Reviews (4)

the best book by far for identifying trees
The instructor I took field biology with in college highly recommended this book.He thought it was by far the best guide for identifying trees.Now, years later and having used (or attempted to use) many different field guides, I know why he was so crazy about this book.Winter or summer, if you are looking at the bark, leaf, or bud, the very clear and detailed pictures and unambiguous text will allow you to identify any tree with certainty.

The Illustrated Book of Trees:A great reference book
This is an excellent and comprehensive book with detailed descriptions of trees by their leaves, flowers, fruits, buds,and bark.The trees are described in their summer and winter aspects.It is a fine reference book not a book to be used in the field to identify trees.You should have an idea which general family of tree you are looking at to narrow the search down as the trees are arranged according to family.At the beginning of each tree description is a section listing those characteristics that are most helpful in identifying the tree.There is also a section at the end comparing the tree to those with which it is most likely to be confused. A glossary of terms is given at the back of the book and dichotomous keys to the families are given at the front.At the beginning of each family more detailed dichotomous keys are given to help the reader distinguish one member of the family from another.Leaf shapes and edges as well as types of fruits, flowers, and buds are illustrated to help the reader understand terminology used in the descriptions
More than identification
I bought my 1983 edition when I was active as a park district volunteer.What sold me on this book was that it went beyond the tree's identification, and told you more about the tree itself.For example, looking up the Sycamore it says "The Sycamore is also known as the Buttonwood, Buttonball-tree, and the American Plane Tree.It is one of the most massive of all our native trees, perhaps exceeding all others in the diameter of its trunk... The wood is heavy, hard, tough and coarse-grained; being difficult to work or split.It is used for furniture - both solid and veneer, interior finish, siding, musical instruments, boxes and crates.Practically all butcher's blocks are made from the Sycamore..." and so on. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Canada, Eastern    2. East (U.S.)    3. Identification    4. Nature    5. Nature/Ecology    6. Pictorial works    7. Reference    8. Trees    9. Trees & Forests - General    10. Northeastern & North Atlantic states    11. Southeastern & South Atlantic states    12. Trees & wildflowers   

Editorial Review

Perennials are the most challenging and rewarding of all garden plants, and most gardeners need all the help they can get to grow them well. Perennials emerge from the ground in early spring, grow to full height, bloom, bear fruit, and then disappear with the first frost, only to do the same thing the following year and again the next. Add this to the fact that for the first year or two, perennials don't do much above the ground (they are growing their root structure), but after that they burst forth with amazingly vigorous growth, and you get an idea of the pleasures and tribulations of perennial gardening. The rewards, however, are rich: a wide array of flower forms and colors, structure and leaf, an ever-changing mid-level tapestry in the garden, plus a celebration of seasonal change. Few gardeners can resist perennials, but how to grow them better and more effortlessly?Read more

Reviews (10)

A Must Have For Every Gardener
This book is very informative and also well organized.It offers many useful tips and information for greenhorn and experienced gardeners alike.It covers every perennial you can think of and even some that I considered roadside weeds.Great reference guide to care for your perennials properly.Highly recommended!

Makes Getting "Serious Gardener" Results Much Easier
This is the one book about perennials to own if you can only own one -- part growing manual, part plant reference encyclopedia, and part garden design guide.I stumbled into gardening by accident, having avoided it throughout my youth, but once I caught "the bug," I wanted to learn in a hurry how to do it correctly.This book was (and is) the perfect choice.
helpful:
Have not had a lot of luck with perrenials.I have gone thru from cover to cover and know where and how to plant now.A great book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Encyclopedias    2. Flowering Plants (Angiospermae)    3. Flowers - Perennials    4. Gardening    5. Gardening / Horticulture    6. Gardening/Plants    7. Home Gardening    8. Perennials    9. Gardening / Flowers / Perennials   

Editorial Review

Peter D'Amato has been raising carnivorous plants for three decades, and his nursery, California Carnivores, houses the world's largest collection of flesh-eating flora. There's not much D'Amato doesn't know about growing these oddballs of the plant world, and he imparts his expertise gracefully and with humor in Read more

Reviews (43)

The Best Carnivorous Source
This is the best book I have read on Carnivorous plants.It's informational and written by a pro.It has details on every species from how to grow them to the best way to propogate them.I wish it had more on tissue culture, but it is still the best book for Carnivorous plants!

