Reviews (5)

Awesome!
Just bought this book about 2 hours ago, and put it down only to write this review. This guy is one heck of an artist. Taking Your Grass Care a Cut Above Where It Is Today!
Summary:Picture Perfect is the ultimate resource for those who want to add even more beauty and interest to their grass by growing and maintaining healthier turf and cutting it in original and beautiful patterns. WHAT AN AMAZING BOOK!
One of the first things I notice about people's homes is the way the lawn is cut. Some might say, "get a life," but to me the landscape design and lawn say a lot.From a psychological point of view, it says something about the people who live there, too!We have all seen lawns cut straight and perfect, every blade of grass precise, row after row - not much creativity there.We have also seen lawns cut haphazardly in every conceivable direction and length, a clump here and a clump there, as if the ride-on mower and its near-sighted rider short-circuited, jumped the fence and rode off into the sunset! Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Landscape    5. Lawns    6. Plants - Grasses    7. Turf management    8. Turfgrasses    9. Architecture    10. Architecture / Landscape   

Reviews (15)

Colorful!
A clean and accurate book filled with great color pictures and illustrations.Scotts is a good lawn company and it shows in this educational book.I was able to analyze my grass type and disorders with this book quite easily.

Highly Recommended
I'm a first-time lawn owner and this book has been the greatest resource I've found yet. It has detailed explanations of every important topic regarding your lawn. The color pages and pictures are more than just window dressing; they make the topics easier to understand. I've tried several other books and not found anything as useful as this. In fact, a guy just joined my department at work who studied turf management in college (as part of a golf sports degree) and every tip he's given me was already covered in this book.
Probably the Best
"Holy caRRRnations, Mary. Take a look at this!", you might exclaim for seeing this book the first time. "Look at the clever propaganda of Scotts trying to sell us more of their products!" Well, you might think that . . . but you're wrong. You and I have the advantage -- yeap, GREAT advantage -- of living in the Information Age. And in the process of trying "to sell us more of their Scotts products" -- for those of you for who the glass is half-empty -- Messrs. Nick Christians and Ashton Ritchie have provided us not only with probably the best book on lawns, but invaluable information on lawn care from A to Z.
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Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Lawns    5. Outdoor & Recreational Areas - General    6. Reference    7. Gardening / Lawns    8. Gardening: plants   

Reviews (1)

great quick reference book
After being out of the superentendent side of the business for a few years this book brought me back up to speed. The text is well written and easy to understand. I recommend it highly for anyone who needs a book "just tobe sure"! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - General    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Landscape    4. Lawns    5. Science/Mathematics    6. Technology    7. Turf management    8. Turfgrass Management    9. Turfgrasses    10. Architecture / Landscape    11. Horticulture   

Editorial Review

If your neighbors' lawn always resembles a beautiful greencarpet while yours looks like something that would cost Tiger Woodsseveral shots, you could use some practical help. Trust the Dummiesfolks--you really Read more

Reviews (6)

The name says it all
A good book that covers all the different info on grass.However, none of the informative paragraphs dig too deep.

Too Basic!
This book is really basic.I found that "How to Make Big Money Mowing Small Lawns" as a better resource.It had easy to understand charts. Simplistic pricing method. Simple to understand and extremely helpful/useful in earning extra income. This book offers unique and insightful ideas to help get you off the ground. It gives real life experience of the author will enable them to have insight into business that is fundamental to becoming entrepreneurial.An updated version is available at librarydepot.com

Very good book for starting a lawn
I planted my first lawn from scratch this Spring, and spent a lot of time reading and re-reading this book.The advice the book gave was great, particularly when it came to selecting the type of grass to plant for my particular needs and in my area.Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Landscape    5. Landscape Horticulture    6. Lawns    7. Gardening / Landscape   

Reviews (4)

Finally Organization
Jerry Baker's Green Grass Magic is a wonderful book for people who want to know more about growing grass (the turf kind) but, don't want to be to technical. He does get into the technical aspects of Grass but those sections are delivered simply and in small chuncks with a dose of humor. What I like about Mr. Baker is that reading his books is a bit like talking withyour grandfather, he interjects tidbits about how life was and wisdom from his Grandma Putt, in with his advice for your lawn. Mr. Baker has finally gotten better in orginazing his books. You can quickly find the information that you want. His chapter headings give you an idea about that that chapter is about which makes it easier to find a given subject and the book is indexed. He has put all of the recipies that crop up in the book for his various tonics and such in the back of the book as well as through out the book. It makes it a lot easier to look up what is in a given tonic. I like the tonics that he gives though, the neighbors raise eyebrows when they find that I am buying Beer for my lawn, but, if you do what he tells you to do then you will have a more beautiful lawn.

