2 comments about The P Lovers.

1. Those who love Gene Logsdon's work will definitely want to add this book to their library. Along with his usual contrary take on proper pond building methods, he conveys the beauty, diversity, and endless joy generated by a small pond of water. If you've not read Mr. Logsdon, then this is a wonderful introduction to his work. Anyone who has enjoyed dangling their toes off a dock, frog hunting in the cattails, or fishing on a sunny spring day will appreciate this book.



2. I thought this presentation was a nice balance between providing information regarding the creation and upkeep of a country pond and the value of ponds in the lives of real people. I took a few notes as I read to guide me through the process of adding a pond to our land in the Midwest. I also enjoyed the vision the author shared of the contribution a pond can make to the physical and emotional well-being of those who live nearby.

5 comments about Encyclopedia of Herbs & Their Uses.

1. When it comes to the uses of herbs it gives a brief overview of what one could possibly do with the herb without giving measurements or instructions for preparation. Some of the herbs listed could be lethal in large doses, which is the only reason this concerned me. It does, however, have an exhaustive list of common garden plants, their latin names, and information related to their growing and the zones they would grow best in. I turn to it frequently for growing information and as a starter on my research for further medicinal properties or preparation.



2. If you have an interest in herbs this book is a must-have. It lists even the most obsure plants and gives each a very informative overview that includes both the historical and modern uses. -Linda Fry Kenzle, author of Gathering



3. Best reference book I've ever read. Use this book whenever I see a plant I like and can't identify. Excellent pictorial and historical details. Wonderful tips for gardeners, herbalists and people who just love looking at plants.



4. This book is a definite must have for anyone interested in herbs. "Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses" contains color photos of all entries (or at least all of the ones I have looked up so far), and also lists the different uses of each herb. I thought the layout of the book was very well planned, and I found that the book, in general, was very easy to use. This book meets my needs perfectly.



5. I love this book! Extremely informative. All kinds of information that isn't found on the Internet. It helps my knowledge and growing skills, and my plants are happier because of it! A real find.
   Michelle Preston
   "DIRTY KNEEZ NURSERY"
   (228)861-6862
   Plants,trees,flowers,herbs,& seeds.

3 comments about Fabulous Fabric Flowers.

1. There are so many wonderful ideas and for someone with a learning dissability, the directions seem clear cut and easy to follow, so I can't wait to get started!



2. This is a beautiful book. The color pictures are very good and the patterns in the back of the book are good also. I've made several different kinds of flowers and they come out really nice. I haven't tried all of them yet but I look forward to trying them all. Very good buy for the money.



3. I can make this review before buying it because of this:
   
   I saw the 'search inside', see the techniques are like those in my japanese fabric flower books. the pattern is similar. like the leaf, the shape of that little flower...really-really similar to those in japanese craft books...and that little flower is very unique that it's japanese style of little flower...i know it...it's shown in more than 1 books...the way she attached the leaf...shape of leaf...really-really similar...
   
   4 stars is for the ENGLISH textbook...finally...the colors chosen (in search inside) are lovely, very-very western style, so homy, so sweet...i like it though...but i think for color, i prefer those in japanese books, very-very refreshing...
   
   i think the search inside has give quite info for amazoners who are interested in this book. Really, i'm very-very familiar with the techniques. with those two pages, i know they are simple techniques like i did with japanese books...i made fabric flowers sometimes from fabric leftover...so, i just knew it...and with shown flowers inside and on table of contents, you will get beautiful flowers...i don't think you'll regret it...
   also, you can make it with your children. it's a good way to introduce sewing and crafting to your children...
   
   can't give 5 stars (even i haven't really seen it) because the idea is not that new for me...i don't know which one comes first, but i quite believe in japanese craft. They always have different syle and bring something new to crafter...Besides those small flowers...ah, that's very-very japanese style...but for YOU who never knew about this before, YOU CAN give it 5 STARS!...I will, too, if this book is the first i know.
   
   anyway, i'm still wondering whether there are patterns available in this book. hopefully, buyers can add this information. Patterns are important because at first making, sometimes, we can't make the right scale...
   
   i also want to buy it for my reference (it's English! mine are japanese)but not now, not my priority...
   after i got those sewing and knitting books...Fabulous Fabric Flowers...here i come!!!!!

