Product Description

The sheer number of choices among Hydrangea species, hybrids, and cultivated varieties can be overwhelming even for the most advanced gardeners. How to choose from among the hundreds of mopheads, climbers, lacecaps, and oakleafs, to name just a few? And how to care for hydrangeas in American gardens, when nearly all the books offering advice about them come from England and Europe? Respected plantsman Michael A. Dirr comes to the rescue in this refreshingly forthright and practical guide to these distinctive shrubs and climbers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #50004 in Books
• Published on: 2004-06-01
• Format: Illustrated
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 240 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Hydrangea is a broad and varied genus, one "difficult to compress under a small umbrella." University of Georgia horticulture professor Dirr casts a wide net to provide comprehensive information about these versatile plants. That his passion for hydrangeas "knows no bounds" is clear from this enthusiastic combination of rigorous science, concise description and seasoned advice. The first chapter, "Characteristics, Taxonomy and Nomenclature," is the most academically oriented but brief and readable enough for the home gardener. Ten well-organized and liberally illustrated chapters follow, each devoted to a single species and its subspecies, ranging from the familiar and hugely popular H.macrophylla and H. paniculata, to relative rarities boasting flower buds that remind Dirr of "purple-brown cauliflowers" and are sometimes "quite large and Martian." Chapters on care and culture, propagation, pests and diseases, potpourri, and breeding offer a wealth of practical insights equally valuable to the casual green thumb and the professional horticulturist, in every region of the country. Readers will learn the often-misunderstood chemistry behind pink/blue color shifts, how to dry and dye flower heads and where to register new cultivars. A first-rate listing of resources and nursery sources and 160 luscious color photos complete this definitive and irresistible tribute to one of America's favorite shrubs.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Mopheads and lacecaps are among the alluring types of hydrangeas that gardeners are enticed to purchase and plant, but not all hydrangeas thrive in the various U.S. climate zones. Dirr directs his authoritative voice and vast knowledge to helping the gardener understand the botany of hydrangea species, as well as the horticultural pluses and minuses of countless cultivated varieties. A bounty of color photographs documents mature climbers, shrubs with lavish foliage, and detailed views of gorgeous inflorescences, including snowballs, while the text covers a fascinating panoply of worthy specimens that embraces the rare and the commonplace. Informative yet entertaining, Dirr's descriptions warn of anemic green leaves and lack of cold hardiness or draw appreciative nods with superb frost tolerance and the frizzy effect of rose to mauve inflorescences with little white eyes. Chapters also provide information on lesser known hydrangeas, care and culture, propagation and pests, and future breeding, as Dirr's reigning expertise in the realm of trees and shrubs comes through once again. Alice Joyce
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
"Dirr and his overstated opinions are always a pleasure to read, and this book does not deviate far from those expectations." Dan Hinkley, Pacific Horticulture, Spring 2005 (Pacific Horticulture )

"Hydrangeas for American Gardens totally seduced me. It is attractive enough to pick up, deep enough to take home, enthralling enough to take to bed, and by the morning light I wanted it to be mine forever." R. William Thomas, American Gardener, September/October 2004 (American Gardener )

"The book is filled with information and color images of hydrangeas taken by this accomplished plant photographer, augumented by beautiful botanical illustrations crafted by Dirr's wife, Bonnie. This book is a must for Dirr fans, and for those not yet exposed to his writing and photography, now is the time." Richard Churchill, People Places Plants, Summer 2005 (People Places Plants )

"Hydrangeas for American Gardens totally seduced me. It is attractive enough to pick up, deep enough to take home, enthralling enough to take to bed, and by the morning light I wanted it to be mine forever."
—R. William Thomas, American Gardener, September/October 2004 (American Gardener )

"Dirr and his overstated opinions are always a pleasure to read, and this book does not deviate far from those expectations."
—Dan Hinkley, Pacific Horticulture, Spring 2005 (Pacific Horticulture )

"The book is filled with information and color images of hydrangeas taken by this accomplished plant photographer, augumented by beautiful botanical illustrations crafted by Dirr's wife, Bonnie. This book is a must for Dirr fans, and for those not yet exposed to his writing and photography, now is the time."
—Richard Churchill, People Places Plants, Summer 2005 (People Places Plants )

Customer Reviews

Needs reformatting
While this CD-Rom is pretty good as far as content and info, the format really needs an overhaul. The window overall is too small. Something like 6x6, which makes for smaller images. And there is no way to enlarge any of the images. Also, navigation needs to be more intuitive. It's not very user friendly to go back and forth between fields for information. Praise is given for content, but one would be better off with a book version.

Pretty
This was not what I wanted. These are great pictures but I want to learn more about my hydrangeas not your's or anyone else's. My bad! Very pretty pictures.

Best of Best
I think it's the best book I ever saw on the subject. It will be useful to amateurs and specialists. It is critical, complete, and honest. It is exact, practical, and technical, but with personal notes here and there that I find touching, amusing, and endearing. Did you know that Hydrangea anomala subsp petiolaris'flowers stare at the passerby? Now you know. If you love Hydrangeas do buy this book.