Jerry Baker's Green Grass Magic
Good info.Have used one of the tonics and found that it does work...

Tips and Tonics
The tips and tonics for yard care alone make this book worth the price.I have spent numerous $$ on trying to get my yard in tip top shape, with chemicals and expensive items.Jerry has simple, grocery store items, that can help make a sad yard happy! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Landscape Horticulture    5. Lawns    6. Turfgrass Management    7. Gardening / Lawns   

Reviews (2)

You don't have to water your lawn everday
As a reader of Crabgrass Frontier many years ago, I always knew that our lawns today are much, much different than what Americans of the first 150 years would know and while sitting through a recent City Council meeting in which it was determined that one subdivision was watering their lawns with about 14 feet of water a year, I knew there had to be a better way to maintain your lawn.Steinberg takes you from the history of lawns to history of lawn care.Along the way, Steinberg exposes you to some of the obsessive behavior of lawn care fanatics to the efforts of the anti-leaf blower campaigns.Steinberg exposes that most of our green lawns and lawn care habits are formed by marketing of companies likes Scotts and LawnChem or rely on plentiful low cost labor.Steinberg takes the lawn mower industry to task over mower safety (in a chapter that can be hard to read, especially if you have kids).Towards the end, Steinberg even takes on the native plant supporters, before telling you about his father's "Enlightenment Lawn."
Hard-hitting, funny, insightful, and thought-provoking
This is a brilliant book from one of the greatest environmental historians writing today. Combining muck-raking expose, insightful cultural and social history, and a wonderful sense of humor, it is a real page-turner. It will change the way you look at your -- and your neighbor's -- front yard forever. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. General    5. History    6. Lawns    7. United States    8. Gardening / General    9. Miscellaneous Items    10. Sports & Outdoor Recreation   

Reviews (1)

A complete guide to planning and installing landscape irrigation for the home
Scotts Sprinklers & Watering Systems is a complete and thoroughly "user friendly" guide to planning and installing landscape irrigation for the home. Profusely illustrated, this "how to manual covers every aspect of planning out a sprinkling system to be as cost efficient to install as it would be to operate. Included in the planning process are detailed materials and equipment comparisons as this superbly organized "how to" manual takes the homeowner and do-it-yourselfer through the planning and design process from beginning to end. Then the reader is taken step-by-step through the installing process with clear instructions and illustrative photography which will eliminate any operational problems later one. Also included is the maintenance, care and upkeep of the installed watering system including occasional repairs and replacement of parts. Finally there is an invaluable section on using the installed water system, getting the right amount of water in the right place at the right time. If you are wanting to include a sprinkler or other kind of watering system as part of your landscaping, then give a close and careful reading to Scotts Sprinklers & Watering Systems -- it will save you not only time and money, but help you to avoid aggravation and error!
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Subjects:  1. Do-It-Yourself    2. Equipment and supplies    3. Equipment, Appliances & Supplies    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardens    6. Handbooks, manuals, etc    7. House & Home    8. Irrigation    9. Lawns    10. Outdoor & Recreational Areas - General    11. Sprinklers    12. Techniques    13. Gardening    14. Gardening / Lawns   

Reviews (4)

Informative, an easy & fascinating read
This book's fort� is 2 things:Its' explanation of the negative impact of millions of monoculture, traditional lawns - not on just the environment, but on the lifestyles and wallets of those who tend them.And then it offers sound advice (which does -NOT- start with "get rid of your existing grass") which can be easily followed by the average homeowner.The solutions proposed in this book are not radical, unattractive schemes, and most of the suggestions offered will result in a BETTER LOOKING YARD and savings of time and money.I read it from cover to cover twice.I hope to soon have my yard working for me, instead of me working for my yard. Inspirational and informative!
This is a wonderful resource about a very important environmental problem - the American lawn. The diagrams are especially clear and complete. It provides the history of the lawn, scientific background about the problems associated with the lawn, and also gives very practical advice about how to create a Freedom Lawn. I initially got this book (first edition) from the library, but decided this was one I wanted to have for my personal reference - especially since the second edition includes updated information.

