Product Description

This comprehensive pictorial encyclopedia discusses 650 species in 54 genera, with many subspecies, varieties, and hybrids also described. Intended to be as useful for the gardener as the traveler, each entry concludes with a discussion of propagation and cultivation information, as well as warnings about pertinent pests and diseases.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #671572 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-01
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 344 pages

Review
"For anyone with an interest in plants of Western North America, this book is a must have." -- Alan Grainger, The Alpine Garden, September 2002

"A fine volume for making the most of mountain flora."—Horticulture, June 2004 (Horticulture )

"A useful volume."—C. T. Mason Jr., Choice, March 2003 (C. T. Mason Jr. Choice )

"Even those who live in humid climates can profit from his tips on cultivation."—Lori D. Kranz, Bloomsbury Review, July 2003 (Lori D. Kranz Bloomsbury Review )

A fine volume for making the most of mountain flora.Horticulture, June 2004 (Horticulture )

A useful volume.C. T. Mason Jr., Choice, March 2003 (Choice )

Even those who live in humid climates can profit from his tips on cultivation.Lori D. Kranz, Bloomsbury Review, July 2003 (Bloomsbury Review )

About the Author
Graham Nicholls is a respected British nurseryman and a frequent lecturer for groups of the Alpine Garden Society (AGS) in Great Britain and the North American Rock Garden Society (NARGS) in the United States and Canada. Nicholls’s plants have won several gold medals at AGS shows, as well as the prestigious Farrer Medal. He resides in England in Timsbury, a village just outside Bath.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
What is an alpine plant? In the strictest botanical sense it is any plant that grows above the tree line in subalpine and alpine zones in mountainous regions. Owing to the harsh conditions that exist in arctic areas like Alaska, not all alpinelike, treeless habitats are mountainous. Furthermore, a large number of plants that grow below the tree line are just as attractive and as suitable for growing in an alpine or rock garden as the true alpines; such plants may come from habitats ranging from woodland to desert. Even though some can be fairly tall it is generally accepted that to be classed as an alpine plant in the horticultural sense they have to be small, no taller than 30-40 cm (12-15 3/4 in.) high. Although many plants I describe in this book originate in true alpine areas, others are alpines only in the horticultural sense. Those in the horticultural category can be just as difficult to cultivate successfully as the true alpine plant because of the conditions!

(such as high light levels and the type of rock in the soil) that exist in their natural habitat. Most plants I discuss in this book do grow at least a few thousand feet above sea level, but as I point out in the Introduction, a wide range of factors govern the growth of alpine plants.

I have been growing alpines from all parts of the world for over 40 years, but my first trip to the western United States in 1982 sold me on western alpines. Cultivating these wonderful plants has become part of my life ever since. I exhibit them at Alpine Garden Society shows, which means they have to be cultivated to a high standard. In attempting to meet these standards I have learned propagation and growing techniques not available in many books. In addition, since I am a nursery, specializing in North American alpines, I have been able to study and grow many more genera than I otherwise would have.

Customer Reviews

Alpine plants in North America
It is an excellent overview of the most commonly used plants from Rocky Mountains, usuable for gardening. The huge variety of herbs in the Rocky Mountains includes a great number of endemic plants, and makes this book very valuable. About 650 species from 54 different genera are described and discussed, going out from their natural environment.