No comments about Landscaping Principles and Practices.

4 comments about The Garden Plants of China.

1. This book has just been awarded the Reference Garden Book of the Year by the British Garden Writers Guild on the 25th November 1999. An award richly deserved for this superb work of scholarship and book production . It is likely to stand as a major reference work for this intriguing subject for some time. I think that says it all.



2. This is a beautifully produced and immensely readable work of considerable scholarship . Its subject matter is intriguing and the author writes in a style where one finds oneself going quickly from one section to another. The wonderful photography certainly enhances the text. My views would seem to have been borne out by the recent decision of the British Gardens Writers Guild who have just awarded it the Reference Garden Book of the Year. I'm sure this will become the standard reference work for this engrossing subject for many years to come. I highly recommend it.



3. This is a fabulous, beautifully photographed, survey of the decorative plants native to China. The book opens with details of China's rich horticultural heritage and the role of plants in Chinese culture.

   Further chapters are broken down by type of plant. These include bamboos, fruit trees, orchids, roses, chrysanthemums, aquatic plants and more. Items both familiar and exotic to the western gardener will be found here.

   Many specific varieties are described in each chapter, with Latin, Chinese and common names. History, native habitat, and uses for each plant are described.

   The photography is outstanding with several close-up color photos on each page. There is also a nice smattering of old botanical illustrations and Chinese art. I highly recommend this book.




4. 400 pages and over four hundred color photos pack an in-depth examination of plants used in Chinese gardens for ornamental purposes. Listings appear using both Latin and common names and Chinese names, presenting the history, myths, horticultural information and uses of the plants. A beautiful presentation recommended for horticulture collections.

2 comments about The Necessity for Ruins, and Other Topics.

1. J. B. Jackson, the founder and longtime editor of the journal LANDSCAPE, helped readers appreciate, and understand, the modern American landscape--parks and cemeteries, to be sure, but also commercial strips and house types, roads and streetscapes--in all of its marvelous complexity. This short volume contains a number of Jackson's vintage essays. The first and last chapters explain the author's approach to the landscape. Other essays include discussions of gardens and sacred groves, the domestication of the garage, and keys to reading streetscapes. The title essay, "The Necessity for Ruins," begins as a reverie on the importance of public monuments before wryly concluding that history has fallen victim to preservation and the heritage industry. These engagingly written essays are the product of an enquiring mind determined to find meaning in our everyday surroundings..



2. the book arrived quiclky and I'm happy with it nevertheless it as some underlined sentences (used books are usually like this) but it's quite ok.

5 comments about Gardening with Heirloom Seeds: Tried-and-True Flowers, Fruits, and Vegetables for a New Generation.

1. Vintage, antique, old-timey. Use your own choice of words to apply to collecting venerable items. Antique automobiles, vintage clothing, and heirloom seeds. All have their unique charm and attraction to certain aficionados.
   
   Numerous authoritative books have been written about antique automobiles and vintage clothing to informally educate the reader in those subjects. Now, I'm pleased to see a book written that performs the same function for home gardeners.
   
   My wife and I prize our ginger, brought from Hawaii in 1960 by her mother. Each fall its incredibly aromatic blooms transform our front entrance into a perfumery envied and enjoyed by all. While the ginger is a bulb rather than a seed, it is heirloom and extremely valuable to us.
   
   Through the years, my wife and I have often stopped at old homesteads and gotten cuttings and seeds from their generous owners. These people, proud of their plants, many times have regaled us with the history of their unique plants.
   
   Even so, I never really thought of documenting the history behind many of these rare finds that I wanted for their color, overall structure, or scent. Indeed, I had never considered many aspects of heirloom seeds, per se, until I read this wonderfully researched and informative book. I am very grateful that Lynn Coulter has taken the time and made the effort to document this information.
   
