2 comments about Lilacs for the Garden.

1. Lilacs for the Garden Jennifer Bennett

   John C. Wister observed "Even with the casual attention we have given it, the lilac is the oldest and best loved American shrub."

   Now you might argue that the lilac is not the oldest shrub in North America, but for many people it seems like the oldest inhabitant of the gardens they knew as children. The gardens we grew up in - our parents, grand parents and great grandparents gardens all had lilacs. My grandmother had a white lilac growing in a square foot of compacted dirt - I refuse to call it soil - in an inner city neighbourhood that was as polluted as it could be. Even as a child I admired its survival skills. Yet in these days when we have a reasonable plot of ground and amended soil, how often do we choose to plant lilacs?

   Jennifer Bennet, author of several gardening books, has done a thorough job of researching the lilac, the species officially known as Syringa. Most lilacs have come to us from the mountainous regions of Asia, although two species came from Eastern Europe to France. The French, enamoured by its perfume, transformed Syringa vulgaris into a wide variety of hybrids with larger clusters of flowers, a range of colours - from white through violet and magenta to purple.

   Lilacs came to North America with settlers during the 17th century. Some immigrants over 250 years old still grow on Mackinac Island, Michigan where there is a lilac festival every year. Another lilac festival is held annually in Rochester New York. And if you are looking for a major collection of lilacs, check out the Arnold Arboretum in Massachusetts, which has over 500 lilacs.

   The author, besides giving her readers a useful and detailed description of different varieties of lilac, also explains plant requirements, mulching, grafting fertilizing, stresses affecting lilacs and the best way to work with lilacs that have suffered from neglect. Her last chapter is a particularly useful "Lilac Aid: Why won't it bloom?"

   This is a well illustrated book, with most of the colour photographs taken by the author herself. There is a valuable resource list at the end, with mail order sources for the US and Canada, nurseries, public lilac collections and web sites with lilac information.




2. I do many lilac seminars each year and I refer all my students to Bennett's book first. It is the only recent book in print that does justice to understanding lilacs. If you are a gardener that wants a solid reference book to add a lilac or two to your garden this is the book to have. John Fiala's book, Genus Syringa, is much too detailed for the casual gardener and is geared to the lilac collector.
   
   Jeff Young, Lilac Curator, Univ of VT Horticulture Farm, Vermont Master Gardener

4 comments about An Illustrated Guide to Maples (Illustrated Guides).

1. The Timber Press has been putting out lavishly printed volumes (full color on glossy paper) for awhile now. With this book they appear to have lifted the publishing of fine books to a new level. They not only found a group of people dedicated to their subject and to fine photography who captured the saillant features in almost invariably excellent pictures, but also managed to find a layout to do these pictures full justice. Basically (almost) every maple species (or subspecies) has two pages devoted to it (or a multiple of that): a page of text and a page of pictures. Where more pages are devoted to a single maple sometimes a full page is devoted to a single picture, but this is the exception. Usually there are several pictures per page with large pictures of habit and smaller pictures of detail. The effect is quite splendid. A quick browse through the text reveals nothing out of place, with a recent classification being followed, although I suspect that a really close look will show up nitpickingly small errors. All in all this is really magnificent maple book, with a considerable wow!-factor.



2. THE ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO MAPLES is far more than the definitive book on all of the 250 species of this favorite tree for all seasons. It stands solidly as an art book for environmentalists, arborists, and lovers of color photography.
   
   In his Introduction Antoine Le Hardy De Beaulieu presents a warmly written history of the maple trees, with special attention to the areas of the world where this ubiquitous genus appears. Then follows a beautifully organized guide to each of the many species, with not only lush color photographs of the trees in the environment but also with close up views of specifics that assist the gardener in identifying each tree. Then at the end of this large volume considerable space is devoted to landscape placements of these magnificent trees that not only offer suggestions to planners, but also can be viewed as fine art photography. Highly Recommended volume. Grady Harp, January 2005



3. Enjoyed this book. Look forward to other plant books by this author. Especially if he does Viburnums as stated on the flap of the Maple book.



4. This is a wonderful book that provides more pictures than text. It was just perfect, showing close up pictures of the leaves, seeds, fruit, branches and trunks for the different seasons. The pictures assist with the identification of the species (or subspecies). The pictures are full gloss on a high quality paper.

1 comments about The Flowering Shrub Expert.

1. Provides the novice flowering shrub gardener pertinent and useful information that is well structured and user friendly. Beautiful illustrations.

2 comments about Tree & Shrub Gardening for Illinois.

1. We live in the Chicago area and this book was a huge help when, after losing three thirty year old pine trees, we needed to purchase new trees for our yard. In the past I have not always found the nursery people very helpful. Mistakes can be very costly in terms of money and labor. I actually brought this book with me and I felt much more confident in my purchases. I will never again go to a nursery to purchase trees or shrubs without it.



2. This easy to read book is geographically specific.
   It gives the beginning gardner a chance to schedule each month in the garden.
   I would have liked some more actual instructional information but I will recommend this book

5 comments about Continuous Color: A Month-by-Month Guide to Shrubs and Small Trees for the Continuous Bloom Garden.

