The sixteenth century saw the emergence of inexpensive instruction manuals for aspiring gardeners. These manuals were not printed in Latin. Instead, they were printed in the vernacular which enabled their dissemination to a much wider audience than before.

One of the most notable features of this book is the wide array of designs for garden knots, ranging from the simple to the wildly extravagant. Knot designs increased in popularity throughout the sixteenth century, originally found in the gardens of influential figures such as Cardinal Wolsey (1473-1530) during the reign of Henry VIII, garden manuals allowed for ordinary people to attempt to recreate designs in their own gardens.

Entry adapted from Painting Paradise London 2015.