Fantastic! You (and your plants) will sink your teeth into it!
To begin with, I have just started to explore the world of carnivorous plants (CP). I have a couple venus fly traps and am currently planning a bog garden for a few other types of CP's. Not wanting to invest money and time into something I did not know too much about, I started to browse the internet for helpful guides and growing tips. After quite a few hours on random sites I noticed a pattern. Most of the quality, high-performance CP websites and CP message boards all referenced this book as the holy grail of CP references. So I bought it.
A MUST HAVE book!
"The Savage Garden" is a MUST have book if you are getting into the world of Carnivorous plants. Detailed info on each species plus wonderful images make this a must for the garden library. Worth every penny. This is a highly recommended book and I can now see why! Get this book!
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Subjects:  1. Carnivorous plants    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. General    6. Plants - General    7. Techniques    8. Gardening: plants   

Reviews (5)

Guide to Flowering Plant Families by Wendy B. Zomlefer [Paperback]
This should be a five start rating but something happened when I wrote the review so I can't change the star rating.Suffice it to say that this is a very comprehensive book with wonderful black and white illustrations.A very useful guide for students of botanical art or for anyone interested in plants.

Missing Families
Many floras and the USDA Plant Database use Cronquist's classification system.Several families in that system are missing in Thorne's system as used in this book.I would suggest supplementing this book with James Payne Smith's "Vascular Plant Families."

Very handy reference to have around.

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Subjects:  1. Angiosperms    2. Botanical illustration    3. Canada    4. Classification    5. Flowers    6. Flowers - General    7. Gardening    8. Gardening / Horticulture    9. Gardening/Plants    10. General    11. United States    12. Plant life: general    13. Science / Botany    14. botony; biology; flowers; plants; horticulture; garden;   

Reviews (1)

A comprehensive study of diseases and their (mis) diagnosis
This book compiles a GREAT deal of useful information about plantpathology. It covers, as any good work about plant disease should,fertilization, nutritional deficiencies, and environmental factors such asdrought, freezing, lightning, air pollution, water contamination etc.before attempting to fix the problem, the work stresses the causal effectsand ,similarly, the visual pitfalls that may provide evidence of an unseeninsect symptom (galling, nematodes, etc.)The work was written mainlyfor the temperate zone, but using it in my home sub-tropics was aneye-opener!Reccomended reading for Horticulturalists in the upperechelon, or for Pathologists as a reference, and a reminder to look to theoutlying areas for an answer, It's always there! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - Forestry    2. Canada    3. Diseases and pests    4. Life Sciences - Horticulture    5. Science/Mathematics    6. Shrubs    7. Technology    8. Technology & Industrial Arts    9. Trees    10. United States    11. Forestry & silviculture: practice & techniques    12. Plant pathology & diseases   

Reviews (8)

Second edition
The second edition (2002) has been much expanded (from 464 to 576 pages) and has been adjusted to keep up with the (headlong) developments in this field. It also includes more descriptions of families. PHYLOGENY AND NIRVANA
Several colleagues have recently adopted, or plan to adopt the new textbook by JUDD,W. S., CAMPBELL, C. S., KELLOGG, E. A. & STEVENS, P. F. 1999. Plant systematics, a phylogenetic approach. ISBN 0-87893-404-9, for teaching vascular plant taxonomy. The book has some very useful introductory chapters on modern tools, which provide students with an insight on the applications of phytochemistry, mollecular biology and confection of cladograms. A essential book
The book of W. Judd is essential to all Botany student and studious of Systematics and General Botanical. For the ones that still feel difficulties in the comprehension of the concepts of Phylogenetic Systematics, the clear text and explanative allows a very clear vision of the whole process. The approach of the initial chapters, mostly of the chapter 2 is too much elucidative, allowing to the reader if involve with the study themes, learning simultaneously all vision of the phylogenetic systematic current. It is a book that can't miss in shelf of any botanist or studous of plants. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Classification    2. Flowers    3. General    4. Life Sciences - Biology - Molecular Biology    5. Life Sciences - Botany    6. Plants    7. Science    8. Science/Mathematics    9. Botany & plant sciences   

Reviews (25)

