Customer Reviews

Covering Ground

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is a wonderful picture book full of information on any plant or plant combination you might use to cover an area of your garden. From borders to large expanse open areas. I was happy to find that it was not just the standard 'ground cover' plants that were discussed. Instead, it covered beautiful plant combinations that could be used to fill-in bare spots and trouble spots in the garden. It's the perfect book for garden planning and dreaming during the dreary winter.

This is hands-down the most useful landscaping book I've ever read. After finding it at the library, I wanted my own copy. I have a large ravine next to my house that I'm slowly trying to convert from a weed-filled ditch to a vision of beauty and this book is my guide. It includes a vast catalog of groundcovers complete with needs for sun, soil type, climate zone, and photos. It goes beyond the usual assortment, including shrubs, grasses, and combination of hardscape and groundcovers. There is also a lot of information on native plants and invasive ones (many of which can be useful in the right place!) I salute Barbara Ellis for this masterful work. If I could only have one gardening book, this would be it.

I poured through this book many times front to back and refer to it often. I love Barbara's easy writing style and the book is arranged nicely. I've gardened for years and am getting to the point where I need to add lower maintenance plants. With the detailed plant descriptions there is no mistake of what a plant will do for you so choosing is a much easier task. I have a rather large collection of plant books and this one ranks with my favorites.

Nice variety of plants discussed, most easy to find at local nurseries, Lowes, Home Depot. Excellent photos. Plants are well-grouped, ie dry shade, wet soil, shrubs for sun and shade, acid soil, alkaline soil, etc. Discusses how ground covers work, but provides little info on invasives. Overall creativity factor is low to medium (nothing too new or innovative is presented). Best used as a sourcebook, it will get you out to the stores in search of what fits your landscape.

There are many possibilities for covering ground, and many of them are covered here; from replacing grass on slopes and carpeting patches between stepping stones without overgrowing them to edging walkways or using plants as an alternative to traditional lawn-type ground covers. COVERING GROUND; UNEXPECTED IDEAS FOR LANDSCAPING WITH COLORFUL, LOW-MAINTENANCE GROUND COVERS addresses all issues revolving around yard and ground covers and is a top pick for any public lending library's home and garden reference collection.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

At first glance I was thinking that this book was about ground covers, but it truly is about covering ground in creative and beautiful ways with many different types of plants. Well written, practical and informative!

My landscape problem area is a steep, rocky hillside bordering our driveway. Two landscapers have offered me ideas, but neither of them were suitable to my desire for a natural, but colorful, look. With the beautiful pictures and informative information in Covering Ground, I can now visualize this project. It is time to call that landscaper again, now that I'm better focused and informed.

This book contains detailed information about ground covers I didn't know existed! It is very complete and well illustrated: The perfect reference book for all gardeners.

I am a papermaker that has been focusing on planting and growing the plants I use in my paper artwork (handmade papers made from native plants transfered onto art canvas's.) After 11 years of this kind of gardening, I have begun to explore ground covers in my garden.

Ground covers are traditionally planted in a single species in a large drift. The author of Covering Ground, has opened me to the idea that there are other options to how we plant ground covers. Barbara Ellis likes to plant her ground covers in small drifts - of three or five plants of a single species or intermingling two different species of plants in drifts of three to five in one bed. Very creative and extremely beautiful! I will be trying this technique.

This book had many, many color photographs and is very well organized giving specific plant suggestions for each soil type and both sun and shade situations with a nice section on native ground cover - one of my primary areas of interest.

I rated this a four star book and recommend it for any gardener.

As I've probably been ripping out groundcovering plants for years, reading this book made me hang my head in shame! Barbara Ellis is a groundcover zealot and writes with great passion and enthusiasm. I bought the book for some ideas and I definitely got plenty. The book was published in the US so not all the plants will be available here - the latin names are shown, which is helpful as these will be more familiar to British readers. A good book for your gardening library.