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Ground Force Practical Garden Projects
by Tommy Walsh
For a change, the builder of the Ground Force trio gets a look in with his own book of projects.
The format follows that of other Ground Force books and the TV show itself. Completed projects are there to inspire you, and step-by-step information enables you to copy various elements in your own garden. The time needed, a shopping list of materials required and their likely cost provide an invaluable addition to the description of each project.
Whatever the project, there's a great deal in common, so the first chapter is devoted to general principles, safety considerations, hints, tips, and tricks of the trade. But surprisingly, considering the amount of Tanalised timber sawn up in the name of landscaping, there's no mention of the care needed with dust and off-cuts. A material impregnated with compounds of arsenic, cadmium and chromium needs respect from sawyers who should always wear a dustmask and bin the sawdust and offcuts (never burn this waste).
Beginning with boundaries, the author competently covers walls, fences and screens before tackling turfing, which came as a surprise ingredient in such a book. Paths and steps from a variety of materials are other essentials that are dealt with, along with the inevitable timber decking. Techniques for decks direct on the ground and those that are elevated are both described.
With the garden infrastructure in place, the author then moves on to the frills. Arbour, pergola, obelisk, windowbox, raised bed, garden table and storage bin are all dealt with in a workmanlike way.
The whole approach to this book is to show you the principles to apply to any garden project that takes your fancy. So if you can drag yourself away from the TV, you can put the ideas into practice in days, if not hours.
Order details:
Paperback published by BBC Books (ISBN 0 563 555147 X).
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