The Gardener's Year

Famous Czech author Karel Capek entertains readers with a month-by-month rendering of real life gardening. He totally enjoys getting carried away in his subject, making a case for October actually being Spring for gardeners, as well for the "Now!" of buds, and the steaming glory of a newly delivered mound of fresh manure.

His humor combines well with his brother Josef's line drawing interpretations until
"the malice of human souls" deforms their country courtesy of The Munich Pact.

Though Karel Capek often mentions women favorably, all his fellow gardeners
are male. No reason is offered though maybe this was standard in the early 20th century...?

He once raised vegetables to the tune of crunching "...every day one hundred and twenty show more radishes,
because no one else would eat them...."

He further admits that he has become tenderhearted about eating what he has grown:
"If I were obliged to eat my roses or nibble the flowers of lilies-of-the-valley,
I think I should lose the respect which I have towards them."

And they toward him! show less

A joy to read. Even if you don't garden, but if you do, you know that fussy obsession well, the absurdity of the pursuit, the intensity of fetishes, the competitiveness and shared insanity with other gardeners, almost the notes of an anthropologist. It's spring here in southern Australia, my vegetable and seedlings are near ready. The fecund madness of summer is near. I would've loved to have talked to Capek about his garden and shared seedlings with him. But I suspect he and I would be suspiciously eyeing off the size of each other's tomatoes and the voluptuousness of our roses. Still, we'd each know what a garden means to each other.

Worth reading each year around this time.

Entertaining and humorous thoughts on what it means to be a gardener with cute illustrations by the author throughout that remind me of Thurber. Lots of great aphorism material in here that gardener's will appreciate: "The life of a gardener is full of change and active will." "A real gardener is not a man who cultivates flowers; he is a man who cultivates the soil." and the opening line "There are several different ways in which to lay out a little garden; the best way is to get a gardener."

Capek's style in this was so fun and accessible that it made me want to read his other prose work, so now I have the collection of his 3 novels waiting on my shelf. I read R.U.R. years ago in a theatre class, and though it is notable for coining the show more word "robot," I had no idea he had more colloquial works without the heavy allegory. show less

Entertaining and humorous thoughts on what it means to be a gardener with cute illustrations by the author throughout that remind me of Thurber. Lots of great aphorism material in here that gardener's will appreciate: "The life of a gardener is full of change and active will." "A real gardener is not a man who cultivates flowers; he is a man who cultivates the soil." and the opening line "There are several different ways in which to lay out a little garden; the best way is to get a gardener."

Capek's style in this was so fun and accessible that it made me want to read his other prose work, so now I have the collection of his 3 novels waiting on my shelf. I read R.U.R. years ago in a theatre class, and though it is notable for coining the show more word "robot," I had no idea he had more colloquial works without the heavy allegory. show less

Karel Capek's little gardening book, The Gardener's Year, is a charming account of the gardener's joys and agonies throughout the year. Because it's a slim volume, a reader might easily dismiss it as a mere trifle. However, any gardener will recognize the age-old truths about which Capek writes.

The Gardener's Year takes the reader through a twelve-month cycle, from January through December. It is obvious from the beginning that Capek is a real "dirt gardener" (as Elizabeth Lawrence would say). He agonizes about the weather regardless of the season. If it's winter, it's either too cold or too warm. If it's summer, it's either too wet or too dry.

If nothing else proves that Capek is a dirt gardener, it's his fascination with the soil. show more Besides devoting an entire chapter to the making of "this noble and humane work which is called the soil," he refers to it continually throughout the book. In the chapter "On the Art of Gardening," Capek writes, ". . . I find that a real gardener is not a man who cultivates flowers; he is a man who cultivates the soil. . . . He lives buried in the ground. He builds his monument in a heap of compost. If he came into the Garden of Eden he would sniff excitedly and say: 'Good Lord, what humus!'" Later in the book, Capek continues on the theme of heaven-sent soil amendments: "Yes, improve the soil. A cartload of manure is most beautiful when it is brought on a frosty day, so that it steams like a sacrificial altar. When its fragrance reaches heaven, He who understands all things sniffs and says: 'Um, that's some nice manure.'" I just wonder if the original Czech word was "manure!"

I think it would be impossible to choose my favorite chapter - my favorite changes with the seasons. However, if I was forced to decide right now, I think I would choose "Buds." Capek perfectly describes that moment when the buds begin to open: "You must stand still; and then you will see open lips and furtive glances, tender fingers, and raised arms, the fragility of a baby, and the rebellious outburst of the will to live, and then you will hear the infinite march of the buds faintly roaring." show less

A very sweet little book about a man and his garden. I chuckled my way through this, and as an avid gardener it was easy to recognize myself in what was described. Who hasn't bought a ton of plants that one just "must have" only to find that there is hardly any space left in the garden to plant them. I'm sure this would make a very popular gift to people who love gardening. I also loved the humorous illustrations.

(This review was originally written for The Garden Bloggers' Book club)

My company sent me to a seminar in Manhattan earlier this month. The seminar, on management techniques, was excellent. The commute was a nightmare. I am accustomed to just hopping into my car and driving for 20 minutes during non-rush hours (I work from 4 PM to midnight). For three days I was forced to endure two hours of trains and taxis each way. Compounding my misery was the weather. 14 F (-10 C) each morning as I stood shivering on an exposed train platform, hurriedly changing trains in Newark and then standing in line outside of Penn Station waiting for a cab. 24 F (-4 C) when I made the reverse trek back to New Jersey each evening.

I had anticipated the long show more journey. I checked with the company who was giving the seminar to make sure a laptop was not necessary for the class. I wanted to travel light. No laptop, no briefcase, just a small handbag containing my Blackberry for email along with the usual stuff we women can’t go anywhere without. I also needed something to read on the train. The Gardener's Year, the March selection for the Garden Bloggers' Book Club was the perfect size to fit into my purse.

It is also the perfect topic for a gardener, unable to garden due to weather and working conditions. It is the perfect format for a commuter. The chapters are short and each can stand on their own. The author's lighthearted look at the wonders and disasters of gardening kept a smile on my face despite the cold and long hours.

I was particularly struck by his assertion that a gardener's spring is actually in the fall. How true! How many hundreds of bulbs did I plant last fall? How many perennials divided, planted and transplanted? Fall is the time to rectify mistakes. Plants are moved. Beds are re-arranged or even created. Wishlists are begun of plants, seeds and bulbs in anticipation of the catalogs that will be overflowing my mailbox during the winter months. I have always thought of the fall as the end of the growing season. It's not. It's full of beginnings not endings. show less