This document provides an overview of the development and success of the Ortho All Abouts book series published between 1999-2008. It discusses how the books were expanded over time to include more detailed information for readers at different experience levels. Two of the earliest titles, Building Waterfalls and Lawns, sold over 350,000 copies each and remained bestsellers. The success of these books led the publisher to take on new titles and expand their approach to providing home and garden information.

1. ©1999 Ortho All Abouts, 96 pages each
All Abouts provide technical overviews of a topic. With
a small book, providing all the information necessary
for readers to achieve success requires knowing what
must be included, honing text so that it is focused but
not terse, and finding ways to present ideas graphically.
Eight of the first titles
Meredith produced under
the Ortho brand.
Work began in November
1997; books went to
production in October
1998 and arrived on
bookshelves in January
1999. Their success at
Home Depot led to Meredith becoming category manager for the company,
a relationship that lasted 10 years.

2. ©2001, Ortho All Abouts, 96 pages each
á By Edward H. Reiley, past president of the á By Katie Lamar Smith, extension writer at
American Rhododendron Society. Auburn University, Auburn, AL.
Ö both by Jo Kellum,
landscape architect and
garden writer ➤
Ö All-new title explaining
how to grow and use water
plants; written by Greg and
Sue Speichert, publishers of
Water Gardening Magazine
and owners of Crystal Palace
Perennials nursery.

3. ©2002, Ortho All Abouts and the first Scotts-branded book
People new to a subject want more than an overview. I suggested Meredith expand its core topics to include
more hard-hitting details, essentially providing the secrets of professional practitioners. Ortho’s All About
Building Waterfalls and Scotts Lawns have been the best-selling books for the department. Lawns was the first in
the department to sell more than 350,000 copies and is still the best-selling lawn book on the market.
á Revised by Doug Jimerson, Editor-in-Chief, á All-new by Charles B. Thomas and Richard
Meredith Garden Group, 112 pages. M. Koogle, Lilypons Water Gardens; in-depth info
on building and managing water features; 96 pages.
á All-new title by Janet Macunovich, owner of á All-new title by Nick Christians, professor of
Perennial Favorites, a design-build firm in turfgrass science at Iowa State University, Ames,
Waterford, MI; in-depth information about IA, with help from five other writers; 192 pages.
planting and caring for perennial gardens; This is the best-selling book on lawn care
112 pages. published in the last 10 years.

4. ©2003 ©2004
á All-new title featuring a mix of projects from
á A light redo of the original book by Alvin
shows on the popular cable channel and basic
Horton. Refreshed by Mike MacCaskey with all-
introductory how-to information. Many of the
new photography and illustrations and updated
step-by-step shots are video grabs. Written by
text; 112 pages.
Kathy Barberich, David Haupert, Jan Riggenbach,
and Diane Witosky; 224 pages.
á By Ann Lovejoy and Janet Macunovich with
additional text by Jan Riggenbach, Katie Lamar á All-new title featuring projects and ideas from
Smith, Jo Kellum, and Phil Edinger; Nancy Engle, 20 public gardens across the United States.
project editor; 256 pages. Written by Marty Ross and photographed by Rob
Cardillo; 224 pages.
(This was a combination of two books—Ortho All
About Perennials and Ortho All About Successful
Perennial Gardening—with bits and pieces from
several other books.)

5. ©2004, continued
Ö All-new title aimed at first-time home buyers who know
nothing about what it takes to care for their yards. Information
covers maintaining the hardscape—decks, patios, walls,
fences, and furniture—as well as the plants. The first edition
had a hidden wire-o binding and a heavy plastic cover overlay.
Written by Kathy Bond Borie, Charlie Nardozzi, Delilah
Smittle, Ann Whitman, and T. Jeff Williams; contributing
project editor Mike MacCaskey; 384 pages.
©2005
à Reissued with a tradepaper-only cover.
á 600 pages
88 contributing photographers, more than 1,000 photos.
Nine writers, all experts in their fields: Scott Aker, Cathy
Cromell, Glenn R. Dinella, Marcia Eames-Sheavly, Janet
Macunovich, Dave Mellor, Bob Polomski, Jan Riggenbach,
Helen M. Stone.

6. ©2006
Ö The first plant-based book, rather than project-based,
from Miracle-Gro. It follows the Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. belief
that people who buy their products want to do things the
easy way. By packaging text in short nuggets, such as in
charts and sidebars, mixed with numerous colorful photos,
the book contains all information necessary to design a
garden and successfully grow perennials. Written by Penny
O’Sullivan; 192 pages.
Öà More than 50% of all shoppers never make it
inside big-box stores during the spring garden season.
The Miracle-Gro Waterproof series was designed to
catch potential readers in the garden center. The books
are especially geared to non-gardeners.
These 96-page, digest-size books, surprisingly,
required as much time and attention as full-size books.
All are written by Megan McConnell Hughes.

7. ©2007
á Changes include updates to the information, á By Jeff Day, 192 pages. All Home Depot books
new photography, and additional text by David are vetted in roundtables with staff from
Mellor, grounds manager for the Boston Red Sox appropriate departments in stores around the
at Fenway Park; 224 pages. country. This ensures the book answers the
questions their customers typically ask and
includes practical tips shared by the staff.
Ö by Megan McConnell Hughes,
96 pages.
We prepared three other waterproof
books for this season—Trees,
Shrubs, and Pruning. Because
stores and distributors did such a
poor job of executing placement of
the books, however, these other
titles were cancelled before they
went to the printer.

8. ©2008
What a year! The original writer for Perennials quit just before text was due, creating one of the biggest
challenges of my career and leading to creative adjustments to ensure the book arrived in the warehouse
on time. It was written and designed in just four months.
á By Dr. Laura Deeter, assistant professor of
horticulture at Ohio State University, and Scott
Aker, head of horticulture at the U.S. National
Arboretum; 256 pages.
Miracle-Gro Completes provide the same depth of
information as an Ortho book but in a lighter,
á Meredith’s first foray into regional garden
brighter format.
books. This book follows the structure of Scotts
Lawns with revised text from two turfgrass
science professors, Gil Landry of Georgia and
Charles M. Peacock, North Carolina. It includes
all-new step-by-step and location photography
shot in the South; 224 pages.
Ö By Ned Nash, previous American Orchid Society education
director, and Steve Frowine, plant geek; 256 pages. The text
was originally prepared by a packager and another editor for
Beautiful Orchids, which was scheduled to be published the
previous year, then cancelled. I revised it to fit the “Miracle-
Gro Complete” format, a much more challenging task than
expected. The writer’s original text was a labyrinthine mess,
and while it included all details key to a “Complete” book,
many had been edited out of the manuscript.