Reviews (3)

Making the Most of Shade
I love the shade and wanted to enhance my completely shaded back yard.Unfortunately a small tornado decided to damage my hundred-year old maple and now my yard is all sun.However, I am planning next summer's shade garden and this book is amazing!Has plenty of pictures, instructions, plant choices, etc.I can't wait for the new red maple to grow and make my yard shady once again.A great buy for those interested in planting in the shade.

Excellent book......
MAKING THE MOST OF SHADE, Larry Hodgson offers hundreds of ideas about working with the trees you now have or actually creating shade.My all-time favorite book on shade gardening has been George Shenk's classic as it was he who first pointed out the virtues and sins of various trees and bushes regarding their roots and foliage, but one of the criticisms I have of Shenk's book is the dearth of color illustrations.Hodgson's book more than makes up for this shortcoming, and he adds enough text about each possible entry to actually inform the user.I have been shade gardening for some years now, and am in the position to say...yes, that works for me, or no, that is not something I can do.
Made in the shade
This is a great book for anyone who has a lot of shade and don't know what to do with it or for those who are wanting shade! For those who already have shade, the author shows how you can have a fabulous garden using a variety of plants that provide dramatic leaf structure and some that even flower. Of course not all shade is the same and the various types of shade are explained. Some typical problems concerning shade gardening, such as dry shade or excessive moist shade, is discussed as well. Over 300 plants are profiled individually in the last half of the book. For gardeners who want more shade, a list of shade trees and shrubs is provided. Most helpful is a section of shade garden designs based on various themes (Victorian, Japanese, Native, etc.). ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening in the shade    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Landscape    6. Shade    7. Shade-tolerant plants    8. Techniques    9. Gardening / Shade    10. Gardening: plants   

Reviews (10)

Highly Recommended
If you're looking for a good basic book on pruning this is it. I purchased the Ortho book on Pruning and it was a terribe. I went to the library and rented several books on pruning and this was by far the best.

O.K
I was somewhat disappointed when this book came.I was expecting a detailed description on pruning individual types of trees.For example, I wanted a book that I could look crepe myrtle up in the index go to that page and have a detailed description on how and when to prune.Crepe Myrtle is not even in the index.I am going to buy the Southern Living Gardening book now.

Great for Beginners
I learned a lot about pruning from this book.The illustrations make it very easy to see exactly where you should cut.I wish the author would have included more plant varieties. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. General    5. Pruning    6. Shade    7. Techniques    8. GARDENING / Shade    9. Gardening / Techniques    10. Gardening: plants   

Reviews (8)

Worthwhile classic
The author spends the first part of the book discussing what to do to prepare a shady site for a garden and his informal tone and candid assessment of his own mistakes will encourage the most timid to venture into the darker regions of the garden. There are 8 pages of full color and scattered black and white photos throughout the book, so for those unfamiliar with the mentioned plants, another photo-heavy reference or two is a must.The black and white photos, however, are very useful to indicate foliage texture and form, which is often not noticeable in color pictures. Rather than using USDA hardiness zones, Schenk gives region codes to indicate the hardiness of plants. He includes trees, shrubs, groundcovers, vines, ferns, perennials, annuals, even edibles. The book was last updated in 1991 and the list of hybrids grows ever longer; still, this is a handy reference to consult before a nursery trip to see the latest and greatest. A helpful list of specialty nurseries, with notes on the specialty of each, is included, as are suggested plans for a shady retreat. A terrific book.

A Bible for Flower Gardeners Challenged by Shade
Thinking I needed full sun to grow any plants and flowers, I was prepared to cut down trees and clear land. But finding this book in the library stopped me in my tracks. I renewed it three times because I didn't want to give it back. Finally I came here for my own copy. There are incredibly beautiful flowers that grow in partial and full shade. I would've never known that without this excellent book.

