Hardy Gingers: Including Hedychium, Roscoea, and Zingiber (Royal Horticultural Society Plant Collector Guide) [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

T. M. E. Branney (Author)

Book Description

Series: Royal Horticultural Society Plant Collector Guide | Publication Date: March 9, 2005

Flamboyant members of the family Zingiberaceae — including Hedychium, Curcuma, Roscoea, and Zingiber — are once again on the wanted list as people discover their intricately constructed flowers, beautiful perfumes, and lush foliage. Although the majority of gingers originate in the tropics, a substantial number come from temperate zones or high altitudes and are perfectly at home in the temperate garden. These hardy gingers are the primary subject of this book. In the wild, gingers fit a variety of ecological niches, and diversity is the key to their success in the garden. They make dramatic focal points in tropical-style plantings but can look equally impressive in traditional herbaceous borders, woodland settings, rock gardens, water gardens and containers. Branney charts the history of gingers from their 19th-century heyday through modern-day hybridization programmes to the latest introductions of new species. A comprehensive plant directory ranges wide in its coverage. Valuable cultivation advice includes techniques for breaking dormancy, maintaining soil nutrition, and understanding individual plants' hardiness requirements. Captivating photographs complement the descriptions and convey the distinctive charms of these irresistible plants. This book brims with new finds that will tempt newcomers, delight enthusiasts, and ensure hardy gingers a place in every 21st-century garden.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

With more than 1,400 species, gingers are one of the largest groups of flowering plants in the world, and are found in climates as diverse as Iceland and Israel. Now, thanks to improved hybridization techniques that make them even more adaptable to temperature extremes, these vibrant and dramatic plants are enjoying a level of horticultural interest not seen since their glory days as the centerpieces of Victorian hothouses. Ranging in size from tiny groundcovers to towering treelike specimens in colors that span the spectrum, gingers' versatility makes them suitable for practically any garden design. From classification and ecology to propagation and morphology, the rudiments of ginger cultivation are covered in the book's opening chapters, with particular attention paid to gingers' culinary and medicinal applications. Branney then presents an encyclopedic analysis of approximately 300 varieties of gingers hardy in the temperate zones of the U.S., a relatively narrow climatological range that still yields a wide array of gardening opportunities. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

From classification and ecology to propagation and morphology, the rudiments of ginger cultivation are covered in the book's opening chapters, with particular attention paid to gingers' culinary and medicinal applications. Branney then presents an encyclopedic analysis of approximately 300 varieties of gingers hardy in the temperate zones of the U.S., a relatively narrow climatological range that still yields a wide array of gardening opportunities. -- Carol Haggas "Booklist" (05/17/2005)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 268 pages
• Publisher: Timber Press (March 9, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881926779
• ISBN-13: 978-0881926774
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #769,743 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not totally accurate, but the best available., March 24, 2006

By 

David L. Skinner "www.gingersrus.com" (Tallahassee, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hardy Gingers: Including Hedychium, Roscoea, and Zingiber (Royal Horticultural Society Plant Collector Guide) (Hardcover)

When I first heard about this new ginger book and saw the negative comments on GardenWeb, I was in no hurry to get it. Several people said much of it was obviously taken from my own website. But recently when ordering another book, I needed something else to bring the order to $25 for the free shipping.

I was pleasantly surprised! This is a pretty darn good job at describing hardy gingers for the temperate or sub tropical garden. Some of the cultivars had to come from my website but there was also a lot of original research and solid information from other sources. Much of it is slanted toward the UK/British climate, but also for gardeners in the southern USA.

I can now recommend this book to anyone interested in collecting and growing gingers, including Costaceae (spiral gingers) as well as Zingiberaceae (true gingers).

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique, authoritative guide in Hardy Gingers, July 4, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hardy Gingers: Including Hedychium, Roscoea, and Zingiber (Royal Horticultural Society Plant Collector Guide) (Hardcover)

T.M.E. Branney is co-owner of a nursery that specializes in rare, temperate-woodland plants, and is also a garden designer: this professional background lends well to a unique, authoritative guide in Hardy Gingers Including Hedychium, Roscoea And Zingiber. Color photos of hardy gingers supplement notes on growing needs, rarity, plant origins and history, and propagation. While most may associate ginger with tropical climates, it's the more unusual temperate-zone gingers that are the focus here - and there's a wealth of them.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Basic info & not enough photos, March 28, 2008

By 

babyboomer (TEXAS) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hardy Gingers: Including Hedychium, Roscoea, and Zingiber (Royal Horticultural Society Plant Collector Guide) (Hardcover)

I'm a picture person. I first base my decidisons on the photos than refer to the info about that plant. This book has good info on the different gingers but, I wish there were more photos. What's there are good, just want more! I couldn' find info on some of my gingers that I have, which makes it a little frustrating. But there is general info on the species, just not on a lot of indivdual gingers.
Though, over all the book is interesting.