What they’re saying about Art Wolk and

Garden Lunacy:

"Award-winning New Jersey writer, lecturer, and photographer Art Wolk has revealed all in Garden Lunacy. Track his hysterical exploits through the evolution of his career from a casual windowsill gardener into a flower show fanatic. Share his daydream of recruiting garden club members at a Hortiholics Anonymous meeting, visit the wacky world of TV and magazine photo shoots, and test your talent for separating gardeners from non-gardeners with his eye chart. There's never a dull moment, as Wolk expounds upon the siren song of winter's seed catalogs, the gardener's 10 Commandments, and our penchant for evaluating our level of gardening expertise by the number of plants we've killed. If you hunger for garden humor, or know someone who does, join him as he light-heartedly tiptoes through the tulips to bring us his own brand of horticultural histrionics."

—Horticulture Magazine by Lois de Vries

"Garden writer and lecturer Wolk has written an amusing [book] that pokes fun at the compulsive world of gardeners. He takes a fascinating look at flower shows, detailing the vast amounts of time, expertise, and money involved for those who compete, as well as the many opportunities for disaster to strike unwary competitors. Readers also learn about the process of filming garden segments for television and the time and effort involved in shooting photographs for gardening magazines. Wolk's list of movies with horticultural errors is especially fun. Gardeners will laugh as they recognize themselves, but they will also be comforted by the fact that there are people out there who are even more obsessive than they are. A true pleasure."

—Library Journal by Sue O'Brien

"Garden Lunacy is an utterly irreverent gardening book. Not intended as an instructional about raising plants or gardens (though the astute reader will acquire many tips on what not to do!), Garden Lunacy offers sharp-tongued wit and humor about the unique manner in which gardeners see the universe: plants first, humans last. Eccentric, covetous, even compulsive gardener traits are explored with a wink and a smile, sure to sound a sympathetic chuckle in plant lovers everywhere. A deftly amusing celebration of a widely beloved hobby and the people who embrace it."

—Midwest Book Review

“Art Wolk is the Dave Barry of garden writing.”

—Elvin McDonald, author of more than 50 garden books

This book is currently out of stock, but will be available in January 2024.

"Garden Lunacy offers laughter to buck up the reader’s spirits. We need more Art Wolks to serve as a lightning rod for our plant obsession and also to sooth our gardening discontents."

—Dr. William Scheick, Professor of English Literature, University of Texas at Austin (Choice Award winner for Outstanding Academic Book, Pushcart Prize winner, and Center for Humanities Research prize winner)

"It's not that Art Wolk makes me laugh (which he does, repeatedly), and it's not that he is a great gardener (which he is, having won the Grand Sweepstakes at the always amazing Philadelphia Flower Show). The reason you should be the first in your group to read Garden Lunacy is that Art's stories document and poke gentle fun at the foibles we gardeners hate to admit. Art writes about our common experiences with humor and insight worth quoting. You'll find yourself and your gardening friends in his tales, and you'll want to be the first one to point them out to everyone."

—National Gardening Association by Nellie Neal, garden book author and radio host known as "GardenMama"

"I loved the Len Taylor story in Garden Lunacy."

—Alex Trebek, host of the TV show Jeopardy!

“Gardening might be fraught with frustrations, weeds and woodchucks, but Art Wolk proves that a razor sharp sense of humor is the tool that puts it all in perspective.”

—Tovah Martin author of Tasha Tudor’s Garden and A Time To Blossom

"Lest gardeners ever take themselves too seriously, Garden Lunacy: A Growing Concern by Art Wolk will set them straight! Through personal anecdotes and offbeat observations, Wolk—a multi-talented garden writer and lecturer—takes a light-hearted look at the sometimes-wacky world of gardening. He delves into the differences between gardeners and non-gardeners, the competitiveness of flower shows, dealing with garden pests, and more."

—The American Horticultural Society's The American Gardener by Viveka Neveln

“It’s time to take a break from serious garden books and have a good laugh. Garden Lunacy unmasks the world of gardening and pulls no punches.”

—Jane Pepper, President, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and author of Jane Pepper’s Garden

"I thoroughly enjoyed Garden Lunacy!"

—Fred Roberts, Longwood Gardens (former director)

"I laughed my head off. It really struck a chord."

