The standard reference for Florida ornamental gardening is now in its third edition. For nearly four decades, Florida Landscape Plants has been the go-to manual for novices and experts alike. This timeless gardening book features detailed drawings of more than 400 plants, alongside invaluable information, such as proper propagation, soil and light requirements, hardiness, salt tolerance, pests, and landscape uses.

In the 1630s, visitors to the prosperous trading cities of the Netherlands couldn't help but notice that thousands of normally sober, hardworking Dutch citizens from every walk of life were caught up in an extraordinary frenzy of buying and selling. The object of this unprecedented speculation was the tulip, a delicate and exotic Eastern import that had bewitched horticulturists, noblemen, and tavern owners alike. For almost a year rare bulbs changed hands for incredible and ever-increasing sums, until single flowers were being sold for more than the cost of a house.

Historians would come to call it tulipomania. It was the first futures market in history, and like so many of the ones that would follow, it crashed spectacularly, plunging speculators and investors into economic ruin and despair.

This is the history of the tulip, from its origins on the barren, windswept steppes of central Asia to its place of honor in the lush imperial gardens of Constantinople, to its starring moment as the most coveted--and beautiful--commodity in Europe. Historian Mike Dash vividly narrates the story of this amazing flower and the colorful cast of characters--Turkish sultans, Yugoslav soldiers, French botanists, and Dutch tavern keepers--who were centuries apart historically and worlds apart culturally, but who all had one thing in common: tulipomania.

The basis of a multimillion-dollar industry of health and beauty products, aloe vera has long been known for its healing attributes. Recently it has attracted the interest of the scientific and medical communities who are studying the plant and its powerful regenerative properties. Externally, aloe vera is used to expedite the healing of burns and other injuries, rejuvenate and soften skin and hair, relieve joint and muscle pain, and help control acne. It is commonly used by physicians to heal serious burn injuries and by dentists, dermatologists, and optometrists to reduce swelling and inflammation. Internally, aloe is effective as a treatment for constipation, stomach ulcers, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, and a host of other health problems.

In this book, the author discusses the properties of aloe vera and explains why it is effective in healing. She also explores the ways the plant has been used throughout history by cultures as diverse as the ancient Egyptian and Native American. Gage demystifies the proven curative properties of aloe vera and shows how it can be used to best advantage for a wide variety of problems.

New edition of the popular classic

Citing case studies and current research, Diane Gage presents a balanced view of the many uses of aloe vera.

"In one volume this book seems to encompass all the plants native and exotic grown in Florida. No small feat! . . . No other reference work that I know of covers the field as comprehensively as this."--Edward Golden, horticutural consultant and past president, Sarasota Orchid Society From Florida to California and on to Hawaii, gardeners who want a current, thorough, and user-friendly guide to the common indoor foliage and outdoor landscape plants for U.S. Department of Agriculture zones 8, 9, 10, and 11 will welcome this fully illustrated book. With precise line drawings for nearly 500 plant species, the work presents a description of cultivated ferns, cone-bearing plants, and flowering ornamental plants for warmer climates. It offers a description of the families, essential identifying features, and horticultural information for each plant, including origin, cold hardiness zones, propagation techniques, and soil, fertilizer, irrigation, and light requirements. The author also discusses identification features under clearly demarcated headings of growth habit, foliage, stem and bark, flower, and fruit. With a comprehensive glossary of terms commonly used in plant identification and a cross-referenced index of common and scientific names, readers will be able to find information with minimal effort. This book is intended for use by backyard gardeners and will be especially handy for newcomers to warm temperate and subtropical areas who seek a reliable resource for plant selection and care. In addition, it will be indispensable to garden clubs, volunteer Master Gardeners, nursery professionals, extension agents, and landscape architects. It also can serve as a plant identification text for students of environmental horticulture, forestry, and other plant science-related fields. Bijan Dehgan is professor of environmental horticulture at the University of Florida. He is internationally recognized for his taxonomic and horticultural research and major publications on the endangered sago palms (cycads) and the physic nuts (Jatropha).

One of the more frustrating aspects of gardening is trying to find the proper plants for shady areas. even more difficult is creating these areas where they don't already exist. Although shade is especially important in the Sunshine State, given its tropical climate, there has been little written about how to garden for it effectively so that the end result is varied, attractive, and ecologically vibrant. Craig Huegel fills that gap with Native Florida Plants for Shady Landscapes. Huegel carefully outlines the necessary but easy-to-follow steps of either adding plants to an existing yard or designing cool spaces from scratch. He discusses the many variables and complexities of shade gardening in Florida, exploring options for canopy, shrubs, and a variety of colorful annuals and perennials that can tolerate even the darkest of areas.

This garden guide features plant recommendations from two of Georgia's most highly respected gardening experts, with selections that will thrive amid the state's unique growing conditions.

This full color book includes: *instructions for establishing a water feature, including installation *instructions for maintenance and understanding the pond ecosystem *tips for selecting and planting *discussion of potential pests and problems *hundreds of water garden plants *includes flower & foliage colors, height, spread, light and nutrition needs

"An engaging mix of the serious and the playful, and Fenton writes with a lightness of touch perfectly suited to the subject." --Alexander Urquhart, T"he Times Literary Supplement"
Forget structure. Forget trees, shrubs, and perennials. As James Fenton writes, "This is not a book about huge projects. It is about thinking your way toward the essential flower garden, by the most traditional of routes: planting some seeds and seeing how they grow."
In this light hearted, instructive, original "game of lists," Fenton selects one hundred plants he would choose to grow from seed. Flowers for color, size, and exotic interest; herbs and meadow flowers; climbing vines, tropical species--Fenton describes readily available varieties, and tells how to acquire and grow them.
Here is a happy, stylish, unpretentious, and thought-provoking gardening book that will beguile and inspire both novice and expert alike.

This is an illustrated guide to varieties, cultivation and care, with step-by-step instructions and over 160 beautiful photographs. This is a practical guide to growing and caring for dahlias, with instructions for planting, pruning and propagating, and how to deal with common pests and diseases. It features a fully illustrated directory of over 50 different varieties of dahlia, including single, anemone, collerette, waterlily, decorative, ball, cactus, semi-cactus, pompon, fimbriated, green-eyed and clock-faced. It shows you how to buy dahlias and how to grow and propagate them successfully from seed, tubers, shoots and cuttings. Dahlias are a well-established classic for many gardeners. Their variety of form and hue enables them to be at home in gardens of any size. Easy to grow despite their exotic appearance, dahlias rarely fail to produce impressive, beautifully formed blooms. This pretty handbook contains advice for growing a wide variety of dahlias, from simple single-flowered types to balls with tightly rolled petals. It includes an illustrated directory of over 50 types, with descriptions of their foliage, blooms, height and growing conditions. Be it perfection of flowers that you seek, or just a glorious profusion of brightness in the garden, there is something for everyone in the world of dahlias.