Book Description
Alfred Byrd Graf is probably the most widely traveled plant explorer of the world's tropics and subtropics. Horticulturist, botanist, and professional photographer, he has roamed the earth in the spirit of Von Humboll, Darwin, and David Fairchild earlier in the 19th and 20th centuries, in search of exotic botanicals to add to the enlarging horticulture of the world. Among the honors received by the author are the award of the large Gold Medal of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, the Certificate of Merit of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the Distinguished Service Award of the Horticultural Society of New York, a Citation Award of the American Horticultural Society, and the Tercentenary Medalliou of the State of New Jersey. IN 1967 he was invested with the Sarah Champman Francis Medal of the Garden Club of America for outstanding literary achievement. In Pittsburgh, in 1972, Alfred Graf was elected to horticulture's hall of fame, the highest distinction given by the society of American Florists, and in 1978he was awarded the doctor of Science degree.
His most recent publications are TROPICA, Color-ama of Exotic Plants with 7000 photos incl. Plants indoors. Also Hortica (8100 photos), Color Cyclopedia of Garden Flora in all Climates showing Hardiness Zones.
He is the President and founder of Roehrs Company, Book division.
Book Description
Alfred Byrd Graf is probably the most widely traveled plant explorer of the world's tropics and subtropics. Horticulturist, botanist, and professional photographer, he has roamed the earth in the spirit of Von Humboll, Darwin, and David Fairchild earlier in the 19th and 20th centuries, in search of exotic botanicals to add to the enlarging horticulture of the world. Among the honors received by the author are the award of the large Gold Medal of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, the Certificate of Merit of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the Distinguished Service Award of the Horticultural Society of New York, a Citation Award of the American Horticultural Society, and the Tercentenary Medalliou of the State of New Jersey. IN 1967 he was invested with the Sarah Champman Francis Medal of the Garden Club of America for outstanding literary achievement. In Pittsburgh, in 1972, Alfred Graf was elected to horticulture's hall of fame, the highest distinction given by the society of American Florists, and in 1978he was awarded the doctor of Science degree.
His most recent publications are TROPICA, Color-ama of Exotic Plants with 7000 photos incl. Plants indoors. Also Hortica (8100 photos), Color Cyclopedia of Garden Flora in all Climates showing Hardiness Zones.
He is the President and founder of Roehrs Company, Book division.
Customer Reviews:
tropica by alfred byrd graf.......2007-05-07
Beautifully done book with hugh number of plants with a color photos and descriptions
Tropica Color Cyclopedia of Exotic Plants and Trees.......2005-12-13
I own the 5th edition. I glanced through a few pages (after having spent hours on the Internet researching tropical plants for my personal tropical garden) and had to buy it right then and there! I did not want to chance not being able to find it again. It's the best! I can't foresee ever having to wonder what any other tropical plant looks like! I've found plants in this book that I could not identify on the web or through local nurseries. I was not able to put this book down for hours after it's purchase and continue to use it almost daily. Totally worth the $185 price! If I'd lost it on the way home from having just purchased it, I'd be right back trying to buy another!
TROPICA.......2003-04-26
This book is the ultimate,before software,computers and Wal-Mart salespersons... .a book of this magnitude was and is still the Bible of horticulture.Alfred Graf,travels the world to bring the reader an astounding volume of plants both rare and usual,not only color photos but origins as well,which happens to be the best indicator of how a plant will thrive.I've owned this book for over twenty years,even replacing it after it was stolen.What else can I say...oh yeah,...Chrisalidocarpus Lutescens.
Tropica no Nonsense!.......2002-03-13
I recently got the chance to look over a copy of this book , and although I didn't get a chance to read it extensively nor in depth, I got the feeling that this was and is, one book , that no plant loving individuals library, should be with out. It is with out a doubt , a must have if you can get your hands on a copy.
A reader from Colorado.......2000-06-27
This book is execellant for pictures. For information about growing and other details there is little.
