Wildflowers of North America: A Guide to Field Identification (Golden Field Guides) [Paperback]

Frank D. Venning (Author), Manabu C. Saito (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Golden Field Guides | Publication Date: April 14, 2001

Identify the red splash of an Indian Paintbrush. Recognize the odor of burning Sage. Find the graceful Jack-in-the-Pulpit, hidden in shady swamplands-and realize that wildflowers are a heritage to enjoy and cherish. No other field guide covers so vast a geography or such an abundance of species, making this exquisitely illustrated volume preferred for nature studies, educational projects, and scientific needs.

-All of North America in one volume-7,441,049 square miles!
-Over 1,500 species in 101 families
-Basic instruction in flower parts and leaf type
-Text and illustrations seen together at a glance
-Colloquial and scientific names
-Convenient measuring rules
-Glossary

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Written by world-renowned scholars, Golden Field Guides from St. Martin's Press are the leading nature guides for the home, field, and classroom. Designed for portability and easy access, these compact, lightweight books help Americans of every age explore a world of natural wonders.

Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Golden Guides from St. Martin's Press; Revised edition (April 14, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582381275
• ISBN-13: 978-1582381275
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 4.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,091,990 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Accurate color botanicals, July 15, 2008

By 

Beth Spirko "Holeth" (Lehigh Valley, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wildflowers of North America: A Guide to Field Identification (The Golden field guide series) (Paperback)

Botanical drawings are extremely detailed, nearly to perfect scale, and in full color. Knowing how long one botanical piece requires, this artwork is a true labor of love for the illustrator(s). I defer to arguments left on the Peterson vs. Audubon bird guides on the usefulness of photographs vs. drawings for detail. That's preference. However, color is preferred over black and white drawings with a "color plate" or two to facilitate identification.

The book is organized taxonomically, not by color. This makes identification challenging until skimmed a few times to get the gist. However, beginners will find the color illustrations cheerful and welcoming. In the end, learning the basic taxa will help them expand their knowledge beyond the book.

The writing style and structure is not for the novice who wants to use it once on vacation then chuck it. Rather, the target seems to be for people who want to learn a little about the thing in their yard or down the block without going overboard. To keep it engaging, descriptions occasionally include folklore and make note of the invasives and toxic plants that are the most problematic.

Could be improved with distribution maps instead of just descriptions of range, perhaps 2-3 species on each, to better visualize distribution by altitude and habitat.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A lot of info in a small package, June 29, 2007

By 

Jennifer Spinner "wife, mom, all-around nice gal" (Western Washington) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Wildflowers of North America: A Guide to Field Identification (Golden Field Guides) (Paperback)

Price and size are what makes this guide so great. It provides a good overview of the wildflowers of North America in a very portable format.

The small size, however, means that the illustrations are not as large or detailed as we would prefer. It also limits the amount of specific information that can be included. We recently relocated to the Pacific Northwest and have found region-specific books (particularly from Lone Pine Publishers) to be superb. If you live in the Pacific Northwest, I recommend three books published by Hancock House, one of which is titled "Northwest Coastal Wildflowers." We use this color-coded guide far more than the Golden Field Guide simply because it is specific to our local ecosystem. We have identified every flower found using the Hancock guide.

That said, I recommend this as a great resource at a very good price.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Useful Backup Reference, June 6, 2006

By 

Frank Dutton (Many, LA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Wildflowers of North America: A Guide to Field Identification (Golden Field Guides) (Paperback)

All illustrations in the book are drawings - but at least they are in color and that helps somewhat make up for the lack of detail in really identifying a specific flower. I haven't found the book very helpful in identifying flowers (which I typically do from photographs, rather than in the field) but it is useful when I think I have an identification from another source to check this book for details about the flower and family and its range.