1. When Continuous Bloom was released a couple of years ago, my gardening friends and I thought we'd died and gone to heaven. It was the first book ever to speak to the Midwestern perennial garndener, and to do so with such beautiful pictures and in a way we could understand, and actually take to the garden store and into our gardens with us. I never thought Pam Duthie would top Bloom,until I read her newest book, Continuous Color. It's the perfect complement to her first book, with pictures as beautiful building on the great design ideas laid out in "Color". Like "Bloom", "Color" gives the gardner many practical ideas for implementing beautiful shrubs into any landscape. I believe this book is a must have for any gardener, new or experienced.



2. I must be honest and tell you that I'm the editor of this book, so my rating is potentially biased. But I did want to let everyone know that the spiral edition of Continuous Color has laminated pages and cover, making it incredibly water and dirt resistant. It's ideal for taking out to the garden. Sure, it costs a little more than the hardcover edition (which is not laminated), but it's very practical for the hands-on gardener, and is very popular with attendees of the author's seminars.



3. I was very disappointed with this book. It is primarily a list of the author's favorite shrubs organized by month of best color. The quality of the pictures is uneven: some are good but others are too shadowed, or the plant blends into the background, or the shrub described is so hidden by other plants its features can't be seen. The plant descriptions and growing information are both pretty basic, the details easily gleaned from catalogs. The "Insider's Tips" are sometimes informative but way, way too short - if the author is an expert with these shrubs she should share more of that expertise here. The listing of 2 or 3 plants in each of the "Combines With" sections is valuable however, but overall this book is overpriced and uninformative.



4. I love Pam Duthie's books! She really does a wonderful job in presenting the various plants. The back of the book also has great plant info to help design unique gardens with tons of useful plant info. Great design category for color, wet, dry conditions....it's really the best book I've ever seen.
   Tanya



5. A friend recommended this book. This is absolutely the best garden book I have obtained to date. It is very explanatory, easy to read, and just overall informative. I'd recommend it to everyone!!

1 comments about Taylor's Guide to Trees: The Definitive, Easy-to-use Guide to 200 of the Garden's Most Important Plants (Taylor's Guides).

1. "Definitive"----???? NO WAY! This book has nice pictures but in no way is it good for identifying trees. There are many better ID books out there. Keep looking if you need an easy to use ID key.

No comments about Hollies for Gardeners.

1 comments about Tree & Shrub Gardening for Ohio.

1. As a native buckeye with no plant knowledge and a black thumb, this book is great! It is an alphabetical reference to all the native trees & shrubs. It tells you their good points, bad points, tips for success, etc in a very practical format. It also has TONS of photos of how the plant looks in different seasons. We moved out of the city & onto an acre, and this book has been used a lot!

5 comments about Ornamental Palm Horticulture.

1. The authors clearly had no intention in writing yet another book filled with photos of palm species that would instruct readers on what palms to plant. There are already many books that provide the service that two of these reviewers ask for ("Betrock's Landscape Palms," "Betrock's Cold Hardy Palms," "Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms") that give detailed horticultural information on palm species. The intent of this book is made very clear in the introduction: this a book on how to deal with palms horticulturally, not a guide on which palms to choose in a landscape.



2. This book is an attempt to guide those interested in palm horticulture. However, finding that palm horticulture varies widely between the species, I found this title a disappointment. Some palms can't take iron for instance, but the authors neglect to give specific information on those species which would be helpful. The same applies to those palms that need iron. As a general guide, the book is ok, but if you really need to know how to care for your exotic and rare palms you may need advice from the local botanical garden or a nursery that specializes in growing palms to determine the nutritional requirements of a specific genus.



3. Brimming with detailed, useful information on all aspects of palm horticulture.



4. The book was written in attempt to gather scientific literature on palm horticulture together in a single reference text. Broschat and Meerow have done that in a very simple and effective way. This is quite an comprehensive book that tackles the main aspects of palm horticulture from propagation to pests and interior maintenance of palms. Particularly useful are the sections on mineral nutrition and propagation. The different chapters of the book are well-complemented by over 100 illustrations which give you a better idea which disease or deficiency might affect your palm.
   
   I have read the book in less than two days and I was able to immediately diagnostic nutrional deficiencies with my Spindle, Christmas and Phoenix palms. This book is not intended to describe how to grow a specific palm. Rather, it teaches general principles to grow and maintain healthy palms. This is the most complete and useful book on palms I have read so far. Every serious palm amateur should have one at home.



5. A pure technical book, great for the farmers of palms. Everything you want to know about palms but not a palm's identification book. This book have only a few photos.

1 comments about The Story of the Apple.

1. A wonderfully written exploration of the story of the apple. The author traces the tale through the botany, history, geology, art, literature, zoology that influenced this important fruit. Extremely readable, and beautifully illustrated with original artwork and photos, the author guides us through thousands of years of history from Adam and Eve through to Johnny Appleseed. Loved the book. Highly recommend.