Customer Reviews

Weeds of the Northeast (Comstock books)

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is one of the best weed books I have come across. It has very clear descriptive text and the photos are all clear and crisp. But what really thrilled me is that in addition to this the authors have included photos of seedlings and seeds of each species! Who hasn't been out in the field only to be stumped on a plant's identification because the plant is only in the seedling stage? Me, for one... lots of times. The book even has a section on common weed tree seedlings. Wow! I would recommend this book to any professional or amatuer botanist. I hope to see more from these authors.

When I first saw this book at a workshop which was given by the Children's Museum of Boston this summer,I knew I had to have it. Weeeds are no longer nameless. Every type of weed I have seen so far I can identify using this book. The illustrations are real photographs and not drawings so what you see is the real thing.I keep the book in my car so when I go to my friend's house I can show off my knowledge of weeds :). The Title usually gets raised eyebrows.But when I show it to people their reaction change. Even my children ages 10 and 11 use it . The only drawback is that if you don't know the name of the weed you will have to flip through the whole book.But then I don't know how I could have organized it any better if I had written it myself. Excellent book anyway.

This book is an invaluable guide for amateurs who want to know "what that thing growing over there" is. I just bought some land that is covered with a mysterious, bamboo-like, nearly impassable stand of Mystery Plant. With this book in hand, within minutes I identified it as Japanese Knotweed. The only reason why I didn't give the book (which began as Uva's doctoral dissertation) a perfect "10" is this: the organization lacks convenience. Each plant is shown on two pages; the left is a neat, detailed description of the plant, the right is several photos of it. To find a plant, you must flip through every page (it's arranged by monocot and dicot, but if you don't know into which category the plant falls, you're a little lost).

As a librarian at a botanical reseach library, I am often asked to recommend a good book on this subject. Until now I couldn't. This is it. Long may it stay in print!

This book is a treasure. I own and use many dozens of "weed" and plant books and this is one of the most comprehensive and useful. The written presentation for each plant includes information on its propagation, seedlings, roots, flowers and fruits and habitat, and more. The photographs are excellent and show the habit, seedling, leaves, flowers/fruits and seeds. Some grasses are also included.

I hope that the authors will eventually expand the geographical coverage and the number of species. I'll be first in line to buy a new edition!

I'm very pleased with this guide. After spending time with field research botanists, I've come to appreciate how difficult it can be to catalog invasive plants--they're EVERYWHERE! And of varying sizes, shapes, colors. Some so innocuous that it wouldn't even occur to you to notice and others so prolific in their families that it takes forever to track the different varieties. Luckily, Uva, Neal, and DiTomaso did and put together an excellent little book. As a professional gardener, this has been a handy reference. I would give it five stars, but I do have issue with some of the items. In the Introduction, weeds are discussed, but it is not clearly established what makes a "weed" a weed. For example, mallow is listed as a weed, but it appears to be a weed in the context of agricultural plantings. To my understanding, there are several native varieties of mallow in the U.S. Is this particular variety non-native? Is it a nuisance plant? Is it unsightly? My definition of weed has always been non-native escapists or volunteers. I'd like to see this clearly defined.

I would also like more information on where the plant originates and what makes it a weed in the Northeast. As well as any beneficial qualities--are parts of the plant edible? Can any of it be used? Difficulties eradicating? Basically, as a gardener I'd like to know if there are any positive attributes. If I have a field full of amiranth is it the same type of amiranth sold in the stores? How does it vary? Could my client potentially harvest any of this before tilling or pulling out? The scientific information, such as plant identification: size of seeds, defining leaf shapes, etc., is all very clear and well done. As I said the photos are great. All in all this is indespensible, I just wish they would continue to add to the text.

Great book for the homeowners and horticulturalists. Great pictures and descriptions. The weed "Bible".

Very fine, with great pictures and identification tables in the back that help you tell the difference between similar varieties of weeds. In fact, it's the best book I've found for identifying weeds. My only complaints are that it's a bit scientific and dry, and garlic mustard - a very destructive weed - is not included.

I help identify weeds in Texas and this is one of my most used books to check an ID after Keying out a plant or for taking a quick look through a recognized family. Very few books concentrate on weeds so this type of book is much needed. Excellent photography and good information. This is so well done, I wish the authors would do it again with 175 different weeds. Thanks for a truely great book.

I am a member of the Master Gardeners of Harford Co. Maryland.
I use this book all the time for my own use and also to help others with weeds