A Guided Discovery of Gardening

Book Author Julia Atkinson-Dunn
Rights Available World, excluding Australia, New Zealand and UK

For some, gardening is a mysterious activity involving muck, unfathomable know-how and physical labour. To others, it is their gateway to creativity, well-being and magic. Julia Atkinson-Dunn knows what it is to stand on both sides of this fence and has channelled her discovery of gardening into a book to aid and inspire others in their own.

A Guided Discovery of Gardening is a comprehensive partner in creating a garden, arranged to sweep beginner and progressing gardeners through informative basics to fascinating insights laid bare through her casual, friendly and often personal writing. From introductions to plant types and taking cuttings to valuable tips for home buyers and the curation of seasonally responsive planting.

Particularly relevant to temperate regions around the world, rich doses of handy knowledge are intermingled with reflective essays and visual visits to some of her favourite New Zealand gardens, including her own. “Treat this book as your trusted friend, its pages a place you can return to time and again for positive reinforcement and relatable topics as you embark on your own journey in discovering the beautiful rewards of creating a garden, just as I have”.

About the Author

On moving into the house of her dreams in her mid-30s, designer, artist and writer Julia Atkinson-Dunn stared wide-eyed at the clean slate of her boring backyard with a bubbling excitement that felt foreign. Her passion for beautiful spaces had only ever been held for interiors, but that was about to change.

Over six years she clawed forward with dirt under her nails and a toppling pile of gardening books by her bed, pursuing a vision that seemed to reveal itself as she went.

Julia lives with her husband in Christchurch, NZ from where she has authored and photographed Petal Power and Flowers for Friends, and maintained an ongoing conversation with her fellow keen gardeners via her Instagram, newsletter and column for the country’s premier news platform. She works closely with the garden community as a speaker at events, advocating the magic of gardening to her peers.