An excellent gardening resource
The Complete Shade Gardener by landscape and garden designer George Schenk is an exceptional, well-written and organized guide to shade-gardening for atmosphere, beauty, and personal satisfaction. Black-and-white photographs with an inset selection of color plates illustrate the advice and commentary provided. Also included is a horticultural wealth of background information on a long list of recommended plants to cultivate, how-to instructions for their incorporation into a garden, and a great deal more. The Complete Shade Gardener is an excellent gardening resource and a welcome, practical, highly recommended addition to personal and professional gardening reference collections. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening in the shade    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Landscape    6. Shade    7. Shade-tolerant plants    8. Gardening / Reference    9. Gardening: plants   

Editorial Review

Shade can be a gardener's curse or delight, depending on how it's managed. Even a heavy grove of mature trees needn't have bare ground beneath; they can be surrounded with any number of shade-loving foliage, grasses, or grasslike ground covers, including galax, dichondra, ivy, vinca, wintergreen, maidenhair fern... the list of possibilities is a long one. Druse himself gardens in the shadow of a Brooklyn brownstone, so his advice is by no means limited to gardeners with woodland acreage. This book also successfully punctures the myth that a shady flower garden must be colored in greens and subtle pastels: a parade of brilliant camellias, columbines, clematis, and primula proves that a shade gardener's crayon box is as varied as any, and the well-organized Druse sorts the herbaceous perennials by color in an addendum at the back of the book. ... Read more

Reviews (17)

Beautiful Pictures, mind-numbing text
If you like pretty pictures, then this book is for you. I bought it in conjunction with "The Complete Shade Gardener", which is black and white, to be a sort of color companion. The section of the book titled Plants and Plantings goes through the author's favorite plants for shade (which very well may be all of them) and gives a text description that does very little to give you any real understanding of the plant-not what it looks like, or how to grow it. Perhaps worst of all, the pictures in this section don't seem to correspond to the text of what the author is describing at all, so you are forced to thumb ahead or behind to see a picture of the plant the author is talking about at the time. This makes it very hard to read as you are always thumbing through the pages to find a picture of the flower the author is talking about.
Beautiful Shade Garden book
We have a shady, sloped yard in Texas which is highly unusual for this part of Texas.This means we usually can't grow many of the plants that most people in our community do.So, my husband and I went to the bookstore and found this book.There were others on shade gardening, but this had the best photography.The publisher obviously used high-quality printing techniques on this book to get the vivid color.So, this makes just a beautiful book to look at.I used to feel a little disappointed that our yard was so shaded (except that it's cooler in the hot Texas sun than others!), but when I saw this book I realized we could make it into quite a gem.
A must have book for every gardener
Ken Druse delivers a great perspective on shade gardening, providing an understanding of different types of shade and the plants that are successful.The wonderful photography makes this book a joy to peek into successful gardens and plant combinations.The text is for moderately experienced gardeners, but flows well and is well organized.
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Subjects:  1. Gardening / Horticulture    2. Gardening in the shade    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Horticulture (Specific Aspects)    5. Natural gardens    6. Shade    7. Woodland gardening    8. Garden design & planning    9. Gardening / Shade   

Reviews (1)

Reveals creative uses of shade in gardens to grow carpets of wild woodland flowers and other shade-loving plants
Award-winning gardening expert Keith Wiley presents Shade: Planting Solutions For Shady Gardens, a gorgeous "how-to" book that reveals creative uses of shade in gardens to grow carpets of wild woodland flowers and other shade-loving plants. Chapters cover practical issues affecting the preparation of and planting for a shade garden, hard landscaping, incorporating vertical elements, and a catalog of plant life suited to shady gardens. Stunning full-color photography illustrates the uses to which shade can be put, and the beauty of the flowers that thrive in shade. In addition to being a solid instructional, Shade: Planting Solutions For Shady Gardens is truly captivating simply to page through.
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Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Home Gardening    5. Landscape    6. Shade    7. Gardening / Shade   

Reviews (6)

Gardening
Provides lots of interesting gardening information if you are planting only trees and shrubs.Book does not detail anything for vegetable gardeners.Title should be changed to include the word "Forestry" rather than the broad term 'gardening".

Very helpful handbook
This is a great reference for those gardening in shade.It is organized in a logical format and can be easily used.The photos are nice and the information helpful as plants are considered for a shade garden.While it may not be adequate for those gardening in the deep south, it is very well suited to zones 5,6, and 7.

