Planting a garden is one of the most basic of human impulses, for food, for the pleasure of recreating and for the improvement of nature in our immediate surroundings. Writing about gardens is also an ancient tradition, especially among those who wish to share their ideas about garden design and horticulture. This book is a unique collection of writings by these experts, ranging from a period of over two thousand years and from traditions as varied as Western, Islamic, Japanese, and Chinese. This fascinating volume goes to the source of garden history, with original writings by more than one hundred leading practitioners and thinkers of each period. Many of these writers share common ideas across cultures and times, but there are also distinct differences in approach, such as an adherence to geometric principles rather than an informal, natural style, or the use of exotic plants rather than native species. Several writers dictate specific rules for selecting a site, choosing plant species, using water, and combining colours; others offer theories and principles as expressed in the gardens designed by their contemporaries. Accompanying these essays are beautiful colour photographs of gardens throughout the world, and brief quotations from other writers, whose insights serve to enrich the scope of a compendium that will prove invaluable to gardeners, architects, garden scholars, and cultural historians alike.