This new collaboration with fellow Dutch plantsman Henk Gerritsen deals with a selection of some 1200 plants most suitable for Oudolf’s New Wave naturalism, which emphasizes the importance of plant structures in providing all-season interest, for after all, plants are out of flower for longer than they are in bloom. The gardener can prune back plants after flowering to create a perpetual spring – at least until the onset of winter – but the authors prefer to follow nature’s example and let plants finish flowering, not only to please the birds and butterflies, but for the beauty well-chosen plant groupings offer as they reach the end of their life cycle.

Many illustrations in this (and Oudolf’s other books) demonstrate the striking effects of his favorite plants in fall and winter. These “dream” plants – perennials, bulbs, grasses, and ferns, as well as biennials and annuals – have been selected because they perform reliably with few demands on soil or gardener. Some worthy plants that may present problems – invasiveness, unpredictability, fussiness – are treated in a special section for adventurous gardeners willing to expend the extra efforts they will require. All of the plants are knowledgeably described, and many are illustrated with superb color photos. In the authors’ view, all are suitable both for low-maintenance public gardens and for dramatic naturalistic home gardens.

From the Publisher
Timber Press has earlier published two critically acclaimed and bestselling books by Piet , the influential Dutch landscape designer: Gardening with Grasses (with Michael King) and Designing with Plants (with Noël Kingsbury). This new collaboration with fellow Dutch plantsman Henk Gerritsen deals with a selection of some 1200 plants most suitable for Oudolf's New Wave naturalism, which emphasizes the importance of plant structures in providing all-season interest.

About the Author
Henk Gerritsen was born in Utrecht in the Netherlands. He studied politics and history at the University of Amsterdam then trained at the Rietveld Art Academy in Amsterdam. He made his living as a painter for many years—until 1977 when he met the grand old lady of Dutch garden architecture, Mien Ruys. At that moment he realized that becoming a garden architect would be the best way to combine his great passion in life, plants, with his other talents.

In 1978 he started Priona Gardens with his friend Anton Schlepers on Anton's family farm at Schuinesloot in the east of Holland. Henk's extensive knowledge of plants and his artist’s eye have resulted in a most remarkable garden, where wild plants from all over the world grow together in low maintenance plant communities that appear natural but are set in an unusual and sometimes absurd architecture. Magazines including Gardens Illustrated, The Garden, House and Garden and World of Interiors have featured Priona Gardens.

Henk respects the full cycle of life in his garden; rather than battling disease and decay, "troublesome" weeds, and animals like greenflies, slugs, moles, and rabbits, he prefers to compromise, considering them an essential part of the beauty of the garden. He never uses chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

Henk’s international projects include creating a wild flower garden from the formal Waltham Place garden at White Waltham (near Maidenhead) in England, and incorporating a natural garden in and around the French hamlet of Leyvinie, close to Perpezac-le-Blanc in the Correze. Though he is a celebrated writer in the Netherlands with several books and monthly magazine columns to his name, Dream Plants for the Natural Garden is his first book that has been translated into English.

Piet Oudolf is a native of Holland and originally studied to be an architect. Instead of designing buildings he became the founder of New Wave planting, a movement which takes inspiration from nature but employs artistic skill in creating planting schemes. As a plantsman, his aim is to emphasize the form, texture, and natural harmony of plants, and as a skilled plant breeder, he creates new varieties for these and other specific design purposes. His style is the result of the influence of various horticultural traditions such as the combination of Dutch formality and naturalistic planting styles.

Oudolf has designed gardens in Holland and Germany, and a public park in Sweden. In the UK , he has created a much-publicized garden in Hampshire and is about to embark on a wildlife park in Norfolk. His own garden and nursery, opened with his wife in 1982 near Arnhem, Holland, has become world-famous. It has appeared in magazines such as Gardens Illustrated, House and Garden, The Independent, Perspectives, and Maire Claire Maison. Oudolf is also the subject of a chapter in Page Dickey's book, Breaking Ground, which profiles ten of the world's foremost contemporary garden designers. He collaborated with garden designer Arne Maynard to create the garden showpiece "Evolution", which was awarded the illustrious Best in Show and a gold medal at the Chelsea Flower Show 2000. Oudolf also partnered in 2000 with Kathryn Gustafson's design team from Seattle, WA to win the design competition for the monumental Millenium Garden, the new focal point for the heart of Chicago.

Keywords: Dream Plants for the Natural Garden, Books, Henk Gerritsen, Piet Oudolf, Plants, Ornamental, Pictorial works, Natural gardens, Gardening / Horticulture, Gardening, Flowers - General, Plants - General