A must have
This wonderful little book (thick, but only 4.27" wide) is an absolute necessity for anyone who wishes to do some gardening in a shady area. In fact, this book is really three books rolled into one. The first section looks at shade and shade gardening, it is straightforward and highly informative. The second section is entitled The Color Plates, and gives a long list of shade-loving plants, including a very nice color picture, and a highly informative description. The third section goes hand-in-hand with the second, and gives more in-depth information.Read more

Subjects:  1. Floriculture    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening in the shade    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Home Gardening    6. Shade    7. Shade-tolerant plants    8. Gardening / Shade    9. Shrubs & trees   

Reviews (7)

I ThankToos God,for Geroge's book!!!
In this volume Schmid has unselfishly shared his most intimate feeling and knowledge about the art of gardening.He has put a life time of intense gardening knowledge between the covers of this wonderful book. Every page is filled with gardening insights,understanding and details. Yes I paid for it, but it is so dam well written that, I can only consider as to have been some kind of a gift.It is much more then encyclopedia or a how to book, sure he gives a lot of how tos, but now you can know, why tos as well.A profession writer could easily make five or even ten books out of this one, just by adding some random garden minutia, but Geroge is not in to making a fast book(buck) he is into gardening. Now I can be an artful gardener toos :)

TRULY IS an ENCYCLOPEDIA!
From the man who is the original expert on the subject, a fantastic resource for all who garden in the shade.Very user friendly with seven thousand species and cultivars, useful to the novice as well as the expert.Thankfully the shade craze caught on perhaps with the publication of Schmid's first book, "The Genus Hosta."The book starts with practical tips on the "bones of the garden" trees and soil and covers briefly many other subjects before getting into the plants that are appropriate for shade.I own many books on shade gardening, including books devoted exclusively to the subjects of ferns, ivies, mosses, etc. I find that this is the book that I keep right there with my other two favorites, Dirr's on trees and of course "The Genus Hosta".

A wealth of information
Although I've been a shade gardener for many years, this book contains many shade perennials that I had never heard of.I liked that almost all the pictures appear to be of mature specimens, so you can see what the plant will look like.(My pet peeve is when gardening books show baby plants!What good is that?)There are sometimes many pictures of one plant:one picture will show a close-up of the flower, one picture will be a distance picture.The descriptions tell growing information, zone, size, and possible gardening problems.I was pleased with this book and am glad that I purchased it.I have been barely able to put it down, even though I have read several other shade gardening books.Thank you, Mr. Schmid, for a fantastic, wonderful resource. I enthusiastically recommend this book to any shade gardener. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Encyclopedias    2. Flowers - Perennials    3. Gardening    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardening in the shade    6. Gardening/Plants    7. Ornamental Plants    8. Perennials    9. Reference    10. Shade    11. Shade-tolerant plants    12. Shrubs    13. Gardening / Shade    14. Gardening: plants   

Editorial Review

Ferns are truly ancient plants, having existed on Earth for millions ofyears. With approximately 12,000 species of ferns, their array is staggering-- from the red and gold Cinnamon Fern to the shimmery Silver Tree Fern to thelushly green Oriental Chain Fern. Upon discovering the sheer number of fernspecies, a person interested in growing ferns might be just a bit overwhelmed.While many just pick up a fern at their local nursery, and hope their newhousehold addition makes it through the night, others feel compelled to delvemore deeply into the secret life of ferns. For the latter types, Read more

Reviews (1)

Fern Grower's Manual - More than you'll ever need to know!
This book is fantastic for the amateur or professional fern grower.It is very informative, supplying you with alot of information about how to grow them, how to take care of them, and how to recognize them.If you are looking for one book that can tell you everything and more about ferns and not need to look through any other books, than this book is for you. Read more

Subjects:  1. Ferns, Ornamental    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Ornamental Plants    6. Shade    7. Techniques    8. Gardening / Flowers / Perennials    9. Gardening: plants    10. Specialized gardening methods   

Reviews (1)

Everything I have ever wanted to know about Shade Gardening!
Open the door to possibilities, garden design, and learning the secrets to a beautiful shade garden in your own back yard. Learn about soil classification, drainage, climates, soil testing for ph, and developing good soil. Many improvements to your garden and solutions to your garden problems can be found in this book. How to care for your shade gardens, from fertilizing and learning about other nutrients needs. Is my garden in Light shade to full shade, and what makes the difference anyway? How do I measure the light? The most important part the plant selections are wonderful. You get so much information and so easy to find. This book is a must for any shade gardener. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening in the shade    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Reference    6. Shade    7. Gardening / Shade   

Reviews (6)

Info Too Sparse
I was disappointed in the too-brief description of the plants.Not enough info.Perhaps typically Taylor's but I expected more.

Great book for shade gardeners
I bought this book to help a friend who built her dream house on a wooded lot find plants and flowers that would bloom and grow.We were thrilled to find that all the plants listed would grow in our climate area (Pennsylvania).The book provides a good selection of plants without overwhelming a novice with too many choices and hard-to-find or tricky plants.We were very pleased to be able to find plants that would fit some of her problem areas (under trees, wet spots, etc.) and fit her requirements of providing her with real bloom without having to plant annuals every year.

