Garden Architecture: Season 1

Amazon...Please consider increasing the available of resources of this nature. Gardeners enjoy material of this sort to provide innovative ways of making the most of this earth. Season one was excellent.

Garden Architecture is the worst. I wanted to see nice gardens to get ideas for my own garden. I thought this DVD would help with design. After all, Garden Architecture is its name. But the only segment (there are three) in each episode that was worth watching was that of Haig Seferian, who opened each episode by showing various people's gardens. I found that interesting and helpful, but over way too soon. Then in steps William Anderson for his awful segment. His segment is supposed to be garden "makeovers." Not even close! Anderson does nothing to any of the gardens he works with except pull out junk from inside the homeowner's house and arrange that junk outside. Nothing improved, no painting fences, no planting flowers...nothing. Just a bunch of temporary TV tables and folding chairs and knick knacks placed randomly in the yard. Horrible. I am sure that the homeowners probably smiled grimly to be polite, then as soon as Anderson and crew departed, took all the gaudy junk out of the yard and placed it all back inside the house so the neighbors can't see the eyesores. Are the makers of this DVD so incredibly cheap that they don't do anything for the makeover segment except pull out stuff from inside the home and place it all over the yard? One homeowner even said, "That's my bedroom rug!" and Anderson said, "Well, it works better out here for summertime." Like, I would be upset too if someone pulled my rug (literally) from my bedroom and stuck it on my porch. And finally, another useless segment. At the end of each program, in steps Muriel Bradley for some "do it yourself" projects. Except her projects are both ugly and useless. It is another cheap thing the makers of this DVD decided to do, they said, "Oh we know! Let's pick up some trash out of the yard and make ugly yard ornaments!" You'd think if they want to be cheap (which they apparently are), they could have at least gone to a thrift store for Bradley's supplies. Do not buy this DVD. I am so sorry I wasted my money. This is the worst! I would give it negative stars if I could.

I showed this video to my gardening class and they loved it. Several asked to borrow it and some asked where I'd purchased it so they could buy their own copy.

I admit it. I'm a gardening addict. When I saw this I thought the price is right, and if I get only one good thing out of it, it'll be money well spent. What I liked best about it was how it applies to normal situations, especially suburban situations, and how they focus on low budget and quick-fix options that can later lead to more permanent, nicer things that require more planning. In fact, it encourages testing out stuff that you have laying around or that you can get at a thrift store. I believe that this is very wise. I do the same thing with my plants when I buy them. I don't plant them right away, but move them around and let them sit for a few days, and sometimes I'll put place markers instead of the plants themselves to test an arrangement before I spend lots of money on a design. I happen to be on small acreage, so I don't have to worry about space considerations, but money is a big deal, so I appreciated their thrifty suggestions for that reason as well. They do feature some bigger dollar, more expansive places, but that's certainly not the focus. This isn't a show to inspire high art. It's all about daily living. I also loved the DIY segments. They're adorable and something you could do in an afternoon without a lot of fuss. Think crafts for grown-up kids. As a (barely) grown-up kid, I had fun with them and plan on implementing some of them in my own garden. It seems like a low budget production, and the number of gardens they visit is small. Each episode is very short. They probably fit into a half hour, with lots of room for commercials. I didn't mind that at all. With my busy schedule, it was pleasant to watch an episode or two at a time without a huge mental or technical commitment. There are lots of programs and books with higher concepts and more technical information, and an overwhelming amount of those focus on things that are out of reach for the average working gal. I doubt everyone will enjoy this show, but it was just right for me, and I wish I had another season to watch. Even my daughter, who finds gardening shows boring, was willing to watch these, and she also especially enjoyed the DIY segments.

Rather simplistic and amateurish approach to gardening in Canada. Must have been shown on day-time TV. Small wonder that Season 2 wasn't released on DVD. Better to watch "Around the World in 80 Gardens" to really see some diverse and amazing gardens.