6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
EXCELLENT BOOK SIMPLY FULL ON USEFUL AND VITAL INFORMATION, June 30, 2009
This review is from: The Complete Perennials Book (Paperback)
My wife and are love flowers and are quite "into" their cultivation, growing and general overall care along with bed design. For us, perennials are the way to go. We found long ago the yearly preparation of flower beds, and annuals do require yearly preparation and lots of it, was extremely time consuming and at times unpredictable. Add the fact that weed control is often times an issue in larger annual beds along with the fact that seed cost has skyrocketed over the years and the answer to most of our needs were perennials.
With these lovely flowers, and there is a tremendous variety out there now which is growing each year, there is indeed bed preparation but it is about one half of what is put into the annuals. We also enjoy the lush foliage that many of these plants produce, even when they are not in bloom. Owning many books on the subject, we were reluctant to purchase this one so we check it out of the library. After one quick scan read, we went ahead and bought the thing and have not been sorry once. Now keep in mind that I am not normally a big fan of many of the Ortho Books, but this one is certainly an exception.
The bed preparation section of this work which I will lump into designing, color schemes, depth requirements, placement and so forth, is a wonderful, if for not other reason that it has given me many moments of inspiration, which, when followed by action and not just daydreaming, have paid off big time. I also found that the section concerning choices to be extremely helpful. Our property is heavily shaded for the most part but we do have some large areas of full sun. Couple this with my tendency to use a lot of rock for my beds, and the choice of plants can become quite tricky at times. This book helped.
Now some of the information in the book such as plant separation, care and feeding, mulching and that sort of thing was not as useful to me as I have "been there and done that" over the years. That is okay though. The authors of this book did not design the book just for me and for my specific level of knowledge or my specific yare. That is one of the major strengths of this work; there is something in it for everyone, from the rank beginner to the master gardener. This is how a book like this should function!
Now no book is absolutely perfect and no book will answer all of your questions. That is the precise reason why there are so many books on this particular subject! But that being said, if you can or desire to purchase only one book on the subject of perennials, then this would probably be a pretty good choice.
I might also say that the text of this work is written in a fashion that is quite easy to understand and quite detailed. The book is also filled with some wonderful photographs. This is a nice work and if this is an area of interest, then it should be on your book shelf.
Don Blankenship
The Ozarks
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ortho Complete Perennials Book, November 4, 2008
This review is from: The Complete Perennials Book (Paperback)
I own a lot of books, especially gardening books, and this is by far the best of them! If you have any interest in perennials, whether you're a beginner or an expert, this is the book for you. It covers it all. How to design a perennial flower bed, specifics (hardiness zones, height, water needs, when they bloom, bloom duration, sun/shade needs, soil requirements, recommended species, growth rates, fertilizer needs, when they should be divided, disease and insect problems, how the plant develops new plants ie: offsets, runners, etc.). Includes lists of plants and designs for different types of gardens; butterfly, hummingbird, water-thrifty, damp-soil, shade, small-space, rock, and foliage. Plus different charts that compare plant size, season of bloom and colors. Also gives specifics on approximately 187 perennials. I dare call it the 'Bible of perennials' book. Enjoy perennials?- get this book!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the complete perennial book, August 2, 2006
This review is from: The Complete Perennials Book (Paperback)
it's a beautiful book full of informations and I'll use it for years to come
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