"A seed like no other"
Dropped by its parent over three centuries ago, the seed produced something special in the way of a tree.Rising from the soil alongside a river in an island off the West Coast of North America, it produced a Sitka spruce of unusual character.It was a Golden Spruce.When migrating Asian peoples settled on the island it became the source of mythologies, venerated it as part of their heritage.One dark night, however, it was hewn nearly down by a man with a sense of mission.John Vaillant, in a brilliant, comprehensive account of the tree, its worshippers and its changing surroundings, relates how the tree's story is important to us all.
good picture of primitive place
Having travelled in the areaI found the description of setting and characters very reminiscent of what I know to be there.Good story but the fifth star is withheld because of pools of distraction here and there in the book.I suspected that the story needed to be "plumped up" to make it book length rather than a short story.
No more paper towels for me.
After finishing this book I felt like booking a trip to British Columbia to see some of what remains of the precious forests Vaillant describes.Warning:This book will make you question your consumption habits andyour personal culpability in the destruction of North American forests. If you read it, be prepared for a shock.Few of us outside the logging industry know just how much has been lost.I would recommend this book to anyone.It is entertaining, informative and motivational without being preachy or condescending. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Environmental Conservation & Protection - General    2. Nature    3. Nature/Ecology    4. Trees & Forests - General    5. Literature: Texts    6. Miscellaneous Items    7. Nature / Environmental Conservation & Protection   

Reviews (5)

Wonderful, charming book
This is a wonderful, charming book. Each section provides an interesting anecdotal essay about the flower it covers. However, do not expect completeness (of course, there are many more than 100 flowers out there, and more than could be said about each than is possible in a page or two).
A delightful little book!
I got this on a lark because (1) I adore plants and (2) as a linguistics major, I adore words.This book turned out to be a tasty treat on both counts. A rose is not just a rose!
If you are interested in the origins of names, you will thrive on the information in this book. The pages are illustrated by Ippy Patterson and the cover itself it just beautiful.If you love flowers, you will enjoy learning about abelias, zinnias, roses, etc. The fascinating stories behind the flowers names will intrigue you.
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Subjects:  1. Floriculture    2. Flowers    3. Flowers - General    4. Folklore    5. Gardening    6. Gardening / Horticulture    7. Gardening/Plants    8. Names    9. Nomenclature (Popular)    10. Plant names, Popular    11. Gardening / Flowers / General    12. Gardening: plants    13. Reference works   

Reviews (1)

The Professional's must have
This book and its companion, the Monocotyledons,are THE required books for all professionals who need a reference to identify wetland plants in the southeast.It is not a book for the hobby naturalist unless they are prepared for the technical terms and presentation.It is not a "fieldguide" but an office reference for indentifying plants collected inthe field.It is worth the price if you identify plants for a living.Buythe Monocotyledons as well. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Aquatic plants    2. Dicotyledons    3. Identification    4. Nature    5. Plant Geography    6. Plants - General    7. Southern States    8. Wetland plants    9. Biogeography    10. Botany & plant sciences   

Reviews (6)

Wonderful
I am in love with this book! It is clear, concise, well-written, and has wonderful graphics. I am a landscape architecture student at UCD and this book has taught me more than any of my teachers combined! Highly recommend.

Residential Landscape Architecture: Design Process for the Private Landscape (4th Ed)
I am a student at Kansas State University in Landscape Design, and this book is wonderful for getting ideas, symbols, and disign techniques.My professors own this book, and constantly approve and recommend this book for sudents.Although it is titled for a private resident, professional landscapers use this book also.This is one book you should add to your library.

Later Edition Available
This book is great, but you might like to know that a 4th addition of this book is now available. Type in - "Residential Landscape Architecture: Design Process for the Private Residence (4th Edition)" and check it out.
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Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Architecture, Domestic    3. Flowers    4. Garden Design    5. Homesites    6. Landscape    7. Landscape Architecture And Design    8. Landscape architecture    9. Planning    10. Gardening / Landscape    11. Landscape art & architecture    12. New towns - design & planning   

Reviews (1)

Very informative
This book was very informative and reliable concerning AR trees, shrubs and vines. However, the majority of the pictures show only fruit or flowers for a particular species and at certain times and locations neither can be found on a given plant.Needs more photos of identifiable leaf structure and arrangement. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Flowers    2. General    3. Nature    4. Nature/Ecology   

Reviews (9)

Area the book covers
This book covers eastern North America, including the Midwest and the South.

Good book but difficult to reference in the field
I thought that the "Peterson Field Guide to Eastern Trees" was a very good book to read while at home, but it was difficult to use while I was actually "in the woods." I was looking for something with more illustrations and photos, and larger print wouldn't have hurt either. It would have also been simpler to use if the authors would have included all of the details, about a particular species,together in the book, rather than devoting one section to leaves of all species, another to silhouettes of all species, etc.