Book Description
If you really want to know exactly how to grow a garden from beginning to end, this is the book for you. Jorge chronicled five different growers from beginning to end. He lists everything they use to layout and construct their grow room including all the prices for everything. He also clues you into all the facts and figures and how to achieve the gram of dried sinsemilla per watt of HID light. Get the inside story from five growers. Every last detail on their grow operation (except location) - how they harvest heavy crops of potent marijuana indoors. They tell everything-how to choose a safe house, build a grow room & cloning chamber, install ventilation, hydroponic gardens & grow lights. Sixty full-color photographs, more than 80 black & white drawings, charts, and graphs illustrate the text. An index and an indispensable appendix of formulas and conversions are also included.
Customer Reviews:
excellent.......2007-03-08
I think this book is great for anybody interested in the growth process of marijuana, it is step by step and very easy to follow. For people that smoke weed and never really thought of growing their own, reading this book will deffinately show you that it is an easy way to save money by growin your own weed.
Good book for setting up grow area.......2006-06-27
5 different gardens, from small to large, are profiled here. Many great ideas. Highly recommended.
Small book with some garden designs.......2003-12-22
Five easy gardens is what you are buying here and is exactly what you get to see. This book is suitable for anyone who wants to see how some other growers do it. Cervantes goes to Europe to interview and photograph growers. He then uses the information they give him to write a book about how they grow. Interesting.
Great for the small timer.......2003-04-29
Jorge Cervantes, Mel Frank and Ed Rosenthal to the literate (not quite stoned out of thier head smoker) these names should mean something, these three guys have not only writen books that have recieved international recognition but have grown crops that have won yearly at the Cannibis Cups, all you people who say you read and review High Times, please take a break from your swag stuff and do some reading.This book is full of info for the first timer and those who want to start and stay on a small scale, if you just want to know how to start this will get you there, but if you are going to hang with the big boys get off the porch and start studying.
This book rocks!!.......2002-06-22
This book rocks! It really shows some excellent examples for everyones level of interest. I only wish it would show a Garden using a 250w system.
Book Description
The dean of garden design gives you all you need to know to create the garden of your dreams, even if you have only a balcony, rooftop, or a small yard to plant. Using a variety of structural materials and designs with appropriate plants, a small area can be developed into an extension of your home.
Customer Reviews:
Eh........2006-11-05
There are other, better books on the small garden out there. This book is filled with obvious statements e.g. "choose plants and containers that suit the style of your window space." Duh. The words and the design solution aren't the reason I bought the book. I bought it because first of all, there are a lot of pretty pictures. It's nice to page through if I'm bored or need a break. It's something to page through in 5 minutes. The second reason I bought the book is that I was really impressed with John Brookes years ago, before I had any training in design. I loved his gardens. So I wanted this book to see what he was up to. Nostalgia, really. Take it for what it's worth as part of a library. Other books to check out: David Stevens' Small Space Gardens, Joan Clifton's Courtyard & Terrace Gardens, James Grayson Trulove's Pocket Gardens, Katsuhiko Mizuno's Landscapes for Small Spaces: Japanese Courtyard Gardens, and Jamie Durie's The Outdoor Room, to name just a few.
Good Starter Book.......2006-07-23
This was a very good introductory book for a beginner like myself to basic principles of garden designing for small spaces. Brookes has separated the major concepts into six easy to read chapters: linking living/outdoor space, style, case studies, design (planning), structure (ground pattern, paving, fencing, furnishings) and planting. Each well-written chapter is accompanied by beautiful pictures to illustrate his point. I've tabbed more ideas from this book, than from any of my other books on garden design. If you are a beginner and have a small or tiny back-yard or no back-yard (roof top, apartment terrace), really consider getting this book.
Customer Reviews:
Glorious Writing, Glorious Photography, Glorious Gardens.......2002-04-19
In an era of compromised writing and substandard visual accents in books, this one stands out as a gem not to be missed. Glorious Indoor Gardens is meticulously researched and beautifully written. It highlights gardens across the United States which are characterized by the fact that they are, well, indoors.
If you are not familiar with the author, Miclele Driscoll Alioto, she is the host of HGTV's "The Inside Dirt". I have also read several articles she has written for the San Francisco Chronicle Home and Garden section, where I believe she is a regular columnist.