scholarly - good for critical discussions
Most Americans do not realize how much their tastes in gardening have been affected by marketing on the part of lawn care companies. Nor do they seem to realize what environmental havoc they wreak through the lawn care practices preached on TV, and promulgated every time they watch the Masters Golf tournament on TV and think they should try to emulate those greens and fairways at home. They have been seduced into an unrealistic world that wastes their time (why mow?), money (why put fertilizer down 4 times a year?) and the environment (Do they really even have the weeds or bugs in their lawn that the 'weed and feed', and 'grub killers' are prescribed for? If not, why are they paying extra for the privilege of putting down toxins they don't even need?)Read more

Subjects:  1. Environmental Conservation & Protection - General    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. General    6. Landscape Horticulture    7. Lawn ecology    8. Lawns    9. Techniques    10. United States    11. Applied ecology    12. Gardening: plants    13. Pollution & threats to the environment    14. Science / General    15. USA   

Reviews (1)

Great Gardening Book
Being new at gardening, I found this book to be a wonderful reference book.It lays flat for easy reference and contains great illustrations and information for the beginner and the more experienced.Contains information on lawns, trees, flowers, and more. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. General    5. Landscape    6. Landscape gardening    7. Lawns    8. Techniques    9. Gardening / General    10. yard   

Reviews (1)

Nice for designs only
If you want to use their design plans you will have to order them from the book. I wish this point wouldv'e been mentioned but as I know a little about plants I like it's more about the design and layout that i was interested in the most. They have nice designs although after about 20 os so, they tend to look the same. They also feature plans for decks, play house/sets, and more. ... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Designs and plans    2. Garden Design    3. Garden ornaments and furniture    4. Gardening    5. Gardening / Horticulture    6. Gardening/Plants    7. Gardens    8. Landscape    9. Landscape architecture    10. Landscape gardening    11. Lawns    12. Garden design & planning   

Editorial Review

For busy gardeners, the prospect of continually dragging out hoses to water the garden can be a real disincentive to gardening. Often, the installation of an irrigation system appropriate to the needs of the garden can be a huge time and energy saver, and provide the appropriate and timely water that all plants need in differing amounts at different times. Starting with "The Basics of Home Irrigation," readers willlearn if an irrigation system is appropriate for their needs and which one (or combination of systems) works best. Next, "Getting Started" discusses which kinds of systems can be installed and how they work. The final section of the book is "Using and Repairing an Irrigation System."Read more

Reviews (7)

Good Starter Text
I've never done any irrigation work until recently. So I took a one day course from a pro and bought this book. Since a one day course can't cover all contingencies, I found that this book filled in a lot of gaps. My interest has mainly been in drip systems, not sprinklers. I now have a good working knowledge and sound like less of a fool when I order stuff from experts.
Does not tell how to install a sprinkler system.
Far too basic.If you want a glossy introduction to sprinklers, but have no plans to actually install a system, this is the book for you.
A Pretty Good Basic Book
Just like most fields, irrigation is evolving quickly as regards new materials, products and standards. Overall, I feel the Ortho book gives good solid information for a do - it - yourselfer. There was no "BAD" information per se, and it does demystify the home irrigation system. You can save a lot of money installing your own system. You can also cause a lot of damage doing it incorrectly. This book can give you a good idea whether you can tackle installing a system or not. Use this book along with careful planning, to know what questions to ask either a sprinkler supply distributor or to hire anirrigation contractor. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Equipment and supplies    2. Equipment, Appliances & Supplies    3. Gardening    4. Gardening/Plants    5. General    6. Handbooks, manuals, etc    7. Home Improvement / Construction    8. Landscape irrigation    9. Microirrigation    10. Outdoor & Recreational Areas - General    11. Sprinkler irrigation    12. Techniques    13. Gardening / Lawns    14. sprinklers; drip systems   

Reviews (7)

real yards, real houses, real people
So many gardening books focus on the high-end gardens of a few wealthy people.This book is practical, whimsical, and full of photographs and stories about real front-yard gardens.The owners have to contend with problems like streetlights, copycat neighbors, variances, etc., and many of them are redesigning and planting on a budget.This focus makes the book truly inspiring as well as useful.A great investment in getting rid of your boring lawn!

