Customer Reviews

The House Plant Expert

5 star:		(46)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the most helpful book on house plants that I have ever read. It has sections about the different classes of house plants (eg, flowering, succulents, etc.), followed by a section that is like an encyclopedia of several hundred plants. Each plant is presented with its Latin and common names, a color picture, a brief description, a set of growing requirements (eg, light, watering), and how to deal with special problems that species faces. Finally, there are sections about growing, propagation, and first-aid. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys collecting or growing house plants.

With this book, you can suddenly be incredibly knowledgeable about taking care of houseplants. When a co-worker says, "I have these funny black spots on the leaves of my coffee plant," you'll have the answer. This is book is almost over-inclusive: it covers almost every housplant sold in the United States, as well as a bunch that normally aren't. If you are building up your own plant collection, this will be an indispensable guide in helping you choose the right plants for the conditions in your home. As well, the photography is excellent. It's fun to go through and pick out plants you like the look of...ask at your local greenhouse, sometimes they can special order plants for you.

The book covers general care, disease control, and propagation (a handy way to increase your plant stock for free!). If you wish you had greener indoor thumbs, buy this book.

I was very pleased with the amount of information this book provided. I have never had luck with house plants before. The information provided here helped me to make intelligent selections for the climate and light I could provide. The book provides a brief, but information packed 1/3 - 1 page on each plant including 'secrets of success' (temperture, light, water, air humidity, repotting and propagaion) and a list of remedies for special problems. I was able to take the book with me to the nursery to make sure I was making wise choices. I would recommend this book to anyone with questions of care on house plants.

The House Plant Expert well deserves its name as the world's bestselling in its field. I think it is an ultimate plant guide: as an amateur in plant care, I found the answers to all my questions such as how much light my plant needs, what on earth are those white speckles on the leaves, how often I should water, or what type of pot is better for the plant. I recommend the book without any reservations. The only problem is I cannot buy any more books on house plant care, since the House Plant Expert so far answers everything for me regarding house plant care!

In the past few years I have become more and more interested in plants, yet still manage to kill some in spite of my best efforts to the contrary. I have purchased several books to help me put an end to this, and to my mind, none compares to this one. In addition to having the most extensive alphabetized listing of houseplants of any book I've seen (in both Latin and common parlance), it gives precise advice on everything from light to temperature to propogation. The "Special Problems" listed with individual plants have already helped me to rescue a few that were looking a little peaked, and I am now even able to understand how plants are classified. The first two chapters, "Plants in the Home" and "Displaying House Plants" are chalk full of great advice for both novice and professional, and that unit on "Plant Care" in the back---which tells you in great detail why plants run in to such specific problems as drooping bottom leaves or brown patches---is worth the price of the book alone.
It's easy to see why this is the world's best-selling book on house plants, and why other Amazon customers have unanimously rated this five stars. Count me among them.

This book has already saved two of my houseplants, and I've only had it for two weeks! It's full of easy to read, easy to understand information for someone like me - I'm not and have no desire to become a horticulturist, I just want to have a resource at my fingertips which will give me the information I need to properly care for my house plants. This book is it! Concise, clear, easy to find, easy to understand information on all the common house plant varieties, what they need to grow and flourish, what the common ailments are and what to do to make your plant well again. Love this book!

I have quite a few books to help with houseplants, but this is the one that consistently has the information I need. Besides great content, the look of the book is very attractive .... sort of like the USA Today of plant books -- LOTS of pictures, photographs and charts. It seems that every topic under the sun is covered, from choosing and caring for a wide variety of plants to displaying them in all manner of rooms. Plant care instructions for each species are only about a third of a page but there is a lot of information packed into that space -- a photo, description and temperature, light, water, humidity, repotting and propagation facts. There is also a section about troubles and pests as well as a dictionary and index. An essential resource.

This book is an excellent overview of plant care and I have referred to it many times when encountering plant problems of my own. The author also gives advice on what plants are more suitable for different rooms of the house. A detailed description of the more popular houseplants is given, with their lighting, temperature, water, and humidity requirements, along with repotting requirements and tips on propagation. He also gives a very useful "Special Problems" discussion on each plant group to assist the reader in diagnosing plant maladies and how to remedy them. Definitely a very good book for both beginners and seasoned plant lovers.

The colored pictures and protographs are beautiful. Its strength is that it can help you identify most (if not all) house plants in the planet ! In fact, about 80-90% of the book is devoted to doing just that. If you want to become an expert on how to identify house plants, this is the ultimate book for you. But if you want to learn how to grow them sucessfully, this is not the best book you can buy. In summary, browse through it at bookstores before you decide to buy. It might or might not be for you....Jay

I am a plant lover and I buy plants without knowing what they are or how to take care of them. "The Houseplant Expert" helped me identify each plant and told me how to take care of them. This is not a one time read. I refer to this book constantly to decide which plant to buy next or to address the care of the plants I have. A definite must have for any plant enthusiast.