The Grove

A Nature Odyssey in 19 ½ Front Gardens

Author: Ben Dark

Paperback

The first non-fiction book from an award-winning new voice, hailed by Gardeners' World magazine as 'the millennial Monty'.

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Summary

The first non-fiction book from an award-winning new voice, hailed by Gardeners' World magazine as 'the millennial Monty'.

Description

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'The best gardening book of 2022.' The Telegraph

'A 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, humour and history from even the most commonplace buddleja, box and tulip.' George Hudson, Evening Standard, Favourite Gardening Books of the Year

'This enjoyable read throws a spotlight on the everyday.' Rachel de Thame's 10 Best Gardening Books of 2022, the Sunday Times

'Gardening 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 Year

'A wonderful book.' Alexandra Shulman, Mail on Sunday

'Meet the millennial Monty Don.' The Sunday Times Style

'Ben Dark's beautifully observed book, The Grove: A Nature Odyssey in 19 Front Gardens, tells the stories of 20 key plants growing in a single London street's front gardens in a way that's as engaging as it is informative.' The Irish Times

Any 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 humour that, once discovered, familiar neighbourhoods 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. It's a beguiling blend of horticultural history and personal narrative and a lyrical exploration of why gardens and gardening matter.

'A testament to the secret communa

About the Author

Ben Dark is a head gardener, award-winning broadcaster and landscape historian. He's been described as 'the millennial Monty' by Gardeners' World Magazine, 'the future of horticulture' by Horticulture Week and was named Gardening Journalist of the Year at the 2022 Garden Media Awards.

He graduated with a degree in History from Bristol University and went on to study Horticulture at Capel Manor College, before completing his education with a traineeship at the Garden Museum and an MA in Garden and Landscape History at the University of London's Institute of Historical Research. As a gardener he has worked for embassies, cemeteries, heritage bodies and oligarchs. He has organized a private flower show for the Royal Family and helped to build gold-medal winning gardens on the main avenue at the Chelsea Flower Show. As the creator and host of both the Dear Gardener and award-winning Garden Log podcasts he frequently speaks to gardening groups and industry events. Ben has written about plants for the Telegraph and has been featured in the Independent, Gardens Illustrated and the Financial Times.