Garden to the Max: Joyful, Visionary, Maximalist Design

Introducing ＂maximalism＂ as a garden design trend, here are 20 gardens where more is more

Every gardener is familiar with the impulse to buy more plants, any plants, all the plants. And, increasingly, gardeners and designers want to invite a plethora of beneficial insects, pollinators, and biodiversity to their gardens. Having a maximalist garden is definitely aesthetic; yet it also brings vitality back to the earth, in an abundant expression of more.

Garden to the Max celebrates 20 gardens from across the US that embrace maximalism through joy and wonder, nonstop blooms, and abundant layers. The book is a feast of gorgeous photography by Bob Stefko, showcasing individual quirkiness, wild collections, and bold, personality-packed plant combinations that amplify the grandeur of each garden’s unique vision, packing in plants for their exuberant style and ecological benefits. Featured gardeners include an amateur ornithologist seeking to attract more birds, an event planner’s tropical paradise, a pair of city dwellers reducing their carbon footprint, an urban garden pioneer promoting pollinator gardens, or a life-long biophilic propagating endangered plants to nurture insects.

Longtime garden writer Teresa Woodard shares stories of each garden and its fearless designers, the inspirations for their plant collections, and their hopes for our earth’s future. Information-packed sidebars full of standout plants and growing tips will inspire dreamers and gardeners to embrace their own passions. Garden to the Max gives everyone permission to bring the exuberant interior style into the garden and develop a spirited reverence for plants, celebrating joy and personality in the garden--to the max!

Teresa Woodard brings a background in magazine writing and gardening experience. During her 14-year writing career, she has written and produced garden content for regional and national publications, including Better Homes & Gardens and Country Gardens, and currently serves as contributing garden editor at Midwest Living magazine. She has won Gold and Silver Media Awards from GardenComm. Outside of work, she gardens at her home near Columbus, Ohio, and volunteers at an urban garden teaching youth about growing food.

Chicago based photographer Bob Stefko’s career spans nearly 20 years as an editorial and commercial shooter. During that time he has photographed a diverse range of subjects including Fortune 100 CEOs, Olympic athletes, Presidential Gardens and some of the worlds most remote landscapes. His work regularly appears in Better Homes and Gardens, Forbes, Wine Spectator and Midwest Living magazine to name just a few. Bob has completed two books on travel and food for Globe Pequot and Meredith Corporation. His travel images from around the globe are represented and sold worldwide by Getty Images. His work has been featured in Photo District News many times including most recently in their Nature’s Best issue. When not snapping pictures you can usually find Bob living his secret life as a general contractor, urban gardener, wannabe chef or tinkering in his basement shop.