This volume offers the reader all the guidance necessary to choose suitable plants so the garden looks good, no matter what the season.

This guide to growing bulbs in Southern Africa is a must for every gardener, and for anyone with an interest in growing bulbs, whether on a small or a large scale. The text gives advice on how to cultivate bulbs for the most spectacular blooms. It includes: A detailed A-Z of garden bulbs most suited to the Southern African climate; a flowering calendar of flower bulbs; suggestions for using bulbs in the garden to create the most spectacular displays; the planting and care of bulbs, including advice on home forcing; a section on diseases and pests with advice on how to keep your bulbs healthy.

Stefan Buczacki sets out a blueprint for commonsense down-to-earth gardening - an approach that is based on an understanding of the environment and also relates to gardeners and their lifestyle: what gardeners need and want from their gardens and how they can set about getting it. The author looks at the basics of gardening, examining such topics as soil, fertilizers, pesticides and pruning, revealing his knowledge derived from years of practical gardening experience. He then proceeds to a detailed discussion of the commonsense approach to tree and shrub gardening, kitchen gardening, gardening and ornamentals, water gardening and wildlife gardening, ending with a chapter on garden design.

Identify some of the most magnificent tropical plants in lush color photographs and in-depth descriptions. While many ornamental species add a little tropical atmosphere to our homes, the full splendor of their seductively fragrant blossoms and luxuriant foliage is hardly ever reached outside their natural setting due to a lack of light or humidity. Whether you're planning a journey to an exotic place or a visit to your nearby botanical garden, the information on these plants will prove both fascinating and useful.

John Bryan's substantive revision to his original magnum opus published in 1989 -- selected by the American Horticultural Society as one of the 75 great American gardening books-- provides expanded coverage of some 230 genera and a staggering number of species, varieties, and cultivars. Genera are treated with detail appropriate to their importance, with information on history, classification, culture, propagation, pests and diseases, uses, and species and cultivars. Detailed encyclopedic plant listings are complemented by an equally comprehensive pictorial presentation. Not only are there more than 1100 color photographs -- many showing the plants in their natural habitats -- but there are also 43 color reproductions of botanical illustrations from 19th-century issues of "Curtis's Botanical Magazine" and other publications, taken from the author's extensive collection.

Americans love their lawns with a passion rarely seen in other countries; fifty-eight million Americans enthusiastically plant, weed, water, spray, and mow an estimated twenty million acres of lawn. But is our dedication to these lawns contributing to the serious environmental problems facing the planet? The authors in this book state that the lawn may be an ecological anachronism, and they argue that we must rethink the way we care for our lawns so that these small pieces of the environment will demonstrate our commitment to a more ecologically sound world. The authors outline the origins of ideas about the lawn and the reasons for its enduring popularity. They describe the development of ideas about its form and the making of the lawn into an object of beauty. They explain how the lawn industry has encouraged the spread of the "industrial" lawn to sustain high sales of mowers, seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, and irrigation equipment. However, say the authors, Industrial Lawns can have high environmental costs: for example, power motors contribute to regional air pollution and global warming; excess fertilizers and pesticides wash off our lawns and run into our wells, streams, and lakes; grass clippings that are bagged and hauled away are major contributors to solid waste problems; and the watering of lawns depletes scarce water supplies. How can we create environmentally sound lawns? The authors offer a variety of ideas - such as moderation in our use of lawn supplements, ecological use of grass varieties, the substitution of hand mowers for power motors, and the use of grass clippings to fertilize the lawn. These strategies can help us to care for conventional lawns in ways lessdangerous to the environment. They also propose two more radical alternatives: Freedom Lawns that allow natural and unrestricted growth of grasses, clover, wildflowers, and other broad-leafed herbaceous plants; and total replacement of the lawn with new landscape designs. By choosing these alternatives - which can be aesthetically pleasing as well as ecologically correct - we can unite our environmental concerns with direct personal action, acting locally while thinking globally and creating a new garden aesthetic in the process.

This book is a fascinating and beautifully illustrated history of herbal texts throughout the world from ancient cultures through the seventeenth century.

A "herbal" by definition is a book that is descriptive of plants and the term did not come into use until the sixteenth century. The production of herbals is closely connected to the history of early printing and offers the finest examples of this art and craft. However, the earliest records of ancient Egypt, Sumer and China all reflect a tradition of works of botanicals and their medicinal properties long before printing. The author's survey begins with a work called "De materia medica" written in the first century which is still extant and as the final authority on pharmacy for 1500 years is the most important herbal ever written.