The illustrations are too pretty, the system is too cumbersome
As a novice tree identifier in New York City, I wish the book's classifications were more easily located and included more variant names.There is at least one popular tree known variously as the Chinese Scholar Tree and the Japanese Pagoda Tree which does not appear, and, although Florida is filled with wonderful trees, I shall make every effort never to get to Florida to see them and I would have liked more space devoted to the rest of the East and less to Florida.I am certain many people love to identify winter trees by their buds, but I am not one.Although the illustrations are very exciting to look at and very vital, they would be better in a Disney film.I have a local guide which uses photographs and I wish the Peterson Guide used them as well.The most useful segment of the guide is the tree silhouette section. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Canada, Eastern    2. East (U.S.)    3. Identification    4. Nature    5. Nature/Ecology    6. Pictorial works    7. Plants - General    8. Trees    9. Trees & Forests - General    10. Botany & plant sciences    11. Nature / Trees    12. Trees & wildflowers   

Reviews (2)

Fungal ID
It is a well written, and illustrated book for the idenfication of fungi, however, the inclusion of plates for appearance on media and more direct photos would improve the publication (and no doubt increase the cost) otherwise it is a good book for the identication of fungi in the laboratory that processes some fungi, as an offshoot to the microbiology department, a mycology department would include this in its library but would include other texts, and resources. In summary good at uni good on the bench, but would need suplementation in a pure mycology department.

It�s a good book for fungi identification
I have had very satisfactory experiences in the use of this book as a guide for the identification of Food Fungi, even though outside written forFungi of Medical Importance. It displays a very particular approach thatmakes extremely didactic, mainly for the novices in the subject or thatthey do not make fungi identification of routine. It presents first aclassification of the fungi based on the color of the colony and thecharacteristic formation of conidias of the fungi genera. In one secondpart of the book it makes a more detailed description of each one of theconsidered generas. And finally it makes an review of the main medias usedin the isolation and identification of fungi. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cultures and culture media    2. Fungi    3. Identification    4. Laboratory Medicine    5. Medical    6. Medical / Nursing    7. Medical Mycology    8. Microbiology    9. Pathogenic fungi    10. Mycology, fungi (non-medical)    11. Scientific equipment & techniques, laboratory equipment   

Reviews (1)

A superlative field guide with gardening information too
Would a field guide like this make a good holiday gift for a naturalist or gardener?Absolutely-if I didn't own it already it would be my number one choice. This is the best researched field guide I've ever seen.It is very very satisfying andis going to become a must-have for anyone who hikes the northeast or would like to garden with ferns, and for all botany students of the region.A book like this is more than just a guide-it trains the eye to open up to an entire world of subtle differences in nature. There is a kind of poetry in this guide usually not seen in this type of writing-BRILLIANT! Get one soon to catch the ferns in fall color-or do a little armchair gardening over the winter. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ferns    2. Nature    3. Nature/Ecology    4. Plants - General    5. Nature / Plants   

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. General    5. Ornamental Plants    6. Plants - Cacti/Succulents    7. Gardening / General    8. Succulents & cacti   

Reviews (2)

Magnificent
American Forests and his earlier book Petrified Wood are amazingly beautiful books. I have seen a few of the petrified wood samples in museums which are shown in these books, and the photoimages correspond to the authentic samples. I have two other petrified wood photo books that I have loaned out but I don't remember their titles (mostly chapters by German authors). Daniels two books are the very best. Howard McPherson

The best book on fossil wood bar none
I have been an amateur fossil hunter for 60 years and on rare occasion a book of this quality is printed.
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Subjects:  1. Earth Sciences - General    2. Environmental Science    3. Nature / Rocks & Minerals    4. Nature / Trees    5. Paleontology    6. Petrification    7. Pictorial works    8. Plants, Fossil    9. Science    10. Science / Mineralogy    11. Science/Mathematics    12. Trees, Fossil    13. Paleobotany    14. Petrifaction    15. Petrified forests    16. Wood   

Editorial Review

More than 300 species of trees are found in the United States and Canada west of the Rocky Mountains, some introduced from other continents but many native to the region. This handsome guidebook covers them all, with photographs that enable identification by easily discernible characteristics: by, for example, the shape of the leaf or needle, by the fruit, or by the flower or cone. The photographs are linked to texts that describe a tree's physical characteristics, habitat, and range. Some of the trees covered in this volume are exceedingly rare, such as the Monterey pine; others are locally abundant but limited in range, such as the Joshua tree; still others, such as the quaking aspen, are widespread. This guidebook is an essential addition to any western outdoor enthusiast's collection. Read more