Alioto structured the book creatively. She clearly spent time interviewing the subjects of the book and has written fascinating profiles of these gardeners (seriously, you want to meet each and every one of these people and have dinner with them!) and the diverse gardens they have developed (small spaces, large spaces, urban, country - one even features a floor made out of sand!)
Glorious Indoor Gardens also provides quality gardening information and tips. You can tell that the author is well-versed and educated about practical gardening, and presents these hints and suggestions in a clear manner.
In addition to the useful, culturally diverse and interesting content, Alioto's book is absolutely gorgeous. It is well presented and the photographs are stunning. Truly, one receives a glimpse into the lives of the gardeners and their gardens. This book is phenominal - I have never been so intuitively moved by a book on gardening. I think it is because so many of my gardening books are either too dry and factual, or they are too heavily reliant on the beauty of the photographs, and the text suffers.
This one really stands out. I have already purchased several copies for friends, gardeners and non-gardeners alike, as gifts. I brought one copy to cheer up a friend who is currently in the hospital recovering from a serious procedure, and who is slightly depressed. She called me bubbling with excitement - I hadn't heard a smile in her voice for a long time. Reading this book, and looking at the beautiful pictures, lifted her spirits and momentarily took her mind off of her pain. Now, she can't wait to get home and start gardening again!
I highly recommend this book to you, even if you are not an avid gardener. This is the first time I have ever posted a book review, and give it a HUGE thumbs-up, it is really not one to be missed and is one of a kind. I can't wait for her to write another!
A beautiful, well-written book anyone would love!.......2002-04-18
I am always on the lookout for great books I can give as gifts. One I found recently is Glorious Indoor Gardens by Michele Driscoll Alioto. The book is exceptionally informative, and provides a wealth of practical ideas for anyone interested in gardening, regardless of level of expertise. On top of that, it has some great pictures of spectacular gardens! I put it on my coffee table and all of my guests have commented on how amazing the gardens are. It is a great addition to any household, both as a flip-through picture book and an informative reference guide. I highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates the beautiful things in life!
Book Description
Dozens of start-to-finish landscapes, from plans and site prep to defining a landscape backbone, outdoor rooms, and decorative accents.
Step-by-step plans for patios, edging, walls, fences, water gardens, outdoor kitchens, fireplaces, garden sculpture, and more.
Cost estimate, time needed to complete, skill level, and material list included with every project.
Hundreds of inspiring photographs, ideas, and plans.
Book Description
Kitchen gardens have delighted gardeners with their beauty and fresh harvests for centuries. The Art of the Kitchen Garden, in glorious full color, makes it easy for anyone with an interest in gardening and fresh produce to enjoy a beautiful and productive kitchen garden. This elegant book celebrates the old world traditions of designing and planting a garden by emphasizing artistic design, dazzling color arrays, and the details that make each garden unique. Vivid photos and detailed color illustrations help even those with little experience succeed at kitchen gardening. The book includes helpful instructions for creating and maintaining a personalized kitchen garden, proven guidance for selecting the best plants, and expert advice for combining color, texture, and height for delightful results. It's a stunning and informative read for gardeners who grow either ornamentals or vegetables.
Book Description
Have you always wanted to run your own railway? Does your indoor model railway leave you with a desire to fill your nostrils with the smell of steam and hot oil on a winter's morning? If the answer to any of these questions is 'yes' then you probably need to build yourself a garden railway, and you certainly need to read this book! Peter Jones is one of the best-known names in the world of garden railways. In this highly illustrated book he guides you through the exciting world of model trains in your garden, from small-scale electric-powered locomotives to live-steam engines capable of carrying passengers, helping the reader to decide on what type of railway would be right, and passing on countless tips for the successful execution of the grand project.
Customer Reviews:
Enjoyable British humor.......2007-04-03
Altho I have enjoyed Garben RRing for years I still got a kick out of this book. It has many great thoughts for the beginning GRRer but for us that has been doing this for a while it is just refreshing reading. Peter has been RRing in the garden longer than I thought GRRing was around.. His writing is always something I look forward to each month in the Garden Railroader magazine each month.
Beginner or advanced you will enjoy this book!!!
