What better way for a gardener to relax on a Sunday afternoon than with a cup of tea and the radio tuned into Radio 4's perennial favourite, Gardener's Question Time? Travelling the length and breadth of the country with occasional forays abroad, the Gardener's Question Time team are faced with a weekly barrage of questions ranging from the usual pests and diseases to the more challenging of what to grow where. One of the regular features of programme is "Plant of the Week" and it is on this popular section that this lavishly illustrated book is based. Four of the regular panellists - Bob Flowerdew, Bunny Guinness, John Cushnie and Matthew Biggs - choose more than 750 species on a month-by-month basis to give a wonderful selection of trees, shrubs, perennials, bulbs and more with which to add interest to your garden no matter what the season. Each selection is written by one panellist with detailed descriptions, cultivation advice and personal experience accompanied by clearly photographs. The writings reflect the panellist's own individual styles and are occasionally accompanied by comments from one of the others making this not only an informative read but an enjoyable one too. From John Cushnie's tongue-in-cheek asides to Bob Flowerdew's well-known organics, from Matthew Biggs' ornamental plant passion to Bunny Guinness' delight in cottage gardens, their radio personalities transcend the conversion to the printed word. So for those days in-between Gardener's Question Time, and during inclement weather, capture the magic of the panellist's often hilarious discourses with their recommendations for good, garden-worthy plants. -- Lucy Watson