No More Lawns!
Have you ever wondered why front yards in North America consist mainly of lawn? Is there a law that demands this? The writer starts by briefly reviewing the history of our love/hate affair with the front lawn and pointing out how costly they are in labour, water and poisonous chemicals. No more Lawns!
Have you ever wondered why front yards in North America consist mainly of lawn? Is there a law that demands this? The writer starts by briefly reviewing the history of our love/hate affair with the front lawn and pointing out how costly they are in labour, water and poisonous chemicals.Read more

Subjects:  1. Garden Design    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Landscape    6. Landscape gardening    7. Landscape plants    8. Lawns    9. Gardening / Garden Design    10. Gardens - North America   

Reviews (10)

Has many helpful tips if not a systematic guide
This book is not a detailed lawn program for lawn care.It is more or less a collection of articles and tips on lawn care.I certainly found many useful tips and helpful advice as I read through the book.However, in reading it front to back you will find that Mr. Baker differs in some small details from one presentation to the next, but his overall conception of what goes into a good lawn remains quite consistent throughout. The greenest grass imaginable
I bought this book for my husband.He follows it faithfully, and you can see the results in our yard.We have the most beautiful, lush grass in the neighborhood - which seems to be a miracle, since our yard was an overgrownfield just two years ago.Jerry Baker provides simple ways to establishand maintain your lawn.I also appreciate the fact that we do not have togo to a gardening store to find the items recommended in his book.

It might be easier to be green than you think!
I'm sure my fellow gardeners have noticed how a nicely tended strip of grass sets off a garden bed perfectly! Designers say our eyes need a place to rest before we can see all the beauty in front of us. Although mostpeople make their New Years resolutions in December or January, I promisemyself every July I am going to do something about my grass.....somethingother than dig it all up. We've all seen Jerry Baker on television sprayingammonia and dish soap all over his yard...I find it very intriguing.Jerry's book on lawn care has a ton of info to offer..and true enough it isa little hard to follow sometimes, but most people will not do everythinganyway. For my poor lawn anything is an improvement, so if you aretask-oriented, schedule based and really really care about your lawn thisbook should be very helpful. There are a lot of chemicals included in theregimen so beware if you like me avoid them. But there is a lot here thatwill be used on my own little patch of soon to be healthier grass. If youwant more details, reviews of other gardening books or simple little gardenmusings. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening / Horticulture    2. Gardening/Plants    3. Grasses    4. Lawns    5. Gardening / Lawns   

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Landscape    5. Landscape gardening    6. Landscape plants    7. Lawns    8. New England    9. Regional - General    10. Regional - New England (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT)    11. Gardening / Regional / New England (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT)   

Reviews (10)

Nicely written and informative - but no pictures
This is my first lawn book - bought to help me with my first lawn. I found it well written with plenty of helpful advice and guidance. D. Mellor stars the book by teaching you how to listen to your lawn - and figure out what it needs. He goes into detail about the different kinds of grass available, and which grow best in what locales. He discusses different aspects of mowing, watering, reseeding and renovating, and weeding. He also gives instructions at what he is most famous for, mowing with patterns.
Educational - anecdotal - interesting
An intelligent book written by someone with lots of hands on experience in keeping major league baseball fields green.This experience he has transferred over to home lawns.I fully recommend this book to anyone who owns a lawn.Different from the other books, it stands alone with its insightfulness.

