Product Description

Americans love flowers. We grow them with a passion and crave helpful advice on nurturing them in our gardens. A great, friendly, indispensable book, THE FLOWER GARDENER'S BIBLE is written with wit and authority by Lewis and Nancy Hill, who share both their joy in growing flowers and more than 75 years of combined experience.

This new primer is both painstakingly thorough and stunningly photographed. It covers every facet of growing perennials, annuals, bulbs, wildflowers, small trees, vines, and shrubs for season-long color and beauty. It is organized in three sections, and the first focuses on the basics - choosing the right varieties for your zone and type of garden, and planning and planting for maximum impact. The second section presents plans for 25 distinctively themed gardens. And finally, a photographic encyclopedia of more than 400 species includes detailed descriptions of each plant - garden uses, susceptibility to pests and diseases, propagation methods, and more. THE FLOWER GARDENER'S BIBLE is illustrated throughout with more than 500 full-color photographs that are joyously informal, and charming in their simplicity. Dozens of charts group plants by bloom time, height, color, affinity to shade, specific soil and sun needs, appeal to birds and butterflies, and more. THE FLOWER GARDENER'S BIBLE takes every reader - at any level of interest and expertise - and offers the one thing guaranteed to increase his or her pleasure in flower gardening - knowledge.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #123431 in Books
• Published on: 2003-02-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
The Hills recount a visit to a retired farm couple's garden where "flowers were planted in neat cultivated rows, just like their vegetables." Comprehensive formulas for vegetable gardening work, as did the Hills' The Vegetable Gardener's Bible (which has 135,000 in print), but the flower garden is perhaps too broad a subject for similar treatment. The Hills are skilled instructors in basic techniques-a strength they use well in Part I. Easy-to-read text, a welcoming magazine-like layout and step-by-step photographic guides provide a solid foundation in flower garden fundamentals. Part II, "A Gallery of Gardens," is less helpful, with watercolors accompanying descriptions and plant lists for everything from a garden path to a rose garden. By trying to serve all needs and tastes, this section sometimes overloads rather than whets the imagination. In Part III, the Hills present "species-by-species information" on 261 perennials, annuals, bulbs, wildflowers, shrubs, vines and grasses. While overall the result is sometimes uneven, the handsome color photographs will invite browsing and offer gardeners a good, homey foundation.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Although there are entire books devoted to any one of the many subjects covered in the Hills' "bible," comprehensive resources that provide a thorough overview of essential gardening topics are always welcome. Using their practical experiences as hands-on amateur gardeners, the Hills share techniques they find most useful, tips they feel most helpful, and treasured plants they think most reliable for successful flower gardens. Whether sowing seeds in spring or protecting tender roses for winter, fundamental aspects of garden planning, planting, culture, and care are covered, thus making them accessible, especially to those newly bitten by the gardening bug. After showcasing nearly two dozen specialty gardens, from fragrance to foundation, shade to seaside, herbs to hummingbirds, the Hills provide an alphabetical directory of more than 260 flowering shrubs, vines, bulbs, annuals, and perennials that lists critical information such as bloom time, size, site, and pests in a concise at-a-glance format. Helpful appendixes of hardiness and heat zones, plant societies, and a glossary complete this effective and informative compilation. Carol Haggas
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“This is the complete guide to flower gardening as taught by a couple who learned through first-hand experience, trial and error and a little help from friends and advisers.” — The Washington Post

“[Lewis and Nancy Hill] … have again created a work that is fun to read, easy to understand, and so exhaustive it seems a veritable mini-encyclopedia.” — The American Gardener

“… loaded with advice on improving soil, fighting pests and disease, plans for theme gardens, a schedule of blossoming times, and an expansive description of more than 400 flowering plants. Lewis and Nancy Hill have compiled an excellent guide.” — Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Lewis and Nancy Hill’s practical information on designing your flower garden is sure to make all your plants happy.” — Garden Gate

“It’s an all-in-one manual that covers everything needed for achieving success with plants.” — Country Decorating Ideas

“Using their practical experiences as hands-on amateur gardeners, the Hills share techniques they find most useful, tips they feel most helpful, and treasured plants they think most reliable for successful flower gardens.” – Booklist

“...this concise overview presents a range of  possibilities for novices.” – Library Journal

Customer Reviews

Fantastic book
I would highly recommend this book for the beginner through advanced. Alot of information to reference back to.

The only thing I found in Rodales Perennials for Every Purpose that I like better- is the book is setup "Plants for every season". It has the contents list in order of blooming time. ie.. Early Spring, late spring early summer, etc

Gardeners Bible- has alot of great pics, deals alot with bulbs, cuttings, transplanting. saving seeds, planting- more so than Rodales Perennials.

Conclusion: It would be tough to decide which one I like better, I think I will have to keep them both.

Excellent!
This book was an excellent read. It is loaded with tons of information, starting out with teaching you how to identify what type of garden you have, how to get the best results out of it, and then moving on to things like planning/designing, and caring for your garden. There are also several topics that cover transplanting and starting from seeds, along with other much needed information for the gardener. The final chapter is a section that will take you through many different flowers, teaching you information about them, and how to care for them.

On a final note, I want to add that this book was very easy to comprehend, and the authors took me through the book as if they were standing in the garden with me. They share the type of wisdom and knowledge that you can only gain from very experienced gardeners who have the deepest of passions for this craft of life.

Clear, sensible info; gorgeous pics
I started with the Storey Books "Vegetable Gardener's Bible" and moved to this one. Really great instruction on every aspect of gardening, with excellent illustrations. It's very helpful to have lists of shade-loving plants, water-loving plants, scented plants, plants that are good in containers, etc. And there's an excellent guide showing bloom time, as well as pH charts, guides on bulb depth, compost, nutrients, etc. Really an all-around winner. Storey books have not disappointed me yet.