A gift for the gardener

Despite a successful career in Australian publishing, all Derelie Cherry really wanted was two dogs and a garden. A husband did not figure in the dream until 1999, when she met Bob Cherry at the Melbourne International Flower Show.

A plant breeder and gardener, Bob Cherry owns 92ha at Paradise, NSW, between Sydney and Newcastle, and from the descriptions in his wife's book, Two Dogs & a Garden, it seems every square metre is planted with thousands of camellias, roses, lilacs, magnolias, eucalypts, annual and perennial flowers, vegetables and an array of Australian natives, including the dramatic Gymea lilies (Doryanthes excelsa), whose flower stems can be 6m tall.

The book is dedicated to one of the dogs, Trudy, and the chapter about the brave little Skye terrier is a moving tribute.

Most of the book, though, is about the garden - its plants, birds, animals and reptiles - and is beautifully illustrated with the author's photographs.

Originally published in 2009, the book is still topical and as a gift for a gardener, Two Dogs & a Garden is high on my list.

 - Gillian Vine is a Dunedin garden writer.