Customer Reviews

Neil Sperry's Complete Guide to Texas Gardening

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Texas is a different planet, and Neil Sperry has charted it. No other gardening book in the world prepares someone for the extreme climates, the hideous excuse for soil, and the vast assortment of herbaceous critters that exist in this state. You have to have this book to succeed in landscaping endeavors. The pages on my copy are well-worn. It is an excellent, easy-to-use reference bible. A bargain at twice the price.

If you live in Texas and do anything with your lawn or garden, BUY this book immediately.

Neil covers lawns, perennials, annuals, vegetables, trees, and shrubs in an exhaustive, comprehensive format. Full color pictures guide you through the basics of gardening these types, water and fertilizer, recommendations on your part of Texas, along with summaries of each plant.

If the shrub/plant has pest problems, fungus issues or is high maintenance, Neil lays it out in a no B.S. manner that's both easy to read and handily referenced later. Every plant has a color picture associated, which helps a lot.

The ONLY thing missing in his book would be house plants, but purchased "The House Plant Expert" for those.

Amazon's price is a steal compared to my local bookstore - WELL WORTH the twenty-five bucks. It's a big, hardbound, monster-sized book that you'll constantly be referring back to again and again!

This book is wonderfully informative. It has hundreds of color pictures to help you choose plants and covers the ones that are native or adapt very well to our climate. Don't be thinking you can check it out at the library. I live in Austin and they have dozens of copies but they are checked out at every branch. IT'S A MUST HAVE!

As a longtime Texas resident, first in the DFW area and currently in the San Antonio area, and an amateur gardener, I have collected over the years, every book I can find on the subject of gardening, particurally Texas gardening.

Although I believe many aspects of the book could be improved, such as its organization, latest organic techniques, newer varieties etc., (How about a third edition, Neil?) I still believe it is the best single volume reference for the homeowner.

(...)

This is my second favorite gardening book. It is very comprehensive with over 400 plant listings. It has descriptive listings of the different varieties of each species. The photographs are informative and beautifully shot.

I am mot awarding 5 stars for the following reasons. Important information such as water needs is missing. The other information is poorly organized and forces you to read through a large description to find it. The chapter divisions are not usably organized. For example Dale Grooms Texas Gardening Guide has chapters on Annuals, another on Bulbs, Corms, Rhizomes, and Tubers, another on Native Wildflowers, another on Perennials, and a separate chapter on Roses. Dale Groom also has icons identifying Sun Preference and whether it is Drought Resistant. This is much easier to use.

Well worth having in your library, but because it is not easy to use, it will probably not be the first book you reach for.

Although there is a lot of helpful information in this book, there are some major drawbacks. First, not every plant described is accompanied by a photo. Also, some basic information is missing for many plants (like mature height, type of light/soil required, when the bloom period is..). The book also feels somewhat dated both in the plants covered (and some of the more newly popular natives that are not covered) and the presentation. There also really isn't a whole lot of insight offered by this author. Some of my favorite gardening books are Native Texas Plants, Texas Bug Book, and the locally available "Garden Guide for austin and vicinity" and the excellent and free pamphlet "Native and Adapted Landscape Plants" available at local nurseries and the extension office.

I became a first time homeowner 2 years ago and I didn't know anything about gardening. My friend recommended this book to me and it has been very educational. It is the only book I reference when planning my garden. This book is broken down by topic: Perennials, Annuals, Trees, Shrubs, etc. It explains the differences between all the flowers and what environment is best for each flower/shrub/vine/trees. The pictures are great! There are pictures of almost every plant he describes. I have able to choose my flowers to plant each season from the book so when I go to the nursery I know exactly what I need.

As a new homeowner who desires to beautify my surroundings, I found the pictures and descriptions to be very helpful. Mr. Sperry's book provided me with planting ideas, and it enhanced and increased my knowledge about gardening voluminously. Thank you, Mr. Sperry

Do you need a quick reference full of information tailored to Texas gardening (yes, it is different here)? Look no further. So many gardening references try for a national application, but you won't be able to employ them successfully here. Sperry does a great job in this tome and it is never far from me in the spring, summer and fall.

Great advice on lawns as well. I use it for advice on my lawn all the time as well.

Sperry also has a great radio show worthy of note.

I've owned this book for several years. What started out to be a coffee table book has become too worn to keep out. I use this book very often in the planning and maintenance of my yard and flower beds. Very descriptive with wonderful pictures. I have given several as presents to friends and family.