Not what I had hoped for
I wasn't very impressed with this book. I already have the Scotts lawn care book and loved that one. Since this book is by Fenway's greenskeeper, I expected even more detailed and in-depth advice. Instead this book covers the same basic topics in any lawn book with no extra helpful advice. In fact, in many cases the information was not as detailed as other books.
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Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Lawns    5. Gardening / Lawns   

Editorial Review

When science writer Hannah Holmes decided to spend a year studying the inhabitants of her 0.2-acre patch of ground in suburban Portland, Maine, she went about the task with an ecologist's enthusiasm and a scientist's compulsive eye for detail. The result is an entertaining and effortlessly compelling examination of nature's stubborn (and successful) struggle to exist in the face of daunting manmade challenges. Holmes's lawn, unfertilized and rarely mowed, turns out to be a surprisingly diverse ecosystem of bird, mammal, and insect life--a self-perpetuating, constantly evolving community of chipmunks, ladybugs, spiders, slugs, and crows. These creatures, and the complex relationships between them, are the raw material for Holmes's incisive reflections on natural history, urban ecology, and the ignominious story of the over-irrigated, pesticide-laced American lawn--rolling out, Holmes notes, at a rate of one million acres per year. What drives Holmes is not just concern for the natural environment but a ravenous curiosity about every aspect of the world around her, from the sex lives of dragonflies and squirrels, to the murderous tendencies of the English sparrows that have colonized her land, to the survival strategies of the mosquitoes, sow bugs, and slugs that inhabit her yard by the hundreds. Holmes is an environmentalist to the core, but she never sermonizes. With Read more

Reviews (1)

Extremely Interesting!
I must admit I picked up this book because of the cover. However it was a fun read. I am currently taking an ecology class and this book made such an interesting companion. Holmes writes about seemingly boring topics (at least to the type that don't really enjoy science) and make it interesting. My friends are probably slightly annoyed about hearing the fascinating details of pill bugs and crows. It's a fun read, though at times it can be a bit slow, pefect for nice summer days outside. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ecology    2. General    3. Household animals    4. Lawns    5. Life Sciences - Ecology    6. Maine    7. Nature    8. Nature/Ecology    9. Suburban animals    10. Urban ecology   

Reviews (4)

You don't have to be British
There was an earlier complaint about this book being written for Brits... well, it is. However, every single weed, pest, and yes, grass species/variety is listed by its common British name AND Latin name. The latin name is, of course, common to all countries. From there, you could google the Latin name, get an American website, and there you are. For example, I had no idea what Browntop grass was, but easily found that Agrostis tenuis is also called Colonial Bent. I hope this helps anyone who might be confused by some of the terminology.

Not In England
I do not live in England and I found this book to be very informative. The author presents the information in a manner which is very easy to understand even for a novice gardener. The pictures, illustrations and schedules for lawn maintenance are wonderful. This book will not tell you of every disease or lawn problem but the information contained within will certainly complement information drawn from other lawn books printed for lawns in the U.S.

Great for Britain
I found this book strong in many general areas, however, it was writtenfor British lawns, with only a chapter at the end dedicated to Americanlawns.Of course, there's a lot of overlap between the lawns of the twocountries, but many of the names of pests and weeds were not those familiarto us in America.Hence, I could identify the British name for aparticular weed in my lawn, but not know what we call it in order to go tomy local store and buy the proper herbicide. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Handbooks, manuals, etc    5. Landscape Horticulture    6. Lawns    7. BG-REFERENCE - BG-REFERENCE    8. Gardening / Lawns    9. Gardening: plants   

Subjects:  1. Bamboo    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Landscape    6. Ornamental Plants    7. Ornamental grasses    8. Plants - Grasses    9. Gardening / Lawns   

Reviews (3)

Excellent book
I also recognized Tom Ogren's name from his Allergy-Free Gardening book (the best book out there for people with allergies, if you ask me!), and was impressed with this book as well. Tom Ogren's wealth of knowledge would be beneficial to anyone, regardless of their pre-existing knowledge base.

A fun to read, totally useful book on lawns.
Since my lawns were getting pretty shabby looking I decided to finally do something about it. A friend suggested I get this book with the long title, What the Experts May NOT Tell You About: Growing the Perfect Lawn, by Tom Ogren. I recongnized his name since I had read his other excellent books on landscaping and allergies. This one is terrific! This is a great little book on lawn care.
It covers all the bases from grass varieties to fertilizers; from herbicides to pest control; from lawn mowers to sprinkling systems.It is easy to read and packed full of useful information."Growing the Perfect Lawn" is a very handy addition to your lawn and garden library. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Lawns    5. Gardening / Lawns   

Subjects:  1. Flowers - General    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Golf - General    6. Landscape    7. Lawns    8. Turf management    9. Turfgrasses    10. Gardening: plants