   Most people today are familiar with Angel Trumpet (moonflower) vine, a night bloomer that is unique in its own right. But we have moonflower shrubs that came many years ago from an old homestead in Stamps, Arkansas. Their history can be traced back generations. It is the importance of these types of seeds that makes Gardening With Heirloom Seeds such a valuable, informative, and interesting book to read.
   
   Knowing the history and availability of heirloom seeds will once again send me to my planning template as I search for just the right location to put `one more gem'. I strongly urge anyone interested in bringing a touch of the past to their modern gardens to get a copy of this book for their use and reference. It is one volume every serious gardener should have.



2. This is a book that should be in everyone's collection. Not only does it tell you what you need to know about heirloom seeds it has some of the most beautiful and real pictures of flowers, fruits and vegetables. The section on where to find seeds is most helpful.



3. This is a great book. I got it for my mom the advid gardener who loves local/organic gardening. The pictures are beautiful and there is ample knowledge for the advanced gardener.



4. Not much more than you would get out of a seed catalog, should have been cheaper.



5. I find myself going back to this book for reference so often while I'm researching plants to consider for planting our garden of around 1860.
   I just love to read the discriptions of the plants and where they originated.

No comments about Bleeding Hearts, Corydalis, and Their Relatives.

5 comments about Florida Landscape Plants: Native and Exotic, second revised edition.

1. This is the text book used to teach horticulture classes and plant identification at the University of Florida. All Horticulture graduates and Landscape Architecture graduates at UF have studied from this book. Dr.s Watkins and Sheehan have put more than 5 decades of combined Florida horticultural expertise into this book.



2. This is a worthwhile book for a number of reasons, however, it has one major omission. The positive factors: 1) Excellent plant descriptions including details like salt tolerance level; 2) wonderful (and most appreciated) treatment of botanic names by giving the pronunciation and derivation of the Latin words (Thanks!). The omission concerns color photographs of the plants discussed. The publisher included a few color pages of plant drawings which are mostly useless and confusing. A good garden book needs to have extensive color photographs. I am sure that the author would agree!!



3. I purchased this book because it was highly recommended in a Florida Gardening magazine. I am new to Florida recently moving here from the Northeast. I was looking for someway to link plants I see in neighbors' yards with what might work in our spaces.
   The only thing I was disappointed in is that the book's pictures are not in color. Colors would help me better link plants I see with what's in the book.



4. FLORIDA LANDSCAPE PLANTS lists native and non-native plants growable in the northern, central or southern parts of the state. It's an updated version of the late Professor John V Watkins' book. Professor Watkins taught landscape horticulture at the University of Florida. But he was well known outside the campus, for his gardening- and landscape-related radio series and writings published as books and magazine articles.
   
   Professors Thomas J Sheehan and Robert J Black fill the empty space left with Professor Watkins' death. They've added to and modernized his classic landscape plant manual. Throughout, they've stayed true to Professor Watkins' original mission of writing for an audience of university students, nurserymen, master gardeners, and homeowners of our Gulf states.
   
   Their book is nicely organized for that purpose. There's a listing of over 400 plants. The book closes with a helpful model planting guide, list of invasives, glossary, and an index of common and scientific names.
   
   Their book gives more information and puts in more plants than the original work by Professor Watkins. But their book isn't comprehensive. It's not a case of everything Professor Watkins listed, along with add-ons. In fact, they've left out some "old favorites," partly because some have been called "invasive" by the Florida Exotic Plant Council. In part, too, they wanted the book to fall within the page range known as "popular size."
   
   FLORIDA LANDSCAPE PLANTS is nevertheless very workable, with a lot of clearly illustrated and organized information and with no useless information. Each plant is listed by common name. The scientific name is given below, with the way to say it and the English meaning. There's also a sketch of each plant. I miss the beauty of color drawings and photos. But the black-and-whites are so well done that the plants should be easily known by form and shape, often more telling than color.
   
