Re: Fw: Botanic and Flora Compared

Reid Family wrote:
> Moira: I would have to agree that I too miss having the plant family
> listed in Botanica, but greatly enjoy the ample pictures.  I think
> those of us in the Western U.S. are quite lucky to have the Sunset
> Western Garden Book, which I consider to be like my Bible at church -
> when I head to the nursery, I often take a copy with me, just for
> reference.  That way, if I spot some new offering, I can check on its
> requirements and hardiness zones before I buy. It too is amply
> illustrated and gives plant families.  Do you down-under folks have
> something similar?  I wonder if Australians in particular could even
> benefit from our book, since so many of the microclimate zones would
> overlap.

I can't speak for Australians but I don't think in NZ we have any really ourstanding exact equivialent of your Sunset book, though we do have eexcellent separate handbooks of herbaceous perennials, shrubs and bulbous plants written for local conditions. Native plants also play a big part both here and in Australian Horticulture and good handbooks are available for these specialist groups, but I can't think of any publication smaller than Botanica which tries to include all these sections in one volume and I would hate to try carrying my Botanica around a garden centre. Actually, I am not the best one to tackle this problem really, as I have the advantage of being both a trained Botanist and also a professional horticulturalist for more than forty years and would rarely be at a loss to identify whether any plant I see for sale in such places is approprite to my garden or not..

We are in fact very lucky in one of our local centres (which is the one I favour) as many of their main lines are grouped under large notices which give illustrations of the plants in flower and most of the essential cultural information such as sun exposure, soil and hardiness, which will help one to make informed choices. Unfortunately I don't think many amateur gardneners heed this enough. If they see a plant they like they are more inclined to buy it anyway with no reference to how it may adapt to their requirements. I vividly remember a woman I once saw come up to the counter in that very garden centre years ago with a conifer she fancied for her rockery. As it was not a dwarf variety but a potentially huge Japanese cedar, the person serving her (a very knowlegeable gardener known to me personally) suggested she might be wiser to exchange it for something more manageable, but she insisted on taking it declaring she could easily keep it down to size by pruning! I often wondered what happened to her and her triffid of a tree.

Moira

--
Tony & Moira Ryan,
Wainuiomata, North Island, NZ.     Pictures of our garden at:-
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/cherie1/Garden/TonyandMoira/index.htm

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