A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants [Paperback]

Rufino Osorio (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 12, 2001

Abundantly illustrated in full color, this guide provides detailed descriptions and methods of cultivation for 350 of Florida's most attractive and easily grown native plants, including ferns, wildflowers, shrubs, trees, vines, aquatics, and epiphytes (air plants). Written for both the beginner and the experienced gardener, it includes basic garden concepts as they apply to native plants--selection, site preparation, pruning, propagation, weeding, and pest control.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

"This wide-ranging guide offers plant lovers and gardeners alike an excellent resource for cultivating Florida’s native plants. It will prove a worthwhile addition to every gardener’s library."-- Gil Nelson, director, Florida Native Plant Society

"A valuable resource for those interested in growing native plants and also for those simply wishing to increase the diversity of plants in their gardens. . . . A wealth of information gleaned from the author’s personal experience in growing native plants."--Richard Wunderlin, author of Guide to the Vascular Plants of Florida and Flora of Florida, Volume I

Abundantly illustrated in full color, this guide provides detailed descriptions and methods of cultivation for 350 of Florida’s most attractive and easily grown native plants, including ferns, wildflowers, shrubs, trees, vines, aquatics, and epiphytes (air plants).
Written for both the beginner and the experienced gardener, it includes basic garden concepts as they apply to native plants--selection, site preparation, pruning, propagation, weeding, and pest control. Rufino Osorio also demonstrates how native plants enhance any landscape or home garden layout and provides 14 photos of horticultural and landscape techniques using native plants.

The 359 exceptional color photographs, all taken by the author, present some of the most arresting images of Florida native plants ever to appear in print. A visual delight, the book reveals the beauty and horticultural potential of native plants to the general gardening public. Osorio offers a detailed discussion of where to view these plants in the wild and in cultivation as well as a chapter on Florida native plants on the Internet.

As a guide for the responsible gardener and as an attractive introductory identification manual for naturalists, hikers, campers, teachers, and bird watchers, A Gardener’s Guide to Florida’s Native Plants is the authoritative sourcebook on native plants of the Sunshine State.

Rufino Osorio, a freelance writer and photographer, is the author of many guides and articles. He has been responsible for introducing a wide variety of unusual and ornamental Florida native plants into horticulture and maintains 500 Florida native plants in cultivation. His collection of 8,000 color slides includes the largest number of photographs of Florida native plants in existence. He lives in Lake Worth, Florida.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Florida; 1st edition (May 12, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813018528
• ISBN-13: 978-0813018522
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,456 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Essential, Exhaustive, Clear Reference, December 6, 2001

By 

Robert J. Appleyard (Valrico, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants (Paperback)

I haven't left this book alone for a day since I bought it. The book provides, in a catalog format, all of the essential information one might need to evaluate the suitability of a very wide variety of native wildflowers, shrubs and trees.

The organization of the book is helpful in that it categorizes the plants as long-lived wildflowers, short-lived wildflowers, shrubs, trees, palms, et cetera. Each individual plant is represented by a good photo and a consistent presentation of essential data: culture, propagation, zone, soil requirements, et cetera, so you can easily and quickly access needed information.

A drawback for Central or North Florida readers: the book seems to be heavily weighted toward southern Florida natives.

A suggestion: a clear identification of the habitat within which each plant is likely to be found would be helpful, especially to those interested in habitat restoration, as I am.

48 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have for All Gardeners, May 5, 2001

By 

Ed Cronyn (Palm Beach County, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants (Paperback)

If you want to start, enhance, or improve a native Florida garden, this book has it all! From basics like how to prepare your site before planting (wish this book had been published two years ago!), to selecting the right plants for your site, to pictures of the plants, Rufino Osorio has covered it in this book. I thought I knew a lot before reading it, but now I rely on this text to help me refine my own native garden with buying new plants, pruning and propagating existing plants, (possibly even removing some existing ones), etc. Whether you're a relative novice like me, a true ground-zero beginner, or an experienced gardener, this book belongs on your shelf. My only note of caution is that this purchase will be only the beginning of a long list of acquisitions; in the two weeks since buying this book (got one early through Mounts Botanical Garden in WPB), I have already purchased about 20 new plants.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars lousy pictures, October 21, 2004

By 

drusalene "the arboretum" (florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants (Paperback)

The pictures in the book are mostly close up pictures of the flowering plant. Can't see leaf or leaf structure or plant size within a natural environment. Would not recommend this book for plant identification.