I subscribed to one for a thousand years that I loved, called Gardens West, Canadian. Not only that, I purchased every mag that was on the stands. I looked almost weekly -I was addicted and could not resist. I think they all cost me a fortune. Guess what, I cannot believe it, but am done with all that now and finally cancelled my subscription to the mag that I thought I was married to for life.......and come to that, I also quit the Hort Soc and our local rose Society. I get more out of this forum than all the mags and societies put together......and guess what again? We have the most beautiful photo illustrations of roses on this board that I would ever get from any mag. Wow, the-money-I-have-saved! But I will never knock gardening magazines, especially for new gardeners, as in early years one can learn a lot and get lots of good ideas and they can be very pleasureable.

Ok, I know, I have evaded the question, so sorry! and my honest answer would be, that my very favourite one is Country Gardens.
Cheers!
Pauline - Vancouver Island

The only one I subcribe to is Canadian Gardening.
Thats enough for me, don't have a lot of time to read them.
Some are still wrapped up in their plastic sitting on the book shelf.
Niecey

I've been getting English Garden for a few months now and love looking at the pictures. A lot of the info doesn't pertain to me here but some gorgeous garden designs.

I actually like Garden Gate--a lot of it (like most gardening magazines) is for beginners, but I like how each issue features a certain plant and goes into detail about it for several pages. No ads too.

I am back and forth with Fine Gardening. Some issues don't seem to have anything that interests me, but every now and then I'll read an issue that seems to be packed with good info & pics.

Garden Design is way over the top.

I guess my favorite is People Places & Plants, because they focus on New England. The magazine was started here in Maine. They also have a Mid-Atlantic version.

Here is a link that might be useful: People Places and Plants

Fine Gardening or Garden Gate
I want to find an English Cottage garden mag.

Carla

A garden magazine that's actually useful and not full of fluff? That's a pretty tall order!

Your best bet is a state or regional garden publication if one exists in your area. Here, for instance, we have Carolina Gardener -- but even that fine publication must attempt to be relevant for an audience of readers who garden under an array of fairly significant zonal variations.

Seems to me that the national publications fall mostly within the garden porn category. When I'm contending with week after week of 100 degree heat, the last thing I want to do is to pick up a new issue of a garden mag only to flip thru pages of fabulous photos of someone's Alpine garden. I, for one, will not be planting lupines any time soon.

I agree that Garden Gate and Fine Gardening are good ones. I am also checking out Backyard Living. That is more of an all around outdoors magazine if you need that sort of thing, e.g. grilling, patio furniture, etc.

My plan is to buy several issues of a few magazines before I commit to a subscription. That was I can really figure out which one is for me.

Right now I subscribe to Horticulture. I always look for when they have a free subscription add is going on. I also subscribe to Birds and blooms. However I am a garden magazine junky! A few year ago Better Homes and gardens put out a special publication called Roses and Old fashioned flowers. I keep that and some other magazines that are rose oriented. Other than that I just choose magazines from the book store that have something in them that pertains to my liking. I keep rose catalogs too...heirloom, Arena, David Austin, Ashdown, Witherspoons, etc. I have one from either Kordes or Tantau...don't know which since it's not in english. Plus I have a years worth of Roses put out by the rose society. I never throw anything rose related out.
Tammy

Most of them are pretty fluffy. I used to get Garden Gate. I liked it but after a couple of years it just all looked the same to me. As a member of the Heritage Rose Foundation I get Rosa Mundi which is very interesting and ad free but I guess I wouldn't call it a gardening magazine. Pacific Horticulture is good.

Well I just subscribed to English Gardens. LOL!!

I will admit to being a porn junkie (garden porn only). I can gaze at lush gardens all day long....I also check out books at the library all the time. Junkie....through and through.

Ronda

Sadly, "Sunset" no longer rings my chimes.
For a Californian, I might suggest "Garden Compass," as being inexpensive and informative.
And one of its people, John Bagnasco, is a REAL Rosarian.

Jeri

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Compass Magazine

I like Sunset and Garden Design. I find them both to be very professional looking magazines. The spreads are more on the inspirational side than the DIY side. I also get House & Garden, but that magazine is more like "HOUSE & garden," i.e., lots of house and not very much garden.

I get Garden Gate and Backyard Living. I like both of them and I like being able to go to their websites. I'm a sucker for a beautiful picture. I buy garden mags at the store fairly often, too. It's an indulgence, like chocolate. Brandy

Whatever has good pictures when I flip through it at the store is what I usually get. It tends to be one of the Better Homes & Garden publications (cherrykist- I still have that issue of Roses & Old-Fashioned flowers too!). As you said, they don't usually have that much info in them but I enjoy the garden eye-candy! I mostly get them for design and flower ideas. When I need info on a specific topic, I usually turn to the internet (like Rose Forum!) or books.

Since I am a member of the ARS, I get The American Rose magazine with my subscription. There is a lot of rose info there as well as pertinent articles written by rose people, not just gardeners in general.

Garden Shed by BH&G was my favorite magazine. Sadly it is no longer being published. I miss it dearly. COUNTRY GARDENS is my current favorite. American Rose has some good content but the photography has fallen in the last couple of years. English Gardens is a like an overpaid super model. Breathtakingly beautiful on the glossy surface, but totally useless in the real world.