Caring for Perennials: What to Do and When to Do it (Paperback)

by Janet Macunovich (Author), Steven Nikkila (Author) "ONE OF MY CLIENTS once told me, "You sure get a lot of mileage out of a garden..." (more)
Key Phrases: Bed Three, Controlling Pests, More Planting (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
I am a lousy gardener. What I know about gardening could be summarized in a few words: "Plant something and hope for the best." Yet, I love to garden, and keep trying year after year in my tiny flowerbeds around the street trees in a sea of concrete here in San Francisco. I don't even bother to attempt planting annuals or growing things from seed, but for years I've been experimenting with perennials to see if I can find something that will survive for more than one year out there in the urban jungle. If I'd had this book years ago, I might have been successful a long time ago. For me, it's a walking tour of everything I have done wrong. For you, it can be a guidebook to doing things right from the get-go!

From Booklist
Part one of this book is organized by seasons and follows the maintenance schedule of a botanical garden near the author's home in Michigan. Macunovich explains how various operations fit together and how plants look and react after being treated in particular ways. She interviewed horticulturists at almost two dozen botanical gardens, gathering information on doing preventative maintenance in early spring; mulching, dividing, and moving plants in midspring; staking them in late spring; and deadheading in midsummer. There is also advice on cutting back and removing plants and planting bulbs in midautumn, and on composting in late autumn. Chapters on pruning, edging, weeding, watering, fertilizing, and pest control are followed by part two, which contains a list of 130 perennials with instructions on care. Also included are line drawings and a 24-page section of color photographs. George Cohen

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Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC (January 3, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0882669575
• ISBN-13: 978-0882669571
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #364,262 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book saved my sanity, November 1, 2000

By A Customer

The methodology for tending the garden outlined by the author is superb. We have been tending a large garden for five years now. By using the author's weeding and mulching techniques and schedule, we are able to balance the garden work with our full-time jobs and never be at risk of being overtaken by weeds. The work is more heavily loaded in the spring and fall, but that is a nice time for doing this type of work. Also, I love cruising through the summer with only the lightest maintenance required. Regarding the book itself, the writing style is personable and witty. Also, the explanations are thorough, without being boring or condescending. This is my first resource to consult when I have a question.

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reality!, December 28, 1999

By A Customer

WHAT A RELIEF to see pictures of less-than-perfect situations. Now you know what a beautiful garden looks like *before* it becomes beautiful. This gives you the patience to wait. The author also has the courage to show mistakes. And to point out that garden catalogues show a plant during the two weeks when it looks the best -- but what about the rest of the year? Personally, I'd rather know in advance what is going to take over my space or need staking or look bad after the first bloom, so I won't feel like a failure. Beautiful picture books are one thing, and are their own joy, but we also need to balance things with know-how and truth. This book does it.

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars invaluable guide for the new or unorganized gardener, April 30, 2002

By	audrey (white mtns) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

I bought this book because the subtitle, What to Do and When to Do It, precisely captured my state of confusion as a new gardener. I don't always know how to do a thing and just as often don't know when to do it either! The author takes us through a full year's worth of work, beginning with using a garden diagram and proceeding through finding plants and tools, pruning, weeding, mulching, watering and fertilizing, pest control, maintenance and getting ready for the next season. The book concludes with a chart of instructions for particular species of perennials, an index and a bibliography. The chart, in fitting with the emphasis of the book, instructs in each plant's proper care and is divided into months, April through November. The first chapter, kind of an overview of the year-in-gardening approach, has many color photographs, and the rest of the book contains many line drawings to illustrate techniques. Quite nice and very helpful.