Hardy Bamboos: Taming the Dragon [ILLUSTRATED] (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Why bamboos?..." (more)
Key Phrases: United States, United Kingdom, Others Phyllostachys (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Many gardeners fear bamboo and its propensity to spread, so Whittaker's subtitle is an apt one for a manual that offers guidance for dealing with hardy, woody species with useful and ornamental characteristics that can add much to a cool-climate garden. To-the-point and opinionated, Whittaker delights in sharing knowledge gleaned over many years of growing bamboos and offering irresistible descriptions accompanied by abundant line drawings and wonderful photographs. Conveying a contagious regard for these stately plants, Whittaker puts his expertise on the line in the book's fascinating plant portraits, which include growth habits, cultural requirements, and personal experiences. His descriptions should assist gardeners in selecting an appropriate variety for the specific conditions at hand, whether looking for groundcover, a container specimen, or a vigorous species to form a shady glade. With its celebration of plants boasting culms of gold and amber, chrome and pea green, violet-flushed bronze and cornflower blue, this is the ultimate guide to bamboos for gardens. Alice Joyce
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Description

Bamboos are extraordinary in the ability to transform a garden, adapt to inhospitable surroundings, survive with little care and, most of all, surprise and delight the people who view them. Too long the exclusive pleasure of those with tropical and subtropical gardens, this hand-picked selection allows gardeners in cooler climes to experience the wonder and infinite variety of these magical plants.

Besieged by winter wet, summer drought and bitter, drying winds, Paul Whittaker’s garden has been a rigorous testing ground. In the first part of the book his compelling anecdotes, experiences and case histories illuminate how bamboos perform in different places, draw attention to their idiosyncratic nature, and highlight their geographical origins. A further section describes the bamboo’s unique physical structure and growing habits. These fascinating insights give you the knowledge you need to choose the right bamboo for your site and grow it successfully.

At the heart of the book are detailed plant descriptions that join with striking photographs and evocative illustrations to highlight each plant’s characteristics. Culms available in all the colors of the rainbow may also be striped, grooved, wrinkled or knobbled. Leaves range from glaucous needles to huge plates of deep green with striking variegations. There are bamboos perfect for creating shady groves and hedges, and others that deserve stand-alone treatment as specimen plants. Here you will find everything from the elegant, willowy Fargesia rufa to the bold, tropical looks of Sasa palamata f. nebulosa. Using bamboos to best effect in the garden, propagation, aftercare and their resilience to pests and diseases complete the guidance for gardeners.

The distillation of years of hands-on growing experience, this is the ultimate bamboo reference book for cool-climate gardeners. Enthusiasts will delight in the variety of new possibilities for their collection and gardeners everywhere will be captivated by the charm bamboos bring to countless different garden situations.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: Timber Press, Incorporated; illustrated edition edition (March 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 088192685X
• ISBN-13: 978-0881926859
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #223,753 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hardy Bamboos... a Worthy Library Addition, May 12, 2005

By	Jeffrey K. Funk - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As a relatively ignorant gardener on the topic of bamboos, I was looking for a good book for gardeners (opposed to scientists) on the topic of bamboos to possibly incorporate into my temperate garden (Central PA, USDA Zone 6). Comparing this book to 'Bamboo for Gardens' (A highly recommended book based off of other customer reviews as well as several online bamboo nurseries), I found this book to be a much better read for the temperate gardener than the former.

In 'Hardy Bamboos', Paul Whittaker tells us many wonderful and personal stories about his experiences growing bamboo. I find highly personal accounts such as this a joy to read because they bring gardening to life. Furthermore, these firsthand experiences really help in the bamboo plant entries. Although 'Bamboo for Gardens' does provide sufficient information on the culture of each bamboo (i.e light requirements, max. height, min. temp. hardiness, etc) 'Hardy Bamboos' goes even further. In each entry, Whittaker also includes a pencil sketch to more specifically describe the overall habit of each bamboo (i.e. tall and stately vs. tall and arched, etc), measurements from his garden regarding actual bamboo height and spread at different ages as well as numerous observations that he's made reguarding specific varieties over the year. These details and measurements made this book more useful for me than 'Bamboo for Gardens' with regards to figuring out how a bamboo will grow and look in my garden. However, I should point out that 'Bamboo for Gardens' goes into much more scientific background on bamboos and includes both the temperate and tropical bamboos. Because of this, I find that 'Bamboos for Gardens' makes a better overall bamboo reference book.

But for those of us who live in temperate regions and wish to learn more about how to grow bamboos outside in our gardens, I found 'Hardy Bamboos' to be the better, more garden-detailed book.

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the best Bamboo Book so far...., April 22, 2005

By	Breck Breckenridge (Spokane, Washington) - See all my reviews

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I began studying and growing bamboos in 1992. Back then there was virtually no books on bamboo which were up-to-date, comprehensive, and interesting from the point of view of a plantsman or garden designer. After a hiatus of 7 years living without bamboos and not seeking books on them, I have returned! And just in time!!

Published in 2005, Paul Whittaker's book, Hardy Bamboos: Taming the Dragon, has come out just as I have returned to my former love. I could not have had a more welcoming and helpful book to greet me.

This book is not just a compendium. Or an encyclopoedia. Or chatty, folksy bamboo book for little old gardeners. It is the magnus opus of an inveterate bambusaphile who is also an accomplished plantsman and landscape designer and gardener. Bringing all these abilities together, Paul has wrought a fantastically interesting and very useful book for any bamboo-aholic.

I was especially impressed with his first-hand knowledge of the temperate species and his ability to communicate this knowledge in a very personal yet also professional way. This book could easily have been called 'Adventures in Bamboos with Paul Whittaker'!

I can't recommend this book highly enough. After so many years sans bamboos, I was fortunate to find this tome upon my return, as if it had been written for me and was just waiting for me to find it!

Breck Breckenridge, Spokane

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hardy Bamboos: Taming the Dragon, January 9, 2007

By	L. follett "gardener" (South) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In the subject matter this book gets five stars. The author did an excellent job explaining the different types of bamboos. However, if you live in the South, this is NOT the book to purchase. I only wish that the author have considered the people in the South.