Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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90 of 91 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful book with a lot of good info for the novice, December 13, 1999
At first glance, this book appears to be gorgeous photos and paragraph after paragraph of tiny text. But when you actually delve into the text, it also has a lot of great info. The book is written in non-technical lingo which is great for a beginner. It really focuses on educating the reader to purchase orchids that will thrive in his/her particular environment. The book is broken down into chapters such as "Orchids to grow on a windowsill", and "Orchids to grow outdoors". There are clear, simple summaries of the cultural needs in the margins. This book will really be enjoyed by novices and intermediate orchidists!
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54 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great introduction to growing orchids for the beginner, December 12, 2001
The book contains about 100 pages: 18 pages on orchid native conditions, horticultural history, and orchid anatomy and growth habits. 22 pages on growing conditions (light, temperature, humidity, fertilizers, etc), growing tips, and pests to avoid. 58 pages covering the details about growing two dozen specific popular orchids. Each orchid in this section is described by its species / cultivar name, specific growing conditions given (light, watering, fertilizing schedule), a full size photograph of each plant, and two or three paragraphs of details about this specific orchid. Book concludes with 4 pages on mail order sources, bibliography, index, and acknowledgement.The book contains clear, crisp, and easy to read information about orchid care. It completely covers all of the essentials that the first time orchid grower needs to learn. Is the book's information helpful? Well, I bought this book with my first orchid. One hundred days later, not only is the orchid still alive, but the flowers are still in bloom! Gee, I guess I can grow orchids, especially with guidance from this book. Is growing orchids addictive? Well, I started with one orchid. One hundred days laters, I now own six plants ... and I'm looking to buy more. All because of this damn book :-) The book is a great introduction to growing orchids for the beginner. It should be your first book, and you should buy it with your first orchid. Simple, but accurate, instructions throughout the text. "Easy Orchids" is a wonderfully helpful book.
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33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mostly Great Book for Beginners, April 8, 2001
I think the oddest thing that confronts new orchid owners is learning that, unlike most other types of plants, most orchids cannot all be treated the same way. The various species or varieties of, for example, ferns and geraniums require the same general growing conditions but with orchids, each one is different. The temperature, light and water conditions that cause one orchid to thrive may actually kill or inhibit the growth of another. This book begins with the general characteristics of orchids (growth patterns, root systems, types of flowers and light, humidity, water and temperature requirements) with the idea of teaching you to think about each orchid you grow in these terms. This is followed with information on pots, potting mixtures, how to water, fertilizers, resting periods, how to propagate by division and by keikis (plantlets) and how to deal with pests (slugs, snails, rodents and insects). The orchids themselves come next, each with a gorgeous photograph, description and detailed instructions. The plants are arranged by type: "Orchids to Grow on a Windowsill," "Orchids to Grow in Outdoor Containers," "Orchids to Grow in the Ground" and "Exotic Orchids (note: "Orchids to Grow in the Ground" lists two species native to Asia -- there is nothing here about growing native or woodland orchids from North America, unfortunately). The book ends with a very brief list of mail order suppliers, an index and a short bibliography. This book will go a long way towards instilling confidence in someone who isn't quite sure he/she can grow orchids. The reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 was because (as mentioned above) there is no information on North American woodland species (many of which fit the title -- Easy Orchids) and because there is very little information on how to diagnose and treat orchid diseases. The author's suggestion that you return a sick or dead plant to where you bought it isn't really useful if a year or two have gone by during which your orchid seemed healthy enough but has now developed an unknown malady. Other than that, it's an excellent book and one that I very much enjoy browsing through as I decide which orchid to buy next. Did I mention the photographs? The photographs are wonderful!
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