—Virginia Smith, Philadelphia Inquirer

"In this world where we find ourselves having to be too serious too often, it is wonderful to find an outlet through laughter, especially when the topic is one so close to our hearts – gardening! We thoroughly enjoyed Garden Lunacy! It’s a great book to have in the "reading room" for a morning chuckle to get you in the right frame of mind for the rest of the day; to take with you on a trip to read aloud while driving with the family…laughing all the way; or to enjoy during the winter when you really want to garden and can’t. It would also make a terrific gift for a gardening friend!"

—Brent Heath and Becky Heath, authors of Daffodils for American Gardens and Tulips for American Gardens, and owners of Brent and Becky's Bulbs

"The funniest book on gardening and gardeners in years."

—The Reporter.com by Dottie Deems

"With humor and wisdom Art Wolk has captured the essence of what it means to be a gardener.   'Too true to be funny' does not apply to the gardener/non-gardener translations and 'barely fictional' situations in this book. Read it! It's hilarious all the way through. Wolk offers sharp insight into the nature of gardening and gardeners in a way that I have never before seen in print."

—Betty Mackey, author and independent publisher

“What an enjoyable read! Garden Lunacy exposes the arcane world of plant nuts and gardening addicts to the familiar light of laughter. A must read for the afflicted and their enablers.”

—Liz Ball, author of Pennsylvania Gardener’s Guide

"Although Art Wolk has 'been there, done that' in the gardening world, this is not a 'how-to' primer for gardeners. Wolk thinks there's too much of that already. Wolk sees the world divided into gardeners and non-gardeners and he leads the reader merrily through the gardener's world. How and why Wolk will grow, groom, and transport hundreds of bulbs and other plants to the Philadelphia Flower Show, enlisting a caravan of friends to help, reveals how phantasmagoric the gardener’s worlds become when they develop a passion for any group of plants. The author sees the distinctions between the gardener and non-gardener at the movies, even in garden clubs. A true dirt gardener with a wild sense of humor (which probably saves him from the loony bin) he takes plants seriously, but not himself and his zany foibles. You’ll learn a lot as you guffaw your way through this look at the gardener’s world.”

—Jean Byrne, former president, Garden Writers Association; founding editor, Green Scene Magazine

"Garden Lunacy is one of my five favorite titles of the year. This book isn't so much about gardening as it is gardeners and the crazy behavior the gardening way of life induces. A fun and easy read."

—George Weigel The Patriot News

"For laughs, read Garden Lunacy. Wolk takes off on the delights, frustrations and addictions of gardeners. The result is an irreverent look at that very serious pursuit: the gardening universe."

—John Van de Water Star Ledger

"A must-read. In Garden Lunacy; A Growing Concern, author Art Wolk looks at gardening and gardeners with a light touch of nonsense. He laughs at us and himself and shows over and over again just what kind of funny people we are."

—Kate Jerome, National Gardening Association

"Save the Chesapeake Bay! Save the planet! Save the animals! How about an SOS to save your own sanity? The prescription for this is Art Wolk's Garden Lunacy: A Growing Concern. If you are looking for a "how to" book on gardening, you won't find it here. Put down your alphabet PMG, IPM, SOD. Instead put some humor back into your humble gardening lives. Wolk's book is a real hoot in a Dave Barry-like tradition. It is a must read, especially when you are taking life too seriously. Relax, take a break from your gardening and other chores, and you are guaranteed many hearty laughs."

—George Graine Newsletter of the Virginia Master Gardener Association

"Reading this book, and continuously chuckling while doing so, is the equivalent of sharing treasured experiences with a wonderful friend."

—Patricia A. Taylor (garden book author), for The Times

"Garden Lunacy is just delightful!"

—Judy Lowe, Christian Science Monitor garden editor and former president of the Garden Writers Association

“Garden Lunacy is a must read. You’ll get a unique perspective on the joys, fears, successes, and failures of gardeners, and chuckles, too.”

—John Cretti, National Gardening Association

"It's hard to find funny garden writers, but Art Wolk certainly is. I loved Garden Lunacy."

—Betsy Lehndorff, Rocky Mountain News

"An irreverent take on the world of horticulture written by a garden fanatic who makes fun of his own oddball behavior, and in the process makes all gardeners lighten up. Get this book and enjoy a good laugh!"

