5 comments about American Horticultural Society Great Plant Guide (American Horticultural Society Practical Guides).

1. The revised, updated new edition of the American Horticultural Society's Great Plant Guide is truly an outstanding achievement. A fat but genuinely pocket-sized guide contains 3,000 recommended plants, color photos, and an A-Z format for quick consultation. Add at-a-glance charts of required conditions and you have a reference which is useful and colorful.



2. If you dream of finding beautiful flowers, the new updated and revised American Horticultural Society Great Plant Guide is impressive. With over 3000 recommended plants and guides for plants for containers, this book was rather handy when planting a new container garden.
   
   On page 674 and 675 you can find a Plant Heat-Zone Map which gives 12 heat zones. Most plants are featured with a picture and short description. Then, you can find symbols for the preferred soil type, sun/shade preferences and hardiness zone ranges. The plants without pictures are listed in The Planting Guide and feature trees, shrubs, climbers, perennials and bulbs suitable for specific site or garden situations.
   
   Features:
   
   Advice on how to buy plants through the mail
   How to choose healthy bulbs
   Understanding Plant Names
   Plants to attract Birds
   Plants to attract Butterflies
   Plants for Cold or Warm Walls
   Flower for drying or cutting
   Architectural plants
   Cottage-garden-style plants
   Trees for Small gardens
   Flowering hedges
   
   You can look up a flower in the index. Like, say "Petunia." This gives you a few names and then you can search for advice on how/where to plant your favorites.
   
   Since I just moved further away from my dear mother, we have both planted Petunias. So now when we look out of our window to our planters, we will think of each other. It was my mother's idea and she loves gardening. My grandmother used to grow roses and it seems everyone in my family has a green thumb. Our family loves going to gardens and learning flower names. This book is perfect for travel and is very useful when shopping for plants that have not yet bloomed. You can quickly look up names of plants alphabetically.
   
   For more detailed information on Container Gardening, look up the book by the same name by Paul Williams. His book taught me the best way to create an inspiring masterpiece.
   
   Now onto dreaming about planting a new lavender garden in the near future. I am also intrigued by some of the vines in this book. The blue trumpet vine looks interesting and in the zone I'm living in, I could quite possibly grow a passionflower vine. Seattle and Issaquah were a bit too cold and rainy. There are some stunning flower selections interspersed with familiar flower faces.
   
   If it was my choice, I'd spend all my time writing, cooking and planting flowers while listening to inspiring music. What a life! This book is sure to inspire some of your own gardening dreams.
   
   ~The Rebecca Review



3. I think this is a very nice book; it is very informative. However, I was surprised when I received it that it was pocket sized and the typeface was very small. It can be difficult to read for some people.



4. The AHSGPG is a wonderful little book. It has practically every living plant known to man. Not only does it give descriptions on plants/trees/shrubs, but this book also gives you a climate planting guide, as well as suggestions on the different kinds of plants to plant in different areas of the U.S. Even small container gardens, shade gardens, full sun gardens along with different soil limitations. It's small size is what I love...small enough to tuck in a purse when going plant shopping!



5. Not a real user friendly book. It's small size would be nice if you wanted to take it say as a dictionary with you to the nursery. Otherwise, save your money. There are many many more books on the market that would be a better buy for your money.

5 comments about Deckscaping: Gardening and Landscaping on and Around Your Deck.

1. Gardening and Landscaping On and Around Your Deck. How to surround your deck with spring flowers & fall berries, & fill it with flowers that will attract birds & butterflies, as well as create an edible landscape for yourself.

   Time to turn your deck into a place worth living in? Want to add a little Eden into your life?

   Barbara Ellis has the book for you!

   With gorgeous photographs & elegant drawings; lists of flowers that will attract wildlife; comparisons of different kinds of containers & trellises, & simple instructions on how to do almost anything with plants, DECKSCAPING is a must for anyone wanting to change that drab outdoor area into a welcoming haven for yourself & your wild life!




2. Gardening and Landscaping On and Around Your Deck. How to surround your deck with spring flowers & fall berries, & fill it with flowers that will attract birds & butterflies, as well as create an edible landscape for yourself.

   Time to turn your deck into a place worth living in? Want to add a little Eden into your life?

   Barbara Ellis has the book for you!

   With gorgeous photographs & elegant drawings; lists of flowers that will attract wildlife; comparisons of different kinds of containers & trellises, & simple instructions on how to do almost anything with plants, DECKSCAPING is a must for anyone wanting to change that drab outdoor area into a welcoming haven for yourself & your wild life!




3. There is so much room for change in a deck garden that an idea book is great to keep around. This is my favorite one. It's packed with ideas you may never have considered, like including ornamental grasses for their flowing texture, growing pretty peppers in pots, or fine-tuning your plant choices to attract butterflies. Practical matters like choosing furniture or using awnings is covered as well. If you have a deck or patio and you like to garden, you need this book.



4. I love to garden but I don't have a huge budget so I was delighted to discover this book, which covers topics I hadn't seen in similar books. Among other things, it includes:
   
   Full color photos of all sorts of deck gardens, from evening gardens to container gardens, trellis gardens and more
   
   Detailed tips on how to camouflage ugly (but usually inexpensive) containers, allowing readers to spend more on plants and less on containers. She provides instructions for numerous and easy "cover-ups" for those awful plastic pots. I love this!
   
   Tips on planning deckside flower beds, choosing furniture and buying or making trellises and other supports are invaluable. This author knows her stuff and even includes plans for all sorts of items (I love the very easy copper trellis she includes)
   
   She lists the plants by their common and horticultural names and includes photos of nearly every plant - in color.
   
   Plans for the deck gardens are incorporated into the larger landscape theme (assuming you have one) so that your deck fits into your total garden design scheme, a very nice touch.
   
