The inspirational DIY guide for painting a stunning portrait in houseplants. Hot Pink Limeade, Café Au Lait, Raspberry Margarita . . . wait, are we talking about plants here? It's not often that we think of decorative houseplants as 'delicious', but in Plant by Numbers, there's no denying that author Steve Asbell makes his debut as a "gourmet chef" of the floral color palette. With his unique and fun recipe-style approach, visually tantalizing full-color photography, and crystal-clear step-by-step instructions, Asbell takes interior gardening to a sophisticated but foolproof new level. Each of the 50 projects within features a comprehensive shopping list and functional plant-a-gram (that's a custom planting diagram), showing you precisely how to plant the container combinations to achieve the most beautiful results in your living space. Even better, interiorscaping has never been more affordable: you'll impress friends, family, and visitors with your luxurious-looking interior plant designs, and you won't break the bank in the process. You'll be entertained while you do it, too: Asbell's signature wit and original planting projects - with titles like 'Flavor Trippin', 'Jurassic Spark', 'Shower Caddy', and 'Femme Fatale' - make the beautiful designs in Plant by Numbers as much fun to read as they are to plant. With this book as a guide, container gardening really is as simple as making art with a paint-by-numbers kit.

"Many indoor gardeners familiar with the old paint-by-numbers kits will use Asbell's guide to houseplant combinations with great success. Positioning itself as nothing less than "a new language of exotic species and striking designs," this how-to provides 50 houseplant combinations and plenty of encouragement, citing fear of failure as the main reason more people do not attempt making arrangements of living plants. Following introductory plant and design terms, Asbell provides tips on fertilizing, grooming, problem-solving, and more, before reaching the actual "recipes" that tell readers all they will need concerning light, moisture, and humidity. He also provides a detailed shopping list for each recipe and offers ideas on swaps and replacements for different looks. In "Jungle Glow," for example, a durable black philodendron can be substituted for the fussier waffle plant. Full-color photos throughout excite the imagination, while a list of resources and an index enhance this guide's user-friendliness." ?" Booklist