How NOT to Kill Your Houseplants: The Foolproof Guide to Lush, Healthy Plants [Paperback]

Ann Pregosin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 5, 2001

This book boldly goes where no plant book has gone before: to the hard-hitting facts of what works and what doesnt workwhen it comes to growing lush, beautiful plants that bring joy and beauty into our lives. It does this by exploring the most common causes of plant death: Choosing the wrong plants in the first place Over-watering them The ills of bad soilThe ill-conceived transplantsThe fertilizing issue The bugs issue The I-cant-bear-to-prune-my-plants syndromeAnd more!In so doing, this book debunks myths left and rightlike that disastrous water once a week thing. It throws out the silly plant hypelike that nonsense you find in any other plant book about how fussy African violets are. This down-to-earth guide is chock-full of vivid information, humorous examples and analogies. In short this foolproof guide is guaranteed to turn around the worst plant killer!

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Accenting the negative, Pregosin delivers emphatic don'ts in her entertaining, dependable guide. Owner of Village Green, a garden shop in Brooklyn, N.Y., the author advises: don't fall for bargain plants at supermarkets or specimens hawked by street vendors; don't buy the wrong plant (for you); don't give your choices too much or too little food or water; don't suffer their enemies to live, etc. Accompanying the prohibitions are data on evidence of mishandling and instruction on breaking bad plant-care habits. The last words sum up: "How not to pay big money for a big mistake." Pictures not seen by PW.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

With a sense of humor and lots of practical information on selecting and coping with houseplants, Pregosin leads the indoor gardener through the basics of growing attractive plants. She inspires confidence in the gardener who wants to prune plants and propagate new plants from mature specimens. This handbook will be especially useful to the beginner and intermediate grower. Occasionally the references to the Brooklyn plant shop where the author works sound a bit like a repetitious TV commerical. Still, the information outweighs the commerical plugs. Recommended. Dale Luchsinger, formerly with Agnes Scott Coll. Lib., Athens, Ga.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 188 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (August 5, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595192769
• ISBN-13: 978-0595192762
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,773,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HOW NOT TO KILL YOUR HOUSEPLANTS, February 28, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: How Not to Kill Your Houseplants: The Foolproof Guide to Lush, Healthy Plants (Paperback)

This amazing book contains all the information you will probably ever need to sucessfully grow houseplants. Many great tips for propagation are also included. This book, listed as 'The foolproof guide to lush, healthy plants', absolutely is the best I have come across concerning the nitty-gritty details of houseplant care. The author writes in a friendly style and includes many examples of common mistakes (which most books don't include) we all make. I heartily recomend 'How not to kill your houseplants'.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Reads like a novel, January 19, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: How NOT to Kill Your Houseplants: The Foolproof Guide to Lush, Healthy Plants (Paperback)

This book has about three or four useful tips, but you have to read through a lot of blah blah and pointless story telling to get to them. So if you're looking for a short to the point "do this, don't do that" and "buy this plant, not that one" this is not the book for you. It has no information on how to care for specific plants, it's all general. I sent mine back.