Re: Iris Books?

Tim writes

:	I found an online bookstore at http://www.amazon.com  which has a
:search engine for locating books by subject. I found 11 books on Iris
:(plant). Two of which have not been published as yet.

Yes, Amazon is fantastic. I've ordered from them several times, and found
things I'm sure I would never have discovered otherwise.

:	Anyone have any recommendations on an easy to understand book for
:beginners?

Here are the iris books listed by Amazon, with my commentary, FWIW:


* The Genus Iris; William Rickatson, Dykes; Paperback; $31.50

This is a botanical classic, mostly Latin diagnoses of species for
botanists to use; now quite dated. Not for beginners. However, iris
enthusiasts still enjoy this book a lot. It has some wonderful color
illustrations, and the occasional tidbit you can't find elsewhere. (I
recently bought seeds of "Iris hispanica" from Karmic's (sp?). In all my
library, Dykes's book was the only place I found this name--it's a synonym
of Iris xiphium.)

* Iris; Brian Mathew; Hardcover; $36.00

This is the modern botanical reference for the genus. Mathew describes the
appearance, habitat, and relationships of the various iris species. Good
for a species enthusiast or botanically inclined gardener, but not for
beginners. Some nice photos of species not common in cultivation. I basic
reference.

* Iris (Gardener's Handbook, Vol 2) Vol 2; Fritz Kohlein; Hardcover; $35.96

A substantial book for general audiences. It is somewhat more
gardening-oriented than _The World of Irises_, which makes it a bit more
accessible for beginners. It does have some problems, though: misleading
explanations and translation/editing blunders. There was some discussion
about this book early in the history of Iris-L. You might check the
archives for some time around March or April last year. Lots of nice
photos. I'd recommend this as an interesting supplement to _The World of
Irises, but not as a replacement for it.

* Iris of China : Chinese Iris in the Wild and in the Garden : The Iris of
China; Zhao Yu-Tang, et al; Hardcover; $25.16

I don't have this one yet, although I intend to get it. Once again, the
orientation is rather technical and botanical...a description of Chinese
species in their habitat. Not for beginners.

* Irises : A Practical Gardening Guide; Karen Glasgow, et al; Paperback; $17.96

I just got this one and am currently reading it. This may be the best
beginner's book currently available. It is directed at gardeners who are in
the process of learning how to grow and appreciate different kinds of
irises. There are lots of photos, and a well-balanced treatment of all the
different types of irises, not just bearded, and all the different ways
they can be used in the garden. This book is a little "lightweight" for
someone who is already an iris enthusiast, and there are some errors,
particularly in the photo captions. But all in all, I think it makes a good
successor to Molly Price's book, which is now very out of date.

* Irises : A Romantic History With a Guide to Cultivation; Susan Berry;
Hardcover; $11.65

This is a small book with a lot of nice illustration. It's mostly a
collection of antique iris illustrations and iris references from poetry
and literature, mingled with some gardening information and photos of
different kinds of irises. The gardening info is good as far as it goes,
but really too scant to serve as a good beginner's book for growing irises.
This book would make a nice gift for someone who collects all sorts of iris
things, but it's more of a delightful curiosity than a useful reference.

* The Gardener's Guide to Growing Irises; Geoff Stebbings; Hardcover (Not
Yet Published)

We're waiting.... :)

* Growing Irises; G. E. Cassidy, S. Linnegar; Hardcover; $15.50 (Special Order)

I ordered this from them, but they reported it is no longer available.

* A Guide to Species Irises : Their Identification and Cultivation; Species
Group of the British Iris Society; Hardcover; $49.95 (Not Yet Published --
On Order)

This promises to be a wonderful resource for species enthusiasts and iris
nuts generally. There was a pre-publication discount offer printed in the
last issue of SIGNA, to reserve the book at a reduced price. I'm not sure
if the offer still stands.

* Iris; Brian Mathew; Hardcover; $32.95 (Special Order)

Unless I'm mistaken, this is the same book listed above. Why one is $3 less
is a mystery.

* The Iris Book.; Molly. Price; Paperback; $8.80 (Special Order)

This is a nice book for beginners, a survey of all the different kinds of
irises and their garden uses and culture. It's about 30 years old, I think,
so a lot of the talk about specific cultivars is nearly useless today.
Also, it dates from before the time when books with lots of beautiful color
photos could be inexpensively produced, so the illustration is sparse and
mostly black-and-white. At less than $10, though, it might be a worthwhile
purchase for a beginner.

--Finally, of course, is the book NOT listed by Amazon, _The World of
Irises_, available from AIS and a few other distributors. The standard
indispensible iris reference. Its organization makes it a little unfriendly
to beginners, but even novices can get a lot out of this book if they use
it as a reference instead of trying to read it cover-to-cover.--

:	Note: Amazon.com claims to have 1.5 million book titles. The article I
:read about them says that they don't carry a lot (if any) books in
:stock. Instead they order for you via the publisher.

They stock a lot of the general-interest titles, which they can ship in 1-2
days. The more specialized books they order from the publisher, sometimes
to discover that they are no longer available.

Good reading and

Happy irising, Tom.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tom Tadfor Little                   telp@Rt66.com
Iris-L list owner * USDA zone 5/6 * AIS region 23
Santa Fe, New Mexico (USA)
Telperion Productions  http://www.rt66.com/~telp/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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