhs The Garden, Best Books Of The YearA Wonderful Book. Alexandra Shulman, Mail On SundayMeet The Millennial Monty Don. The Sunday Times StyleBen DarkS Beautifully Observed Book, The Grove: A Nature Odyssey In 19 Front Gardens, Tells The Stories Of 20 Key Plants Growing In A Single London StreetS Front Gardens In A Way ThatS As Engaging As It Is Informative. The Irish Timesany Walk Is An Odyssey When We Connect With The Plants Around Us. Each Tree Or Flower Tells A Tale. Mundane Suburban Shrubs Speak Of War And Poetry, Of Money, Fashion, Love And Failure. Every Species In This Book Was Seen From One Pavement Over Twelve Months And There Is Little Here That Could Not Be Found On Any Road In Any Town, But They Reveal Stories Of Such Weirdness, Drama, Passion And Humor That, Once Discovered, Familiar Neighborhoods Will Be Changed Forever.There Is A Renewed Interest In The Nature On Our Doorsteps, As Can Be Seen In The Work Of Amateur Botanists Identifying Wildflowers And Chalking The Names On The Pavements.But Beyond The Garden Wall Lies A Wealth Of Cultivated Plants, Each With A Unique Tale To Tell. In The Grove, Award-Winning Writer And Head Gardener Ben Dark Reveals The Remarkable Secrets Of Twenty Commonly Found Species - Including The Rose, Wisteria, Buddleja, Box And The Tulip - Encountered In The Front Gardens Of One London Street Over The Course Of Year.As Ben Writes, In Those Small Front Gardens Are Stories Of Ambition, Envy, Hope And Failure And The Grove Is About So Much More Than A Single Street, Or Indeed The Plants Found In Its 19 Front Gardens. ItS A Beguiling Blend Of Horticultural History And Personal Narrative And A Lyrical Exploration Of Why Gardens And Gardening Matter.A Testament To The Secret Communal Power Of A Front Garden. Alice Vincent, New StatesmanFind Joy In The Ordinary Plots On A City Street. Rhs The GardenBen Dark Is Such A Wonderful Writer - The Grove Drew Me In From The First Line. Lia LeendertzThe Grove Is Overflowing With Delicious Nuggets Of Cultural, Social And Garden History - And I Adore Ben DarkS Humour And Humility In Equal Measure. Advolly RichmondA Heartfelt Romp Through The Wisteria And Wilderness Of LondonS Horticulturally Remarkable Front Gardens. Jack WallingtonFans Of Ben DarkS Mellifluous Tones On The Garden Log Podcast Will Be Delighted By How Perfectly His Lyrical Musings Transfer To The Printed Page As, With Infant Son In Tow, He Invites The Reader Upon A Series Of Horticultural Expeditions Inspired By The Deceptively Ordinary Planting Of The Front Gardens In A South London Street. The Kind Of Thoroughly Enjoyable Read Where You Realize, Late In The Day, That Learning Has Snuck In By The Back Door, Though You Feel Inclined To Forgive The Author On Account Of The Fun YouVe Had Along The Way.Andrew OBrienDark Creatively Blends Practical Horticultural Knowledge, Meditations On His Own Dream Garden, And Literary References, Including Vita Sackville-WestS HusbandS Letter On Jp MorganS Garden: All Very Good Taste And Depressing. No Inner Reality. This Will Leave Armchair Gardeners Seeing Their Surroundings With Fresh Eyes. - PublisherS Weekly