Customer Reviews

Hardy Bamboos: Taming the Dragon

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a relatively ignorant gardener on the topic of bamboos, I was looking for a good book for gardeners (opposed to scientists) on the topic of bamboos to possibly incorporate into my temperate garden (Central PA, USDA Zone 6). Comparing this book to 'Bamboo for Gardens' (A highly recommended book based off of other customer reviews as well as several online bamboo nurseries), I found this book to be a much better read for the temperate gardener than the former.

In 'Hardy Bamboos', Paul Whittaker tells us many wonderful and personal stories about his experiences growing bamboo. I find highly personal accounts such as this a joy to read because they bring gardening to life. Furthermore, these firsthand experiences really help in the bamboo plant entries. Although 'Bamboo for Gardens' does provide sufficient information on the culture of each bamboo (i.e light requirements, max. height, min. temp. hardiness, etc) 'Hardy Bamboos' goes even further. In each entry, Whittaker also includes a pencil sketch to more specifically describe the overall habit of each bamboo (i.e. tall and stately vs. tall and arched, etc), measurements from his garden regarding actual bamboo height and spread at different ages as well as numerous observations that he's made reguarding specific varieties over the year. These details and measurements made this book more useful for me than 'Bamboo for Gardens' with regards to figuring out how a bamboo will grow and look in my garden. However, I should point out that 'Bamboo for Gardens' goes into much more scientific background on bamboos and includes both the temperate and tropical bamboos. Because of this, I find that 'Bamboos for Gardens' makes a better overall bamboo reference book.

But for those of us who live in temperate regions and wish to learn more about how to grow bamboos outside in our gardens, I found 'Hardy Bamboos' to be the better, more garden-detailed book.

I began studying and growing bamboos in 1992. Back then there was virtually no books on bamboo which were up-to-date, comprehensive, and interesting from the point of view of a plantsman or garden designer. After a hiatus of 7 years living without bamboos and not seeking books on them, I have returned! And just in time!!

Published in 2005, Paul Whittaker's book, Hardy Bamboos: Taming the Dragon, has come out just as I have returned to my former love. I could not have had a more welcoming and helpful book to greet me.

This book is not just a compendium. Or an encyclopoedia. Or chatty, folksy bamboo book for little old gardeners. It is the magnus opus of an inveterate bambusaphile who is also an accomplished plantsman and landscape designer and gardener. Bringing all these abilities together, Paul has wrought a fantastically interesting and very useful book for any bamboo-aholic.

I was especially impressed with his first-hand knowledge of the temperate species and his ability to communicate this knowledge in a very personal yet also professional way. This book could easily have been called 'Adventures in Bamboos with Paul Whittaker'!

I can't recommend this book highly enough. After so many years sans bamboos, I was fortunate to find this tome upon my return, as if it had been written for me and was just waiting for me to find it!

Breck Breckenridge, Spokane

In the subject matter this book gets five stars. The author did an excellent job explaining the different types of bamboos. However, if you live in the South, this is NOT the book to purchase. I only wish that the author have considered the people in the South.

This book is great! I wanted to grow a natural border between my house and the neighbors house. Bamboo seemed to be the way to go. I read this book with great enjoyment. In fact, I re-read this book many times through. If you are wanting ideas for a hedge, small grove or even a forest made up of bamboo then this is the book for you. This is the book for you if you need to know anything about bamboo. Buy it!

This book is surprisingly interesting to read, mostly because of anecdotes that the author includes--Paul Whittaker's self deprecating sense of humor makes you interested in meeting him in person.

The things that I appreciated the most about the book, outside of the easy going, easy to read nature of the book:
1. Characterization of the exhaustive list of bamboos included the spreading habit of the plant--how wide the bamboo would get in 10 years. This is great info for those of us who have to worry about containing bamboo...
2. Great pencil drawings of the nature of the bamboo--density of culms, upright vs. fountain appearance. It gave a sense of what the plant might look like in the yard.
3. Great pictures, including close-ups of leaves, and branches in addition to the typical photos of culms.
4. It gave me a better appreciation of the branching characteristics of bamboo families, which presumably has some relation to the density of leaves associated with a plant.

This is the book that I would read over and over again if I were trying to decide which bamboo to plant, or even if I were dreaming about getting a bamboo in the future.

Excellent photos, clear and concise descriptions, well organized, just a super book for the beginner or advanced bamboo grower or enthusiast.

Great book! A lot of information and a lot of great pictures! It really helps you identify bamboo species and helps you choose the right bamboo for your zone.

The best bamboo book period. Wonderful pictures, excellent categorizing. I have several other bamboo books and this is by far the best.

Wonderful book. Well written, very helpful information--both general and species specific. Also beautiful, color photographs. Nicely organized, and even the sketches of growth habit I found to be very helpful.

Hardy Bamboos is most valuable addition to any gardener's library. Paul Whittaker considers first the nature of Bamboos and their various natural habitat. The bulk of the book though is given over to detailed descriptions of the individual plants. It concludes with comments on cultivation, propagation, pests and diseases, and an interesting section entitled Myths, Legends and the Four Seasons. Among other useful inclusions are a glossary and bibliography.

The author writes from knowledgeably from personal experience, and applies a down to earth common sense approach to his subject. One of the first things that struck me was that he puts no limits or restrictions on growing bamboos. I found this particularly interesting as having a garden on chalk I had often been told that there were many bamboos that I could not grow on chalk, the author dispels this myth, and many others too. The advice on cultivation is very practical, and Paul Whittaker clearly is not one to pamper his plants, and I have to agree with that.

While I am not fan of pruning plants if it is not necessary or can be avoided, I would have liked to have seen a little more information on the subject, if only to say "don't prune". But that aside it is hard to find fault with Hardy Bamboos, it is everything a good gardening book should be, informative, instructive, encouraging, well illustrated and positively opinionated.