Book excerpt: The first book to look at this particular subject, The Roman Book of Gardening brings together an extraordinarily varied selection of texts on Roman horticulture, celebrating herb and vegetable gardening in verse and prose spanning five centuries. In vivid new translations by John Henderson, Virgil's Georgics stand alongside neglected works by Columella, Pliny and Palladius, bringing to life the techniques and obstacles, delights and exasperations of the Roman gardener. We also hear of the digging, hoeing, planting and weeding which then, as now, went into creating the perfect garden. This is a timely and valuable contribution to our understanding of gardening history, Roman culture and Latin literature.