Here's one for you. I haven't read this cover to cover yet, but enough to say that I consider it an excellent reference on the subject.
THE WELL-TENDED PERENNIAL GARDEN: Planting & Pruning Techniques by Tracy DiSabato-Aust. I'm going to be playing with a lot of this next year when I focus on flowers rather than vegetables during the season.

Thanks for the reminder 'sam'. This book is often referenced on GW.

Here are two good ones that I've just been re-reading:

- Rick Darke's expanded edition of William Robinson's 1895 edition (first edition was in 1870) of The Wild Garden

- The Gardener's Essential Gertrude Jekyll
http://www.amazon.ca/Gardeners-Essential-Gertrude-Jekyll/dp/0879235993/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1419446439&sr=1-3&keywords=the+gardener%27s+essential+gertrude+jekyll
Jekyll has become almost a cliché so it's always interesting to read what she actually wrote. This book is selections from various books she wrote and provides a good overview of her many opinions and recommendations. The selections were made by Elizabeth Lawrence (1904-1985), an American gardener/writer from the southern US - her writings are well worth reading too. Jekyll was a bit of a snob :-) but a lively, opinionated interesting writer well worth reading/rereading. She and William Robinson were friends and, together, they had a big impact on late-19th and 20th century English gardening. I've read every book either of them wrote, as well as biographies and other books about their work and that of their contemporaries. You can certainly fill up the whole winter following the trail that those books can set you off on!

Here is a link that might be useful: The Wild Garden

My all-time favorite is Perennials for Every Purpose by Larry Hodgson. I like that it's broken into chapters specific to shade, sun, wet, dry, low-care, no-care, spring-blooming, fall-blooming along with a number of other categories. I keep it close by the computer so I can reference it when chatting with other gardeners via email or the Internet.

I do have a couple of books that include garden design but once I'd designed & planted my garden beds with winter sown perennials, I found I had no more need of them.

Some excellent comments on useful readings above.

But I also agree that reading books, or an alternative like taking courses, become less important in perennial gardening and there's more to be learned by doing and observing the results.

I feel that on-line research is the best adjunct to hands-on perennial gardening.

The best book I've read on Garden Design is "Garden Design" by Joe Eck. It's a small book without pictures but with a wealth of good information. If you want to smile and laugh out loud while kept indoors, get one of the late Henry Mitchel's books, especially "The Essential Earthman."

Rouge--I love books! My garden was laid out before I ever owned a book on design, but I find them very interesting. My favorite read has been PERENNIAL GARDEN DESIGN by Michael King.
It is written in conversational style (plenty of pics as well) and the plant material in it is very relatable for our zone. I highly recommend it.

Thanks to GWeb for putting this topic on the marquee so we can read and participate while it is live.

I am a garden reader and the titles mentioned and recommended tickle my fancy.My books are stored while a remodel is underway. I do not recall exact titles on my wide range of garden topics though ...sad to say.

My favorite for years has been Roy Guste's SEcret Gardens of The Vieux Carre. French Quarter walled in gardens, lots of pics, designed for outdoor living, It was out of print for a while, but a new printing was available recently. I gave one to my nephew living in New Orleans.

Another is about night blooming plants, and fragrant ones. And, Garden Design of China, available used. I am into HOSTA a lot, so have the two Zilis books and many others. Grenfell has a British approach ...and I wish to read Jekyll so thanks for pointing me to her title.

I know there is a similar thread on two other forums which could surface in a general search. One is the HOSTA forum, the other is New England forum.

If you want international flavour this book brings together advice from some of the worlds leading designers including John Brookes, Beth Chatto, Piet Oudolf, James van Sweden and others.
The title is Gardens by Design ---by Noel Kingsbury

John Brookes Garden Design is the best selling garden design book in the world.

Then there is The Essentials of Garden Design by John Brookes

Over the years many garden related books have been on my bookshelves. I only have so much room on them so many have been given away. Looking at my bookshelves this morning most of the books left are more for reference and specific plants. Here's a few titles.
Asters... by Paul Picton (has a new one coming out in the spring).
Daffodils for Home, Garden and Show... by Don Barnes.
English Roses...by David Austin.
The Checklist of Species, Hybrids and Cultivars of the Genus Fuchsia...by Leo B. Boullemier ( have many books on fuchsias )
Canadian Garden Perennials...by A.R. Buckley (this is an oldie).
The Genus Epimedium...by William T. Stern
The Color Dictionary of Shrubs...by S.Millar Gault, George Kalmbacher and Ernest Crowson.
Then I have books on Clematis, Cliva, Begonias, Climbing Plants, the list goes on.
For light reading I have several books by Beverly Nichols, have read books by Rosemary Verey, We Made a Garden by Margery Fish and a few others. The one I'd like to read again is 'Capability Brown' the story of his time as a gardener on an english estate who grew strawberries in the dead of winter in the glasshouse. It's not a very big book, I've searched and searched for it but no luck :(.

My garden design, has come about by what I call constructive staring, and the hit and miss method, well that worked well but that bit over there has to go plan LOL.

Merry Christmas everyone and best wishes for having your best garden ever in 2015

Annette