Taylor's 50 Best Perennials for Shade:Essy Plants for More Beautiful Gardens (Taylor's 50 Best
Excellent book for the price! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Floriculture    2. Flowers - Perennials    3. Gardening    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardening in the shade    6. Gardening/Plants    7. Perennials    8. Shade    9. Shade-tolerant plants    10. Gardening / Shade    11. Gardening: plants   

Reviews (6)

Hosta's knowing your
Wow what a book, lots of information on every hosta! Very current names of what is available. Describes growth habit, size of mound, size, shape, color of each adult leaf, size and color of each flower. And lots more. Includes hosta care, planting, dividing, disease and prevention. This will be a valuable guide for years to come. If you are planing on planting hosta's get this encyclopedia first and make the righ choice for your planting site!

The Color Encyclopedia of Hostas
This is a great book for Hosta lovers. I like the way it is organized by color. It also has great info on their growth habit (ie, whether they get to their ultimate size quickly or slowly) and how to site the yellows for maximum color by telling how they form the yellow pigmentation, which is how much chlorophyll they inhibit.I also like how they tell you what hostas are similar. As any hosta afficionado knows,there are many hostas that are similar, so if you can't get the one you want you can try to find a similar one. The pictures are good, but as with any hosta photos it is hard to tell size from a photo alone, so you will have to read the narrative. If there is one hosta book you need, I think this is the best.

The Color Encyclopedia of Hostas
Outstanding book with great explanations.I have a number of varieties of Hostas and the book is extremely helpful on identification and information ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Flowers - Perennials    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Hosta    6. Reference    7. Shade    8. Gardening / Shade    9. Gardening: plants   

Subjects:  1. Garden Design    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Shade    6. BG-JUVENILE PROP - BG-JUVY PRESCHOOL    7. Gardening / Garden Design    8. Gardens (descriptions, history etc)    9. Specialized gardening methods   

Reviews (2)

Shade gardens don't have to be boring!
As a professional gardener, I've found Schmid's Shade Perennials the perfect quick reference and idea book for tiny city yards.As most residents of large cities and boroughs can tell you, lighting can be a real difficulty.It's much better to think in terms of contrasts and textures and Shade Perennials provides many choices for those wondering just how to rennovate their gloomy yard.My two complaints: I felt that the pictures were only so-so and there aren't picture examples of all the plants listed.In fact, there are only 2-3 small photos per page, yet generally about 5-6 listings for species.In that regard, it could be more comprehensive.I've found it slightly better than Taylor's Guide to Shade Gardening, simply because it has more photos and when it comes to garden design, I'm reliant on visual stimulus.All-in-all, a useful guide and to help get you out of the hosta rut.

More than one thousand readily available shade perennials
In Timber Press Pocket Guide To Shade Perennials, botanist, horticulturalist, landscape architect, and gardener W. George Schmid draws upon his immense expertise and experience to provide a thoroughly "user friendly", profusely illustrated guide to more than one thousand readily available shade perennials along with their individual growing conditions including definitions of shade intensities, basic information on cultivation, maintenance of shade perennials, dealing with their pests and diseases, as well invaluable lists of plants for specific landscape uses. The handy size of Timber Press Pocket Guide To Shade Perennials makes it the ideal take-along reference guide for non-specialist general readers wanting to "do it yourself" with respect to landscaping and gardening their properties, while at the same time, Timber Press Pocket Guide To Shade Perennials is an ideal reference for personal, academic, community, and professional library horticultural and gardening reference collections. If you want to have a shade garden that will maximize plant diversity and esthetics, then you need George Schmid's Timber Press Pocket Guide To Shade Perennials!
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Subjects:  1. Flowers - Perennials    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Perennials    6. Shade    7. Shade-tolerant plants    8. Gardening / Shade   

Subjects:  1. Garden Design    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Shade    6. Techniques    7. Garden design & planning   

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

Reviews (5)

How to grow Hosta's
This is an excelent book for learning about hosta's and how to care for them. This has been my reference book for years, great book for the new hosta enthusiast or just a great guide to introduce Hosta's into your garden. A wealth of valuable information! Master gardener B. Chauvin

Not for the more advanced
The coverage text was broad based and general.Didn't devel into the more complicated issues I was looking for go.But it would be great for a beginner hosta fan.

