No comments about How to Know the Grasses (Pictured Key Nature Series).

No comments about Garden Favorites: Designing with Herbs, Climbers, Roses, and Grasses.

No comments about Grasses Of Wisconsin: Taxonomy, Ecology, & Distribution Of The Gramineae.

2 comments about Christopher Lloyd's Garden Flowers: Perennials, Bulbs, Grasses, Ferns.

1. Lloyd's normal rambling, storytelling style doesn't suffer at all from being organized into this alphabetical presentation of his favorite plants. In fact, I like him this way. Some plants get a quick brush off. Some get rich detail. Even the ones I'll never grow are fun and interesting to read about.

   He includes names of favored varieties. Unlike with many "Euro-gardening" books, I have been pleased to find those varieties available by mail and even locally (from a good nursery specializing in perennials). There are exceptions. I liked the Dr. Seuss look of Helianthus Salicifolius in one of Lloyd's photos. Most sites I found by searching for it on web were in foreign languages. There's hope, however, as it's apparently known as "willow-leaved sunflower and rock sunflower" in Kansas. If it doesn't get to Ohio from Europe, maybe it will get here from Kansas.

   I can't give five stars to a book that commits my pet peeve: photos, although lovely and colorful, are printed in sections. They are cleary labeled and referenced to the text and text descriptions have photo number references in the margin, where they are easy to find. It works, but I have four other books by Timberland Press, each intermixing great content with great photos. Go figure.




2. Following a short but informative introduction the main body of the book is arranged alphabetically by plant genus, wherein there is a general description followed by an assessment of each species or variety of that genus. The book concludes with a glossary and an index to plants and photographs. The book is beautifully illustrated with in excess of eighty full and half page colour photographs depicting plants singly and in stunning combination - but however fine the photographs are the stands on its writing.
   
   Unlike any other gardening "encyclopaedia" Christopher Lloyd's Garden Flowers is a personal account. Yes it is full of information about the plants, size, colour and so forth, but it is honest and forthright in its descriptions. It is typical of his work; in discussing plants he takes no prisoners, and he is not afraid to express his opinions; one might not always agree with him, but such was the stature of the man that I am sure he would not expect one to.
   
   This is a book full of delightful phrases and expressions, brimming with powerful observation and wit. Christopher Lloyd is always a delight to read such that I am sure even a non-gardener would fine his writings pleasurable. It is his combination of informed authority, open mindedness, fearlessness, adventurousness, his passion for plants and gardening and his wit which make his writings such a joy. Christopher Lloyd was one of our greatest plantsmen and garden writers, and this is perhaps the book we've always wanted from him, how fortunate we are now to be able to enjoy it.

1 comments about Ground Covers, Vines, and Grasses (Taylor's Gardening Guides).

1. This is a thorough, clear, concise reference guide to vines and ground covers. Very complete, excellent photos, well organized. I checked it out of the library with several similar books and liked it so much I decided to buy it.

3 comments about Easy Lawns (Brooklyn Botanic Garden All-Region Guide).

1. If you are considering putting in a low maintenance lawn or meadow suited to your local climate, this is the book for you. I have not found anything to compare with the information packed in this slim volume. The authors examine the requirments of each geographic region and each type of grass available in detail, and even give a list of sources. With the information I gleaned here, I'm ready to get started on my own project this year. Without this book, I wouldn't have know where to begin.



2. This book is easy on the eyes for those who want to "get to the meat of it." Great pictures and easy to understand instructions on each type of lawn and for each region of the US. The price makes this knowledge available to more people who are interested in a beautiful lawn with less work and less money.



3. This is a great book for those looking to replace high-maintenance sod-grass lawns with native or introduced plants. Many options are provided along with detailed planting instructions. (I chose white clover.)

5 comments about Gardening with Grasses.

1. An excellent text on the subject of ornamental grasses. The authors acknowledge that ornamental grasses are only a part of the landscape, and they address the other types of plants that work well with them.

   They approach the subject from a landscape design frame of reference, how to work grasses into your garden. This information is usually only available through your own trial and error. King and Oudolf take out the guesswork. What puts this book a step above all others about the same subject is that it informs its readers how to plant in combination with other perennial flowers. The 161 color photos and very thorough coverage of ornamental grasses and their companions make this the most complete package you could buy for incorporating these graceful, ornamental features into your design.




2. This book covers all the different types of ornamental grasses; from choosing cultivars to the many ways they can be used in your garden. The best book I have seen in this area!



3. We are a Landscape Design/Build firm specilizing in using ornamental grasses in our design concepts. We have found this book to be an excellent sales tool to show clients how the mature grasses will look in their L/S design. The text is extremely informative and gives a good basic knowledge of grasses to the novice. The photos are stunning.



4. I'm writing this review to balance out all of the 'great' reviews this book has received. The book is okay, but it is not a great reference book. It has several faults:

   First, the book is suppose to be about grasses, yet 25% of the text discusses garden flowers.

   Second, many of the photos are cluttered or blurred. There were few species specific photos that displayed a single clear crisp grass variety.

   Third, the book rambles and takes the long way to discribe a simple observation. Some readers will enjoy this style, but it's not for me. I want something that gets to the point.

