Book excerpt: Horticulturist, garden designer, and much-praised author Toby Musgrave (Empire of Plants), in concert with Country Living Gardener, offers an inspirational and practical look at a most picturesque garden style. "Takes readers on a worldwide tour...[includes] plants well-suited to limited spaces and special techniques designers use to make small areas appear larger."--Gardener A courtyard garden makes the perfect personal haven, and now anyone can create a dream refuge with these beautiful design ideas, detailed blueprints, suggestions for glorious plantings, and inspirational color photos. Every eye-opening page showcases a different atmospheric example of outdoor living, from an Italian Renaissance garden complete with grotto, to a Japanese courtyard filled with dramatically shaped rocks, graceful trees, and a simple but lovely gate. A Latin Patio features extravagantly bright colors and striking plants; form follows function in the Modernist style; and a Tropical Paradise, with its luxuriant foliage and cascading water, reinvigorates the mind and spirit. Whether you're starting fresh or transforming an existing garden, you'll find a wealth of alluring possibilities.