Gardening doesn't have to be nice. At the beginning of the twenty-first century the gardens with the most contemporary feel revel in a crisp, clean style with harder planting and landscaping, and a water-wise attitude. In Sharp Gardening, Christopher Holliday looks at the role of architectural foliage, and how it can be used to provide accents in planting schemes, and also as the main substance of gardens. Jerry Harpur's stunning photographs show- case both spiky plants and the gardens that incorporate them most successfully.