   Fourth, the species reference (called 'Selected Plant Catalogue'), is sparse and dated. For example, Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Overdam' is covered in just three words, 'outstanding variegated form'. Gee ... somehow I was expecting more information. There is not one photo of Overdam in the entire book. Likewise, there is no photo of Festuca glauca 'Elijah Blue'. These are two very popular grasses to have been leftout.

   On the positive side, there are some neat winter photographs of grasses, and the book contains some useful information (but it is difficult to find it when you need it).

   This is the kind of book that you're suppose to sit and read from cover to cover. A pleasure reading book. Not what I do with garden books, I read them rather like an encyclopedia - and this is not a good choice for a reference book.




5. I must say, I am astonished that this book has recieved the positive reviews that it has. I bought this book with the intent of gaining knowledge in the area of designing with grasses. I read it from start to finish and found that the entire text consisted of rambling, repetative, generalizations that were devoid of any substantial content. I was completely shocked that the authors would dare publish such wishy-washy material.

   In addition, many of the photos are out of focus and the corresponding descriptions are often incomplete. The descriptions of specific grasses are very brief and many very popular grasses are not included at all.

   I have never been more disappointed with a book purchase of any kind on any topic.

2 comments about Grasses in California (California Natural History Guides).

1. The book serves well for the identification of exotic grasses recently found in Southern California, 1999. However, many of the scientific names of native California bunch grasses have been reclassified in recent years. Unless you know what the new names are, the guide may not serve you well. Additional pictures would have been much more helpful for many species.



2. This small book documents many non-native grasses and a few native grasses found in California. However, it's reprint as a field guide is marginally useful. Some of the cross-referenced graphics don't exits. The book is visually uncomfortable to read because of inconsistent text formatting and line crowding. Most illustrations and all of the photographs are reproduced too small.

5 comments about Agnes Chase's First Book of Grasses.

1. Agnes Chase loved botany as a hobby and she wrote this book in that vein. There are lots of excellent illustrations of plant parts that are clear and easy to understand - a must for grass identification. This edition has an excellent preface, going into the history of Chase's life. It's a must buy for the hobbiest and the professional alike.



2. Highly recommended for "wannabe" botanists and plant lovers, this book divides the complexity of grasses into twelve relatively simple lessons. It is perfect for quickly gaining a basic understanding of the taxonomy of grasses, and, of course, impressing your friends at parties with lines like "hey check out the florets on this pedicellate spikelet." (Lesson 3)

   This book is a primer not a field guide, check out Knobel/Faust for a good companion volume.




3. Although my botanical interests lie mainly in mycology and dendrology, I was truly delighted to find this little book. It is simply the best way to get a conceptual understanding of the structure of grasses and the main genera in a way that will definitely aid your ability to identify them in the field using more traditional taxonomic keys. Normally, such keys lead you from the specific characters to the taxon/concept itself, but with this book, you learn the more powerful concepts that unify and differentiate the various genera. This was a tremendous aid to me in my field identification of this important group, because after reading this book several times, I basically knew what was going on, instead of just "cookbooking" it using the typical botanical key.

   I have sort of an amusing story associated with this book. By the time I had memorized this book I could basically identify any grass at least to the genus level by sight, and then I could consult a more detailed taxonomic key from there for the species. I was once sitting around a fire with my fellow mycologists, who were somewhat amused I had somehow learned how to identify the grasses, which, even for a botanist, are an esoteric group. So when they asked what I was doing, I said that once you understood the grasses, even an apparently desolate, boring, sand lot down the block can provide hours of fun. Mycologists are used to spending hours tramping through the woods in search of interesting mushrooms, so they found this quite funny and everybody laughed at the thought.

   Anway, Agnes Chase loved the grasses and this book is filled with that enthusiasm in this clear and concise book, helping to make one of the most difficult areas of plant identification easier to deal with.




4. As a first-year botany student, I was overwhelmed by the confusing tables and cryptic systems when trying to identify certain plants. I am so relieved to find a guide like Agnes Chase's First Book of Grasses, where identification methods are made simple, yet remain as factual and dependable as the volumes on horticulture and botany for advanced students. The book is a classic in the world of botany, however the updated fourth edition makes it all the more useful in relation to the ever-changing world of scientific knowledge. This guide is a must-have for any beginner in botany as it opens the doors to the world of agrostology in such a clear and dependable manner.



5. This one is definitely not for beginners. It is far too detailed in terms of minute structure of the grasses and is not organized in such a way as to help the amateur in the identification of a particular grass type.

2 comments about Manual of the Grasses of the United States Volume 1.

1. The two volume set published by Dover is a reprint of A.S. Hitchcock's 1950 Manual of the Grasses (2nd Ed.). But don't let that fool you. Perhaps some names have changed in the last 50 years, but the grasses remain the same. Here is one of the greatest sources of informaton on US grasses in the most compact form that can be found anywhere: descriptons, illustrations, distribution (which may be more of historic value than current), and, in the case of many exotics, history of introductions. There's even a synonymy. Yes, you'll need a current manual, but if you are interested in grasses in the US, then Hitchcock belongs on your shelf, too.



2. As a botany student any publication by Hitchcock is the best. Only comment is that there is additional vital data in the second volume which I was not aware of until I was in the throws of identifying some grasses!! That being said Vol 2 is on my wish list. - It is a very nice supplement to Flora of the Pacific Northwest.