Reviews (5)

North American trees, West.
If your going to be stuffing your field guide into your pocket, glove box, daypack or backpack, the "turtleback" binding used by Audubon is perfect. Personally, I don't use it that way. When I encounter a species I cannot identify, I take notes (usually of the mental variety) -- leaf characteristics, bark characteristics, size, form, habitat, seeds, flowers, etc. -- and identify it when I return home. The photos and drawings in this volume are generally excellent. So far as I can recall, the Audubon guide has yet to fail me. It doesn't include very many introduced (non-native) trees, that's not it's purpose, of course, so it may not help you identify the trees that have been planted in your yard. The Sunset Western Garden Book, or perhaps your local nurseryman, will fit that niche.
Dissappointing:Very hard to identify unknown trees
I spent $20 on this at a local bookstore (that was a mistake: it is only $14 here on Amazon) and got it home and went into my backyard.An hour later, I was only able to identify one of the three trees in the yard.
Quite reliable for outdoor travellers.
The Audubon Guide to Western Trees will prove a long lasting reference for outdoor lovers and tree finders. This easily equals the excellent Eastern Region guide in quality, detail, number of species listed, and beautiful photographs. However, if you want a heavy duty instant identification tool, hold off on this and purchase the Peterson Guides to Trees. However, if you love to marvel at trees and identify them in any amount of time at all, buy this along with the Eastern Guide. The quality binding of this newly updated edition is nice quality, and easy to carry. The earlier, out of print, hardback Economy Press edition was bulky, but contained more species listings. Still that difference is hardly noticeable, and buy this edition at good costs. This guide, (compared to the Petersons) will please a patient outdoor searcher attempting to identify any tree they find. Though the Peterson Guide to Trees should be bought prior to this, it is still an excellent and reliable addition to your collection. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Canada    2. Identification    3. Nature    4. Nature/Ecology    5. North America    6. Trees    7. Trees & Forests - General    8. United States    9. Botany & plant sciences    10. Nature / Trees    11. Trees & wildflowers   

Subjects:  1. Botany    2. Flowers    3. Germplasm resources, Plant    4. Life Sciences - Biology - General    5. Life Sciences - Botany    6. Plant Ecology    7. Plant Genetics    8. Plant diversity conservation    9. Science    10. Science/Mathematics    11. Ecological science, the Biosphere    12. Management of land & natural resources    13. Science / Biology   

Reviews (3)

A bamboo collector "must have"
The stunning full color images are worth the price of this book alone! If you love bamboo, you will love this book.

Hardy Bamboos... a Worthy Library Addition
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.
Simply the best Bamboo Book so far....
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!!
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Subjects:  1. Bamboo    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Ornamental Plants    6. Plants - Grasses    7. Gardening / Ornamental Plants   

Reviews (5)

Practical field guide and interesting read
Reviewed by Juanita Watson for Reader Views (8/06)
Understand what you are buying
This is a good book in the right hands.If you are looking for the definative book on mushrooms, it hasn't been published.The closest equivalent to definative is the David Arora Mushrooms Demystified.This book by Miller is a FIELD GUIDE (and maybe 1/5 the size and weight of Demystified), it is very, very short on the number of species covered ('only' hundreds out of thousands).Do not use this book to decide if you have harvested an edible mushroom.There are a great many edible mushrooms that look like a great many inedible and poisonious mushrooms and YOU CANNOT DO IDENTIFICATION BY COMPARING PICTURES.
Over six hundred color photos and line drawings offer important identification keys
If only one field guide to North American mushrooms is to be obtained for a reference holding, make it NORTH AMERICAN MUSHROOMS: A FIELD GUIDE TO EDIBLE AND INEDIBLE FUNGI. Over six hundred color photos and line drawings offer important identification keys and a comprehensive survey of where and how to gather wild mushrooms. Pictorial keys throughout enhance suggestions for location and identification as well as culinary use, and come from one of the most respected mycologists in this country, also a professor of Botany and Curator of Fungi. He's written six books on fungi and has authored 105 new species new to science in his papers: his is a masterpiece including sturdy binding for solid field use.
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Subjects:  1. Canada    2. Fungi    3. Identification    4. Mushrooms    5. Nature    6. Nature/Ecology    7. Pictorial works    8. United States    9. Nature / Mushrooms