Useless
A very useless book if you are looking for what ails Hosta's and what to do about these problems. If you are having any problems, don't waste your money on this book as I have. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Hosta    5. Ornamental Plants    6. Shade    7. Gardening / Reference    8. Gardening: plants    9. Horticulture   

Reviews (4)

So Many Hostas So Little Planet
Buy this for the plant list.It is easy to spend more than the book price on a modest bunch of Hostas at some garden center, or a lot more, if you are in a big hurry.Grenfell tells us more than those pretty tags do, andeven says some of the things they are likely to neglect.I would wish thatshe had been more explicit about the range of what one is likely to get inthe way of plant sizes as one tries to compare garden center, nursery, andcatalog prices and outcomes. Hosta "August Moon," p. 99, forexample, is a wonderful plant here, pretty much as described, but thelate-season potful I got at a garden center in the late 1980's took morethan five years to get there; "Large," from what had looked,"Miniature" to "Small" when I bought it.The authormay wish to pretend that the people she wishes to address do not haunt theclose-out tables at regional garden centers and discount retailers orcatalog web sites, but those are places where good information can help youfind the good stuff.Likewise for dividing the mature clumps of unlabeledHostas in the garden of the old house my sister bought in 1998. (Yes! Thosepurple shoots are Hosta "Patriot," p. 130.)Grenfellgrows her Hostas in England, where USDA Zone 6 is thought to be rugged andmy Zone 5 is thought to be a howling Russian or alpine wilderness, so shemisses out on the strengths that Dr. Rieth was able to deploy soeffectively in the cold of Upper Penninsula Michigan, but the advice shegives on growing perfectly awesome Hostas,in Chapter Five, is worth payingattention to. This book covered all aspects of growing hosta.
I read every book on hostas that I could find.When I read Grenfell's book I knew it was one I needed to own, and I purchased it.It covered ever aspect of growing hostas.Elemaniting a lot of bad hearsay advise. The information is consice and easy to read.The technical information isall there as well as information for novice gardners. Excellent subject coverage without being too technical.
Just the book I was looking for. After collecting and growing hostas for some years now, Diana Genfell's book zeroed in on the questions I still had. It's a perfect companion to Paul Aden's hosta book, but if I had toown just one--this book would be it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Flowers - Perennials    2. Foliage Plants    3. Gardening    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardening/Plants    6. Hosta    7. Ornamental Plants    8. Shade    9. Varieties    10. Gardening: plants    11. Reference works   

Reviews (1)

A Great Guide
This book is a must have book for any botanic garden library. The amount of information is unbelievable and very easy to follow. There are sections on growing, propagating, hardiness and more. Everything you need to know to grow these plants.
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Subjects:  1. Flowering Plants (Angiospermae)    2. Flowers    3. Flowers - General    4. Handbooks & Manuals    5. Life Sciences - Botany    6. Science    7. Science/Mathematics    8. Shade    9. Gardening / Shade   

Reviews (1)

ideal for gardeners in zones 5 to 8
I found this book at my local library and now plan to purchase it! I'm currently landscaping my second home that's 90% covered in shade, and need a reference that tells me which plants will work *for me*. Since her book covers shade and zones 5-8, this book is the "sweet spot" for my needs, and with hundreds of plants I'm able to choose those that best suit me without eliminating half the book off-hand because they won't grow in my zone (which happens with too many other books I've looked at). This book doesn't have many pictures--just line drawings and a small color section in the middle--so it's not a good inspiration book, but when you get down to the details of selecting individual plants for a landscape plan, it's a lifesend.
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Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening in the shade    4. Gardening/Plants    5. General    6. Low maintenance gardening    7. Shade    8. Shade-tolerant plants    9. Horticulture   

Reviews (2)

Choices, choices, choices
I LOVE this book!So many designs to choose from.Great buy, gorgeous pictures.

A reward book for gardeners
Reward yourself for gardening. Most of the gardeners I know love to get their hands in the dirt and work at whatever it takes to make their garden beautiful. But there comes a time to sit back, either alone or with friends and family, and just enjoy what you have created. This book gives you plans for twenty shady retreats where you can sit back, relax and just enjoy.Read more

Subjects:  1. Design    2. Garden Design    3. Gardening    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardening in the shade    6. Gardening/Plants    7. Gardens    8. Landscape    9. Shade    10. Garden design & planning    11. Gardening / Shade    12. Specialized gardening methods