Evelyn Hadden began gardening as a new homeowner in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Desperate for a daily dose of nature, she gradually transformed her lifeless urban lawn into a lively no-mow paradise. Her memoir about the process won gold medals in the 2012 eLit Book Awards and the 2013 Global Ebook Awards.

Apprentice to a Garden chronicles four years of Hadden's adventures and aha moments in this first garden, which she fills with hundreds of plants including trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, biennials, and vines; rocks ranging in size from pebble to table-top; and a home-made pergola. As the garden evolves, the street recedes from view, garden rooms and lawn alternatives take shape, and flora and fauna become the focus. Meanwhile, a complex and meaningful bond is growing between this amateur gardener and the site where she is planted.

This collection of garden stories, part essay and part memoir, captures moments of despair, awe, and hilarity, relating a beginner's journey that will bring back memories for experienced gardeners wherever they live... and smooth the way for those just starting down their own garden paths. Season-specific chapters describing the work of the garden are interspersed with short essays exploring key ideas (such as Not All Loves Last, and Beauty is an Opinion) gleaned from Hadden's experiences with her no-mow landscape. Shari Zimmermann's whimsical sketches, drawn from old photos of the garden, bring in just enough visual detail to set the scene for the reader's imagination.

Apprentice to a Garden reaffirms the uplifting spirit, the unceasing drama, and the compelling nature of gardening.