   The information is conveniently slotted into family; relatives; type of plant; height [in Florida]; zone [in north, central or south Florida]; how to identify; habit of growth; foliage; flowers; fruits; season of maximum color; landscape uses; habitat; light and soil requirement; salt tolerance; availability; culture; propagation; and pests. Sometimes, there's a note slot, such as for sweet acacia "This plant is cultivated in the south of France for its flowers, which are made into a very fine perfume."
   
   FLORIDA LANDSCAPE PLANTS would be an interesting read not only for gardeners and landscapers. I was impressed with how many of the plants are already common household words as household plants: Dieffenbachia, ficus, jade plant, spider plant, and wandering jew. Others are already known as "public places" trees, such as my favorites: American hornbeam, black olive, geiger, gumbo limbo, lignum vitae, red maple, river birch, and southern magnolia. Still others are already known as rock garden plants, such as my favorites: agave, aloe, aluminum plant, bush zinnia, Florida yew, kalanchoe, peperomia, ponytail palm, prickly pear, royal fern, spineless yucca, and variegated pineapple. And still others are already known as water garden plants, such as my favorites: African iris, Asiatic jasmine, black tupelo, firecracker plant, galingale, ginger lily, oleander, peperomia, pittosporum, primrose jasmine, sweet bay, and torch ginger.
   
   It was particularly interesting to see how many of my favorites were listed as natives, such as: Adam's needle, beauty berry, buttonwood, coontie, frangipani, fringe tree, seven year apple, Spanish bayonet, sweet shrub, and tulip tree. In many cases, with natives we reduce the use of hazardous materials such as pesticides. For natives have their own natural controls. They're part of wider plant, bug, bird and animal communities that have built up a balance between over- and under-population in the same space over the same time. Just as important, natives reduce yardwaste. So many have attractive flowers, fruits and parts that can be reused as and recycled into artistic creations, such as dried bouquets and holiday wreaths.



5. I bought this book about 10 years ago and it turned into my Florida "Bible". Just about every plant, especially garden plants, is included. On one page you can see all the necessary information that is needed to be a successful Florida gardener.
   
   I loaned it to a friend, a plant "nut", recently transplanted from Pennsylvania. She was trying to grow plants the old northern way, which wasn't working out. Eventually success is growing in her garden.
   
   The book became a Christmas gift and a "Welcome to Florida" gift (and a gift for me, my old book is very worn) this year. Use it and enjoy.

5 comments about Psilocybin Production.

1. This was an interesting little read, though I don't know if I learned much useful information except that raising mushrooms seems to be a super-tedious task. The author writes as if the reader is supposed to know what the heck he's talking about, but I sure didn't. Perhaps someone with some laboratory know-how would find this book informative, perhaps not. Since I'm not a lab person, I don't know if his methodology is practical or not.



2. This book is good for anyone who has interest in the topic but is not familiar with it. Pretty Short, but in general a good book. Very interesting although you may need more sources to start on growing mushrooms.



3. This book is useless. The book contains information that only a scientist would use, but the book is written so poorly that one wouldn't use it. The book contains about 3 pages of information on growing mushrooms, the rest of the book is talking about setting up like a 1000sq.ft. lab and extracting psilocybin to make acid, with chemicals that you can't even get!

   Just so we are clear, THIS BOOK DOES NOT CONTAIN MUSHROOM GROWING INFORMATION.




4. I found this book to be very informative as I usually have a brown thumb when trying to get anything to grow. This book takes you step by step on your way to growing the plants from sprouts to nice little mushrooms. It gives you lots of knowledge on the use of the substance grown and how to produce it using very little space.



5. This book is filled with misinformation. It is clear that he has no experience growing mushrooms. Several procedures have zero chance of success and are fundamentally flawed and the others are outdated techniques.
   
   He likes to write in a confusing style that makes it sound like he knows what he's talking about, when in fact he does not.