   If you aren't a natural decorator, her chapter on "Decorating with Style" will save you time and frustration. Her examples are never tacky, always tasteful and accomplished with a minimum of time, effort and fuss. Again, something to love!
   
   Finally, this book allows readers to simplify their deck gardening time, which means there should be more time to savor the results of your efforts. Who wouldn't love that?



5. A fair book - I suppose if you have no imagination - have never looked at another landscaping book - or a new to the concepts. Nothing new in here - so that's where I was disappointed.

3 comments about Plants for Profit: Income Opportunities in Horticulture.

1. Plants For Profit: Income Opportunities In Horticulture is a unique, authoritative, original book written by a world renowned expert in the field of ornamental horticulture specifically for readers interested in engaging in commercial horticultural ventures. Plants For Profit shows how to find a good job working with plants, how to start, operate, and finance a horticultural enterprise. F.X. Jozwik provides a concise overview of marketing and plant culture with a wealth of practical and insightful advice that will save the aspiring commercial horticulturist thousand of dollars and maximize return on capital investment. Jozwik shows how to grow trees, plants, and flowers profitably, which plants are in demand, even how to find a good job in horticulture so that you can earn while you learn. If you are a gardener, horticulturist or farmer considering an expansion into raising and selling ornamental plant, begin with a thorough reading of Plants For Profit.



2. A lot of growing info and what does not work, but some good ideas make this book worth while reading. Wish it had more on the art of selling the plants. Bought Secrets to a Successful Greenhouse and Business, after this one and do highly reccomend it. Love my greenhouse so much!



3. "DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF HOW TO MAKE MONEY GROWING AND SELLING TREES, FLOWERS, AND PLANTS.....
   
   * Benefit from the experience of an international expert who has grown and sold millions of plants.
   
   * Know which plants are hot!
   
   * Learn important business and financial pointers.
   
   * Special details about how to make and sell expensive potting soil - a real gold mine!
   
   * How to grow trees, plants, and flowers profitably.
   
   * Sources for additional information.
   
   * How to find a good job in horticulture - learn the ropes while you earn.
   
   * Fun-filled field trip outlines to help you discover important real-world facts."
   [from the book of the back cover]

No comments about The Black & Decker Complete Guide Maintain Your Pool & Spa: Repair & Upkeep Made Easy (Black & Decker Complete Guide).

No comments about The Essential Garden Maintenance.

3 comments about Magnolias: A Gardener's Guide.

1. Gardeners interested in an in-depth coverage of magnolia hybrids, species, and their care will find this offers all the detail they require, charting the magnolia's culture, characteristics, and history. Magnolias isn't for the casual gardener, but for those devoted to the magnolia in particular and horticulture in general: a recommended pick for any serious horticultural library.



2. The book is a very thorough examination of the genus magnolia, both species and hybrids, with chapters on history, cultivation, propagation, pests and an excellent section on which species and hybrids to choose for your garden.

   While not for the casual gardener, I found much to recommend to any serious gardener considering an ornamental tree.

   This is no doubt the authoriative text on the subject and a very interesting read.




3. This is a fabulous reference for owners of magnolia trees and all persons considering planting a magnolia at any time in the future. This book will give you detailed information on habit, growth rate and hardiness that is a level of specificity well above most nurseries. My only wish was for more pictures, there seem to be multiple pictures of a few select species but none for the majority of those listed in the book. However, the title includes "A gardener's guide" rather than "Encyclopedia" so I did not feel misled.

1 comments about Walk-Behind Lawn Mower: Service Manual (Walk Behind Lawn Mower Service Manual) (Walk Behind Lawn Mower Service Manual).

1. While most works on non-fiction in this genre are dry to the point of being utilitarian this book, the best of the now five edition legacy from Intertec, captures all of the excitement and energy often lost in lesser works. In sooth, this book is comprehensive, informative, and well illustrated. But, the reader is never forced to pay a price for bounty of knowledge that is imparted as each page is turned to reveal the next nugget of truth.

   Throughout this book the quite yet faithful purr of the authors mind is evident as an intricate web of adjustments, refinements, and balances are brought to bear on a story of failure, realization, and renewal. If you thought you may have to scrap your hopes of finding a book that could revive the most rusty of human conditions you will rejoice in the promise of this well groomed masterpiece: Walk-Behind Lawn Mower : Service Manual the 5th edition.

1 comments about The Commercial Greenhouse.

1. This is a good book, written as a first or second year college text book. It covers many topics associated with commercial greenhouse operations in a general manner, with a few topics covered in greater depth. It is informative and worth having on your shelf if your considering a commercial greenhouse operation.

2 comments about A Natural History of Ferns.

1. Robbin C. Moran's "A natural history of ferns" takes as its subject both the ferns and the lycophytes, a group which includes the club mosses as well as Selaginella and Isoetes. He fills us in on the details of fern reproductive strategies, the lastest breakthroughs in how ferns are classified, the fossil history of ferns, some fascinating physiological and structural adaptations of ferns, the surprising patterns of fern geographical distribution and the impact of ferns on human life. He never stints on important and interesting complexities but still succeeds in making everything clear to a reader who has had
   first year biology. Mr. Moran has an almost uncanny knack for selecting topics that the reader already wants to know more about(or would be curious about if he had heard even a little about them) and knowing what extra information the reader would like to have. In places it is also a good travel book, good enough to make me nostalgic for the Danish countryside.



2. This book is a great scientific reference book while weaving in the history of how people discovered what we know about ferns. It has wonderful illustrations which are very detailed. It is also an interesting read even if you don't need it for a research paper. It is the most comprehensive book on the topic of ferns which we could find and one of the few which can be used extensively for a botany class.

No comments about Plant Diseases: Their Biology and Social Impact.