Gardening books ready gardeners for spring: From the Cedar Rapids Public Library

A warm Iowa winter has prospective gardeners hankering to get outside and plant prized flowers and vegetables. Folks are poring over seed catalogs and gardening books. Titles on traditional gardening abound, but if you're looking for a new and different gardening experience, try browsing the new gardening books at the Cedar Rapids Public Library. Myriad new editions are available with fresh ideas, detailed instructions and vibrant phots that will inspire neophyte and master gardeners alike.

The power wall gardening display at Ladd Library is bursting with beautiful, creative books. One such title is 'Gardening for Butterflies” by the Xerces Society. For folks who have traditional gardens or vegetable plots, this is an ideal guide about attracting butterflies. Information on design, plant selection, installation and maintenance are found here.

A manifesto - 10 rules to live by - leads off 'The Gardenista” by Michelle Slatalla. These rules take on the challenge of procuring the best plants, tools and sources for everything garden. The text features 13 outstanding gardens, eight ingenious tips on getting more from your garden, and the Gardenista 100 - a roundup of classic essentials such as tools and planters.

Establishing valuable habitats for even more wildlife is the theme of 'New Wild Garden” by Ian Hodgson. Ornamental grasses, annuals, biennials, perennials, water plants and bulbs make up these natural outdoor spaces. Sections on planning a wild garden, creating meadow effects, a plant gallery, and sourcebook are included here.

An extraordinary selection highlights 30 'natural style” home projects. Caitlin Atkinson's 'Plant Craft” delineates the art of melding flora and fauna with structures. Tabletop gardens, hanging sculptures, and vertical wall gardens are just a few of the innovative masterpieces showcased. Step-by-step instructions are given with accompanying photos.

One way the love of gardening grows is that we discover it when we are young. Two new picture books demonstrate this in delightful fashion. Christie Matheson's 'Plant the Tiny Seed” combines colors, counting, and sounds in a simple tale where a child discerns the magic of growing.

'Bloom” by Deborah Diesen traces the lives of a mother and daughter as they plant hyacinth, tulip, and daffodil bulbs together in the fall, then experience school, holidays, vacations, sorrows and joys throughout the year. In spring, they discover their flowers have grown - and so have they.

l Melia Tatman is a librarian at the Cedar Rapids Public Library. For more information on library programs and materials, visit www.crlibrary.org.