The study of herbals offers a rich history of the culture and beliefs from the folklore and science of medieval and classical worlds.

This is the first comprehensive and up to date guide to clematis in Australia and New Zealand. Clematis, the Queen of Climbers, has become popular in our temperate climate. Most gardens boast at least one much-loved plant and they are especially appreciated for their affinity with roses. The rules are few, easy to follow and will lead to spectacular results. There is information on: Planting; Pruning; Propagation; Pests; Diseases and Companion planting. There are beautiful colour photographs illustrating most of the clematis described.

Replicating the climate of an orchid's native habitat is a key to the successful culture of a species and its hybrids. This ingenious book provides monthly rainfall and temperature data for the varied habitats of more than 1200 species of "Dendrobium," supplemented by detailed cultural recommendations based on the observations of experienced growers.

The only book any homeowner needs when considering an irrigation system for a lawn, this complete handbook, written by a master plumber in clear, non-technical language, addresses all types of irrigation systems--from the simple to the high-tech--including overhead, surface, and underground irrigation equipment. 50 illustrations & photos.

Known through several editions simply as "the fern bible," this classic covers identification, propagation, cultivation, and landscape uses of ferns. The heart of the book is a selection of 132 hardy and tender species suitable for gardens in various climates or in the greenhouse.

Allen Lacy has gathered together a colorful sampler of American gardening writing from Thomas Jefferson to our own day. Among the fifty-two writers represented are such national treasures as Celia Thaxter, Neltje Blanchan, Elizabeth Lawrence, and Katherine S. White.

The top 50 indoor houseplants for brightening your interiors - what's best and how to keep them alive. Bring the outdoors in and breathe new life to your home with plants! House plants are well and truly back on trend - they instantly lift an area, make a room feel fresh and welcoming, and brighten your mood. On top of this, indoor plants are great for purifying the air and creating a healthier home.Together with microbes in the soil, plants work wonders to reduce harmful pollutants released from indoor furniture. (It's true: look at the study conducted by the University of Technology, Sydney.) If you feel like your rooms need a splash of colour and a breath of life, there's no better starting point than this book. Whether your style is dramatic jungle plants or to sweetly shaped succulents, you'll find something to suit. With loads of glorious illustrations for inspiration, data on which plants are suitable where, and clear advice on how to pot, prune and pet your plants, this is the perfect guide for bringing the outdoors in - no matter what your level of gardening skill!

A hands-on guide to using flower essences in magick, spellcraft, alchemy, and healing * Provides detailed instructions for making single-flower essences and magickal and therapeutic essence blends * Shares new magickal uses for flower essences, from creating sacred space to dressing candles to preparing incense, as well as how to use essences in meditation, potions, spells, spagyrics, and ritual * Includes a detailed directory of 100 flower and plant essences, complete with astrological, elemental, and magickal correspondences In this practical guide to using flower essences in witchcraft, alchemy, and healing, Nicholas Pearson provides detailed instructions for making and using flower essences based on traditional Western magick practices. He shares new uses for essences--from creating sacred space to dressing candles to preparing incense--and explains how to use them in meditation, potions, spells, spagyrics, and ritual. He shares exercises for connecting more deeply to the energies of the green world and exploring how essences can be used in traditional sacraments of witchcraft like the Great Rite. In the hands-on formulary, the author provides recipes for essence combinations for the eight sabbats and formulas based on familiar blends like traditional flying ointments of European witchcraft. He shares his method for creating flower essence spagyrics--alchemical preparations made from the body, mind, and soul of the plant that offer the highest vibrational potency for therapeutic and spiritual uses. Pearson also provides a detailed directory of 100 flower and plant essences, complete with astrological, elemental, and magickal correspondences and the therapeutic indications for each essence. Weaving together magickal herbalism, traditional plant lore, and flower essence therapy, this guide allows you to see flower essences not just as vibrational remedies but also as powerful tools for transformation, magick, and spiritual practice.

One fateful day in 1996, upon discovering that five freight cars' worth of glittering corn have reaped a tiny profit of $18.16, young Forrest Pritchard undertakes to save his family's farm. What ensues--through hilarious encounters with all manner of livestock and colorful local characters--is a crash course in sustainable agriculture. Pritchard's biggest ally is his renegade father, who initially questions his son's career choice and eschews organic foods for sugary mainstream fare. But just when the farm starts to turn heads at local markets, his father's health takes a turn for the worse. With poetry and humor, this timely memoir tugs on the heartstrings and feeds the soul long after the last page is turned.