Park says plant-hunting is still popular. First editions of many of legendary
plantsman Frank Kingdon Ward titles seem to maintain their prices, though
the purple prose of Reginald Farrer is less popular than it was. And
collecting the complete works of certain gardener/authors can still be
profitable – modern authors such as Helen Dillon and Marylyn Abbott
frequently rise in value once their works are out of print.
Park is confident pre-20th-century gardening literature will always appreciate
in value, but later works are less certain investments. But he has a couple
of tips: hold on to old books (or guidebooks) on gardens that are still open
today – it is always interesting to compare old with new. Another central
tenet of Park’s is this: “The criteria I always use here is collect those
who actually garden, rather than just write about it. You can usually tell
if the hand that picks up the pen has soil under the nail.”
Collectable tips
Don’t throw out early seed catalogues
Book collectors will disapprove, but you can split books and frame the prints.
Who knows, they may make more money on the wall
See abebooks.co.uk
for prices
Speak Your Mind