—Marianne Binetti, Seattle Post Intelligencer

"Art Wolk has a very witty style of writing about his fellow gardening enthusiasts. Garden Lunacy: A Growing Concern is filled with tales -- of travel problems in a late snowstorm with a car full of plants, an apartment overflowing with seedlings or plants, and [someone] carefully tending a marijuana plant in a public garden. Of particular note is a gardener to non-gardener translation section. This should help clear up many of those misunderstood signals between the two -- not to mention bring a nod and a smile to many of us who have "been there, done that." The book is indeed a wonderful remedy..."

—Kate Copsey Fauquier-Times Democrat

"A delightful book…a thousand chuckles over very recognizable garden traumas."

—Helen Bale, garden columnist The Auburn Journal (Auburn, California) and Gold Country Home and Gardens

"I made the mistake of beginning Art Wolk’s Garden Lunacy at the tail end of a very long day. The first sentence pulled me through a gate and, like Alice in Wonderland, I fell right into the rabbit hole never once considering how I'd get out again. A mad tea-party of a book, Art Wolk lead me down the garden path and through the looking-glass; I could neither stop reading nor laughing at myself. If gardening is your obsession, this book will educate and entertain, but don't start reading it when you need some sleep, and watch out for the white rabbit!"

—Marcia Tate, Photojournalist, Garden Writers Association member

“As I giggled my way through Garden Lunacy, I recognized descriptions of my many gardener friends whose behavior around plants is admittedly a little odd. His diagnoses though hilarious, don’t apply to me of course! A must read are Art’s movie reviews based on horticulture in film. You’ll never watch movies the same way again.”

—Ellen Spector Platt, author and lecturer on horticulture

"How obsessive a gardener are you? Begin to discover your own degree of obsession and recognize your gardening (and non-gardening) friends, humorous foibles and all, as you read about flower show addicts, Hortiholics Anonymous, and other gardening hi-jinks in Garden Lunacy: A Growing Concern. This delightful book is written by Art Wolk, a highly accomplished gardener who walks the walk in addition to talking the talk, and you are bound to identify with his eccentricities so humorously related. This book provides the perfect pitch of levity... Enjoy!"

—Barbara Martin, National Gardening Association, Mid-Atlantic Region

"Not all gardeners have a sense of humor, but Art Wolk certainly does, and he employs it in [Garden Lunacy] to poke gentle fun at everything from home gardeners to the Philadelphia Flower Show. It's clever and charming, ... and graced with amusing drawings from Laurie Baxendell."

—Tim Smith, Green Scene Magazine

"If you are a gardener who likes to laugh as much as I do then this is a book for you! It is a hysterical book about gardeners ... especially the loony ones. Keep it in mind for gift giving to your gardening friends.

—The Gardener's Dirt, Iowa State University Extension, by Paula S. Witt

"Garden Lunacy is great way to brighten a dreary winter night. Art has a light-hearted humor that brings a chuckle with every page, Travel with [him] as he takes you on the roller-coaster ride from the novice gardener (one who hasn't yet "killed 100 plants") of 1978, to [a] prize-winning author (one who "has killed 100,000 plants in fewer than 25 years"). From the euphoria of his first blue ribbon through the tense and occasionally hilarious times that follow, He makes us feel the tensions, frustrations & exhilaration of his career as a garden lecturer, photographer, frequent TV show guest, and horticultural competitor, in short, a hortiholic."

— Phillip Peters, The Master Gardeners

"The garden is almost put to bed, and for the gardener, those long, bleak, empty days stretch ahead until the arrival of the first seed catalog. [Garden Lunacy is] something to get you through that doesn't involve prescriptions from your doctor or intensive psychotherapy. Laughter, either at yourself or at others, is the best medicine as long as you're not too obvious about it."

—Lew Hamburg The Olympian (Olympia, Washington)

"A madcap and hilarious romp. It really gives you the inside story [of the Philadelphia Flower Show]. A great read."

—BookReporter.com by Toni Savchuck

“No matter whether you’re curious, enthusiastic, or just plain compulsive about gardening, you’ll find yourself laughing out loud at Garden Lunacy. … a great book to have when you find yourself taking your gardening and yourself too much to heart.”

—Sheryl Hovey, Washington Gardener Magazine

To pay by check or money order for...

Garden Lunacy: A Growing Concern: Sorry: This book is currently out of stock. A new expanded edition is coming in 2024.

AAB Book Publishing LLC
P.O. Box 1724
Voorhees, NJ 08043

Questions or comments? Contact ArtWolk@artwolk.com or 856-751-8286

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