Customer Reviews

Taylor's Guide to Roses (Taylor's Gardening Guides)

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All of the Taylor books seem to be written for non-western gardens. I have 4 of their books and yet whenever I want to look up a plant I've seen in a nursery I rarely find it in these books. This is not the book you want if you are hoping for a good resource for roses. This is a guide book, when you want to look up a rose you saw at a nursery to find out a little more about it. The book divides the roses by class so if you are like most people and looking to buy a hybrid tea this book has fewer than 100. There are thousands and thousands of roses on the market, the odds that you will find it in this book is nil unless you are looking for Peace or the most common. This is a small book, you could spend your money better elsewhere. I recommend Botanica's Encyclopedia of Roses.

The Taylor's Guide to Roses is, like its companion volumes, handy to have around as a supplement to other books on roses. In itself it is neither complete nor entirely reliable; however, its many attractive photos are useful, especially for people who are not familiar with the various classifications of roses. I particularly appreciate that it gives equal space to old roses, shrub roses, and species, as the round of hybrid teas grows tiresome to the eye and these plants deserve far more garden space than they receive.

Overall, best used as a visual aid for form--color, as in any book, is subject to the vagaries of nature and photography.

This book is great if you're trying to determine which roses will work best for your zone. However, be aware that if you're looking at this book as a resource/color guide for cut flowers, garden flowers and the roses you buy from a florist are different! These are garden favorites(with a few hybrids).

Best to buy this selection to help you decide on what's right for your zone/region. And hey, its $5 cheaper than it is at Garden.com!