Book Description
It's no wonder the best-selling Little Herb Gardens, now with a fresh new cover, has been so popular. Herbs are the instant gratification project of the gardening world, and people love to grow them. This friendly guide to homegrown herbs is perfect for beginners, featuring plans for simple garden projects ranging from outdoor garden beds to window boxes and container gardens. Growing instructions for over 30 herbs are rounded out with ideas for garden planning and maintenance. Tips on harvesting and cooking with nature's bounty make this charming volume as useful in the kitchen as it is in the garden. With colorful photographs and warm and informative text, Little Herb Gardens is inviting to gardeners, cooks, and herb novices alike.
Customer Reviews:
A book to get you started........2007-05-31
If you're the type of person that likes to do things without a lot of theory, this is a great book.
I'm a novice gardener and the introduction gardening instructions just didn't have enough information for me. I decided to purchase Gardening For Dummies and various other books to satisfy my need for detailed information before setting some serious time, money, and effort into a balcony garden for my apartment.
This book has great ideas and did a good job of introducing me to different herbs and plants to grow to be used in cooking. But if you want to get more "hardcore" with gardening I recommend getting other texts as well.
A sweet useful gem of a book...........2003-01-08
First let me admit I am biased, since this gem is written by someone I know and admire, here in Northern California. But it nonetheless a gem of a book with superb photographs as well as excellent advise on Do's and Don't of raising a variety of herbs. I also like the book because it shows that one can successfully raise year round fresh herbs, and do so on an acre or on a small patio. And the author also covers edible flowers another favorite of my families.
Great little book............2002-09-19
LITTLE HERB GARDENS is a great book for the novice. The authors have assembled a lovely collection of photographs and interspersed them with succinct text that explains how to identify and select easy to grow herbs; when and where to buy them (spring, fall, summer, nurseries or catalogs, plants or seeds); how to pot them (containers, soil, etc.); and where to place them (balconies, patios, or in small gardens).
This little book will inspire you to create a green space in a kitchen window, an assemblage before a patio or balcony door, or a collection of pots on the balcony. Herbs grow best in full sunlight, so if your balcony faces south, you are in luck. If you live in a town house or have a small patch of ground you can think more expansively, but this book does not really deal with garden design, or the issues associated with herb gardening. Herbs are frequently garden thugs that run amuck in the open. I suggest you find a more in-depth book such as RODALE'S ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HERBS if you intend to go beyond pots and are thinking of growing mints, yarrows, violets, or some of the other "easy" to grow herbs suggested by this book. RODALE'S book also covers the poisonous aspects of herbs. (Some of them can kill you.)
The last section of LITTLE HERB GARDENS briefly covers kitchen uses of herbs including making herb-infused vinegars and herb-flavored sorbets. If you want to know more, once again you will have to turn to something more comprehensive such as THE COMPLETE BOOK OF HERBS by Lesley Bremness. Even if you can't grow herbs, you can buy them at the farmer's market and some food stores. LITTLE HERB GARDENS is not the only book available for learning how to grow herbs or use them, but it will get you started.
Concise and Beautiful.......2000-06-16
This book has it all--eye-pleasing photography and concise, useful information. The heart of the book is an herb-by-herb description of how to grow the plants. It's organized in a unique way according to where you could keep them--windowsill or fire escape, inside porch, outdoor pots, pantry, etc. There are suggestions for special ornamental techniques (such as topiary) and recipes for culinary herbs. Finally, the book lists seed and plant sources in the U.S. All in all, a real pleasure to read.
Amazon.com
Few elements are as ubiquitous or as essential as water, or as appealing for the soothing sights and sounds with which it enhances our environment. Fountains are the ideal way to incorporate water's magic into our homes and gardens, and the fountain maker becomes something of an illusionist, striving emulate nature and to conceal the mechanics that make the perpetual flow of water possible.
Dorcas Adkins is certainly a magician when it comes to fountain design. Her wizardry encompasses bamboo, wood, ceramic, concrete, stone, and metal creations, from small tabletop delights to full-sized garden waterfalls. Her extremely thorough and well-diagrammed instructions make even the most complex projects approachable--and some of them are indeed fairly complex, involving woodworking skills, plaster and concrete casting, ceramic modeling, soldering, or rigging an existing sculpture. But the results are well worth the effort, yielding Zen-like arrangements in which water trickles over a miniature bonsai garden, through bamboo piping, or into a rustic stone trough filled with water lilies; or more traditional Western constructions such as a ewer-toting cherub, a shell-and-stone-and-tile mosaic, or various spouting faces.
