Visions of Roses [Hardcover]

Peter Beales (Author), Vivian Russell (Author, Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1996

By the author of "Classic Roses". This text discusses the principles of rose gardening, presenting the best rose gardens in Britain, France, Italy and America. Among these are the Queen Mother's garden at Windsor, Odile Masquelier's garden in Lyon, and the famous garden at Ninfa, south of Rome.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Here is a delicious feast for the armchair gardener or for the traveler planning a garden tour. Thirty rose gardens in Europe and North America have been photographed gloriously by award-winning garden photographer Russell and described lovingly by Beales, the custodian of the National Collection of Rose Species. Each garden reflects its place and the personality of its creator, and Beales is a master at succinctly setting the scene. He then provides a verbal tour enhanced by closeups and full-page vistas of the roses. We see what the Queen Mother has done over a lifetime at Royal Lodge and what Lee Radziwill has accomplished by the ocean in just six years. Some of these gardens are open to the public; others can be seen only in a book such as this. Enhancements include a chart of rose colors and types and detailed descriptions of two roses from each garden. Recommended for larger garden collections.?Carol Cubberley, Univ. of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Spectacular, though not necessarily well-known, rose gardens are highlighted in this combined effort by world-class rosarian and premier commercial grower Beales and his cohort, the notable garden photographer Vivian Russell. These gardens offer a journey of surprising locales for both hands-on gardeners and rose lovers alike. Connoisseurs will especially appreciate the approach here. A stunning variety of old (or antique) roses is presented, with reference to placement and usage of specific roses to inspire planting ideas. Informative sidebars spotlight various classes of roses, imparting historical facts, along with nuances of form and culture. And an easy-to-read chart affords expert advice regarding color and design considerations. These 33 gardens include the Windsor home of the Queen Mother and Lee Radziwill's Long Island retreat. Alice Joyce

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Bulfinch Pr; 1st edition (September 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0821223186
• ISBN-13: 978-0821223185
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 9.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,679,576 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Book by Two who've done Better, September 10, 2004

By 

mtspace "Reader, Cook, Gardener, Critic" (Somewhere in NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Visions of Roses (Hardcover)

Anyone who has seen Vivienne Russell's book on Monet's Garden knows that this photographer is capable of capturing the spirit of a garden - the way it looks and feels. She has an eye for light, detail, nuance, composition. So when I ordered this book, I was expecting to be equally wowed. But I wasn't.

Much of this is because Monet's Garden at Giverny is in a class by itself. It is, perhaps, less a garden than a living, breathing three dimensional piece of art. I know as a photographer that when I photograph a garden, it is usually the case that I must move through the garden judiciously and figure out exactly where to stand and what to look at if I am to capture it at its best. But at Giverney the opposite is true. Stand in any spot and look in any direction and you will find a perfect shot. This explains much of the gap.

Yet I know the discrepancy is more than this, because one can find photos with noticable photographic flaws in this book - mostly blown highlights. So part of the blame lies in the photography. That said, the photos are generally first rate and they are blown up large and reproduced well, all this giving us a better view of rose garden vistas than we can get anywhere else.

In delivering these vistas it fills a niche that few books attempt. And it does so very well. It describes how to build gardens with roses; how to use them in all sorts of ways other than lining them up like so many wooden soldiers on a review field.

In some ways I prefer Tony Lord's Designing with Roses. It is more about the language of design expressed in rose language. And its photos are more colorful. But to see real gardens and to hear them being discussed by their owners and one of the best rose authorities writing today is a great and rare asset. There is no other book that tries to do this. And this one does it very well.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Visually stunning book, September 13, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Visions of Roses (Hardcover)

This is a visually stunning tour of rose gardens throughout Europe and the United States. Beales interviewed the owners and describes their gardens in glorious detail. The photographs by Russell are equally beautiful. This is a beautiful book that gardeners and rose lovers will love to have in their library.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Most of the Photos Are Boring, April 14, 2006

By 

Bill Noon (Daly City, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Visions of Roses (Hardcover)

Most of the photos are not of the "garden", but only the plants, plus a lot of the pics are not sunny enough to be pleasing. There are only a few worthy interesting "garden" scenes. The book's inside flap's description, therefore, was too misleading.