Books: Gardens DE to CT

I've looked at a lot of garden travel books over the years, and let's hope that this one is just the beginning of a comprehensive series covering the entire country.

In her latest book, Exploring Gardens & Green Spaces: From Connecticut to the Delaware Valley (W.W. Norton & Company, Inc), garden and art historian Magda Salvesen has included not only celebrated public gardens in this terrific guidebook, but also formal parks, estate gardens, and other horticultural masterpieces that are off the beaten track.

There's a map of each state listing all the gardens, and then larger maps of certain areas in each state so you can easily plan a trip to several gardens over a day or two.  There's a written description and history of each garden, along with horticultural highlights and lovely photos of each one, and also hours, admission fees, nearby restaurants and other local attractions.

Have you been to Deep Cut Gardens in Middletown, NJ? I think I'd like to see the huge weeping hemlocks with beautiful contorted trunks and the wall of "peanut stone," a local natural aggregate.

Or how about the quirky Madoo Conservancy in Sagaponack, NY, which includes a Japanese bridge, a fountain reminiscent of one that once graced Versailles, a tunnel arbor and a Persian-like rill.

Salveson's book includes 148 gardens in all, and if you're traveling anywhere in the area, you'll definitely want a copy of this book.  It's the most comprehensive garden guide I've ever seen, packed with information you're unlikely to find all in one handly little guide.  And it's just plain good old fascinating reading, too.