Growing to a Ripe Old Age: 50 Years in the Garden

A warm, humorous tale of one's man long relationship with his garden

Gardens, in my view, often involve too much gardening. This is partly to do with the nature of human beings, who will make a competition out of anything if they possibly can.

Edward Enfield has only ever had one garden, but his dealings with it have extended more than half a century. He came to his three-quarters of an acre knowing nothing about growing anything, and this book is an account of his horticultural successes and failures, inventions and frustrations, discoveries and developments. With wry humor, he leads us through the thorny subject of roses, counts the blessings of keeping chickens, and exposes the perfidy of gardening copywriters, while offering wise and witty tips on how best to enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Edward Enfield is the author of Dawdling by the Danube, Downhill All the Way, Greece on My Wheels, and Old Age and How to Survive It.