Seven books for plant lovers, as picked by our Plant Doctor

Whether you're a first-time plant parent looking for inspo, or an experienced green thumb hoping to hone your horti knowledge, the industry's best-selling books provide a wealth of advice and ideas. Here, our Horticultural Lead Kelly Dyer shares her thoughts on the top tomes and pocket-sized reads for plant lovers.

“A great pocket-sized gift for a new plant parent, written in a light tone of voice that’s accessible to all ages. Introducing a range of the most common houseplants as well as some basic pointers on plant choice and care, Hart also includes some fun DIY décor and display ideas. Packed full of quotes and clever household hacks, Hart’s Little Book for Plant Parents is a great launching pad for beginners who don’t want to get bogged down with horticultural jargon and loads of complicated plant care advice. This is the ideal stocking filler for a novice.“

“A cleverly illustrated, affordable book that doesn’t feel the need to dumb down important, relevant or factual information and manages to keep the tone fun and accessible. Veronica Peerless provides excellent advice on all of the essential plant care practices including a pre-purchase checklist and troubleshooting pointers for those tricky-to-diagnose symptoms like yellow patches and brown leaf tips.

“While it’s not a large book, How Not to Kill Your Houseplant boasts a full page spread on over 50 of the most common houseplants. This jam-packed little book takes it up a notch with a clever ‘share the care’ feature for related species as well as some quick guides to plants for different spaces. As they go, this is a top pick for a first-time plant parent.“

“A DK essential that uses both common and botanical names and makes some basic assumptions about plant knowledge, this is a book aimed at the intermediate plant parent who is wanting to potentially expand their collection and upskill. Breaking down the basics of design when curating your home with plants, and including clever ways to hang, plant up and propagate your plants with style, your houseplant hobby will soon become an obsession.

“Helpfully divided into subcategories by plant type, ranging from ferns to orchids and carnivorous plants to succulents, each category has a number of plant profiles that offer a brief description and an outline of care needs. While it’s not the most ‘beautiful’ or ‘fun’ book on the subject, it’s both accurate and practical and a reliable go-to.”

“If there’s any institution worthy of giving advice on growing, it’s Kew. With one of the largest plant collections in the world, they are the undeniable authority on conservation and education. While they may be able to recreate the ideal growing environments for their plants in glasshouses, they are sympathetic to the challenges of the home grower and share expert advice on giving your plants the best of care.

“The book covers a range of common and more unusual plants, with a fascinating fact on each one as well as some clever display ideas, so you’ll understand not only how to care for your houseplants, but why. You’ll be inspired by all of the clever adaptations plants evolved to cope with their wide ranging environments, from harsh desert sun to the thick jungle canopy. Kew’s Guide to Growing House Plants combines information with beautiful illustrations so that you can’t help but be inspired.“

“Better known for his Instagram account @houseplantjournal, Darryl Cheng has gone on to publish two books that offer a valuable alternative to the more mainstream publications. He offers a fresh and holistic perspective that focuses on understanding and working with nature, rather than against it; encouraging the enjoyment of plants as living beings that grow and change as they age, like us!

“By harnessing the power of observation and developing an understanding of each plant’s individual needs, this book will empower both new and experienced plant parents to optimise their plant family’s health and happiness. It’s packed full of experience-based advice, insight and handy tips and tricks.”

“A plush, beautifully curated book aimed at houseplant enthusiasts with a focus on tropical plants that are trickier to care for, harder to find and more expensive. That said, Tony Le-Britton’s personal tone makes it an easy, accessible read and will inspire even the novice gardener to want to expand their collection to include exotic rarities.

“Despite having his own plant shop, Le-Britton is generous with his knowledge, arming you with everything you need to enable your plants to thrive. Going into detail about plant processes and unpacking horticultural houseplant jargon, he gives you an understanding of the hows and whys of plant behaviour, from the ‘windows’ in the leaves of monsteras (fenestration) to plants growing lopsided towards the light (phototropism). This myth-busting book is essential reading for any houseplant addicts.”

“Plantopedia is a sumptuous coffee-table centrepiece. Pitched as ‘educational and inspirational’, it is exactly that, addressing everything from the history of houseplants, their classification and cultivation, to the more commonly covered plant care essentials like light, watering, pests and diseases.

“What makes this book a cut above the rest, however, is that it introduces each genus of plants before diving deeper, covering common and rarer varieties with a full-feature profile page on every plant, each with its own quick access plant-care key. Despite being aspirational, the authors keep it real by acknowledging the limits of our domestic growing environment and the plants that can tolerate these. This is a 2020 Australian publication but is as relevant to UK houseplant hobbyists. Both beautiful and bountiful, Plantopedia is our choice for 2024.“