The Plantfinder's Guide to Daisies [Hardcover]

John Sutton (Author)

Book Description

Series: Plantfinder's Guides | Publication Date: April 15, 2001

This book focuses on plants in the daisy family (Asteraceae), nearly all of which have the characteristic daisylike appearance found in the lawn daisy (Bellis perennis). These plants are valuable members of the herbaceous border, with genera like Rudbeckia, Gazania, and Osteospermum already enjoying great popularity. The distinctive, rounded daisy shape acts as a useful foil to plants with more upright forms, and the precision of the individual florets contrasts well with small-flowered plants that lack definition. The genus-to-genus variations on the daisy flower head are illustrated by high-quality photographs taken both outdoors and inside the studio, and the author provides exactly the information gardeners will need as this plant group continues to grow in importance. Chapters focus on such key issues as the daisy's history, contribution to gardens, botany, and propagation. The book's centerpiece is an extensive A-Z of genera, species, and varieties.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

How could there possibly be an entire book about daisies? Aren't they just those "he loves me, he loves me not" flowers? Hardly. From asters to zinnias, virtually hundreds of plants make up the daisy family, the largest in the entire spectrum of flowering plants. In this guide, another in an excellent series of in-depth plant profiles from Timber Press, Sutton reveals the complexity and diversity of these familiar favorites. Bright, sparkling photos remind readers just why daisies and their ilk are so beloved, playing, as they do, such an integral part in the perennial border and as florists' stock-in-trade. Sutton presents chapters focused on history, botany, and propagation, followed by an extensive catalog of the many daisy genera, species, and varieties, providing welcome cultural information in a directory divided into 13 chapters, each detailing a specific group. Leucanthemum, Chrysanthemum, Anthemis: a gardener might wonder which is the one, true daisy, but it really doesn't matter since, as Sutton proves, one isn't nearly enough. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

A remarkably diverse group is fully and handsomely treated in The Plantfinder’s Guide to Daisies. -- The Avant Gardener, June 2001

Another in an excellent series of in–depth plant profiles from Timber Press. -- Carol Haggas, Booklist, May 2001

Sutton is your expert guide -- Sharon Wootton, The Herald, April 26, 2001

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Timber Press, Incorporated (April 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881924970
• ISBN-13: 978-0881924978
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,707,105 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For anyone interested in raising a garden with daisies, September 11, 2001

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

This review is from: The Plantfinder's Guide to Daisies (Hardcover)

John Sutton's The Plantfinder's Guide To Daisies is a well-rounded compendium of one of the most popular and well-known garden plants. Horticulturalist John Sutton not only offers the reader extensive information on the history, botany, and propagation of the varieties of daisies, from sunflowers to dahlias to annuals, but also many tidbits and subtle details especially useful to gardeners - such as variations of flower head and foliage, and which daisies make especially good cut flowers. The Plantfinder's Guide To Daisies is enthusiastically recommended for anyone interested in raising a flower garden with daisies.