Beginners or those seeking smaller-scale productions are best off starting with a more basic approach, like Dawn Cusick's Tabletop Fountains. But for the more adventurous fountaineers, it's hard to beat Adkins's presentation, which also helpfully includes a list of mail-order suppliers and a useful at-a-glance guide to finding general materials, from antique tubs to pond liners to wooden barrels. --Amy Handy
Book Description
Everything readers need to know to create elegant, soothing water fountains. Easy-to-follow instructions explain choosing and installing pumps and constructing fountains.
Customer Reviews:
Fountain magic.......2000-05-19
A truely awesome book. I came upon it when I looked through Angel Lee's review list and ordered it. I am indebted to her! I have been making my own fountains since I bought my 1st home 6 years ago, and wanted new ideas. These are wonderful. Some of the simpler dish-type gardens will make lovely Christmas gifts, and I look forward to starting them. For the more adventurous, there are more complex and larger fountains/ponds, all truely picturesque, which would be great fun for anyone with a reasonable sized yard. A friend has created one on his terraced front lawn, and it captures the attention of by passers, making his neighborhood The Place to visit of late. For the truely enthused, there are directions for casting subjects in ceramics, for designing cement fountains or basins, and even for making masks of living persons. Although many items can be collected from the "saved" materials everyone seems to store away in garages or from yard and garage sales, those like pumps, tubing, and other hardware items can be found at nurseries and hardward stores. There is also a very useful list of addresses where other types of supplies may be found. I can hardly wait to get started! Thanks again Angel.
Build a wide variety of impressive fountains with ease.......2000-04-03
This is a wonderful book for constructing beautiful & impressive looking fountains. The fountains here are unexpectedly easy to construct & cost far less than commercial ones. It is filled with ideas that allow the maker to add his own unique touch.
The materials selection is varied. Almost any watertight vessel can be the basis of a small fountain. Other materials include bamboo, wood, ceramic, concrete, stone & metal. Pump selection & mechanical requirements are also covered.
Projects range from small table-top fountains to elaborate outdoor units. There are even instructions for a 3' high tiered waterfall. All have clear construction diagrams & color photos of the finished work.
Helpful extras include lists of suitable plants to use with the fountains, suggestions for finding materials, & a list of mail order suppliers. This is the book to get if you want to know the joy of building a fountain of your own creation.
Great book.......2000-02-16
I knew the minute I saw the cover of Simple Fountains for Indoors and Outdoors that it was exactly what I was looking for. The cover photograph is an appealing table fountain. Inside the book is a well thought out plan designed to help the novice achieve success making tabletop or other indoor/outdoor fountains.
Every conceivable problem is addressed with buying information,pictures,diagrams and trouble shooting.
I know I can create a beautiful water fountain from the information presented in Ms.Adkins' book. I recommend it highly.
Simple Fountains for Indoors & Outdoors.......1999-11-26
This is a beautiful book & it's written by a true expert - and artist. Dorcas Adkins has been designing & making fountains & other garden art for 10 years. We had her bamboo flute fountain in our garden in Ohio, which we had to leave behind when we moved, so I was very pleased to discover this book. It provides detailed & clear instructions (along with inspiration) for indoor & outdoor fountains.
Beautiful and Useful Combined!.......1999-11-11
Adkins' treatment of these beautiful fountains and how to create them is just what is needed by those of us who want to listen to their soothing sound and see their sparkling light at home. What is best, is the steps are so easy to follow!
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Books Index
Books Home
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General
| Gardening & Horticulture
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
Tropica: Color Cyclopedia of Exotic Plants and Trees for Warm-Region Horticulture in Cool Climate the Summer Garden or Sheltered Indoors
Tropical Plants for Home and Garden
Tropical Flowering Plants: A Guide to Identification and Cultivation
An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms
Tropical Garden Design
