Re: Schmid book on shade

In a message dated 2/26/03 12:00:45 AM Eastern Standard Time, mtalt@hort.net 
writes:


> book for the shade gardener (particularly one south of the
> Mason-Dixon line), George Schmid's "An Encyclopedia of Shade
> Perennials"  wins hands down.

I thought it would more useful for a southern gardener.  There is a neat 
older book named "My Connecticut Garden" , author G. Valchar.  The Schmid 
book would have better been entitled, My Georgia Garden.  I think Valchar's 
book had limited sales because the word Connecticut was in the title.  The 
Valchar book has the best hands on rhododendron info for New England and a 
scholarly report on New England deer.  It is a regional book but could be 
used across the zone 4/5/6 area of the north.  I think "An Encyclopedia" is 
terribly misleading.  One is looking for a a survey type of book at the 
least.

I was looking for what might be discussion points and found a lot of 
contradiction.  After the announcement of no bot terms, plants become 
pruinose.  That would be ( for me, a person who mixes up verb tenses and 
pronouns ) editorial inconsistency.  He says with great triumph that he has a 
non-toxic miracle "grey stuff" for slugs.  He does not identify it.

It is a highly personal book and if you are in his area with this interest 
and a 50.00 book on small (many new Asian intros) woodland plants suits  your 
needs, then it is a great hands-on book.

There is a good discussion of Triliums.  A number of these are native to my 
woods (or were until the deer decimated them).  I wish a true discussion of 
Trilium and the home gardener would appear in any shade book.  It takes years 
to build up a patch of Trilium that is a credit to a garden.  One lonely 
scrawny Trilium will be many years and much cost before it looks like a 
picture in a book.  The very cost of one plant should warn the would-be 
Trilium lover that this is the project of a lifetime.  Most Triliums do not 
arrive from catalog orders at blooming size.  We have a Trilium guy in our 
rocks group and I have listened to his trials overtime.  Here they would be 
(after considerable investment) planted in wire cages as they disappear to 
voles.  There is virtually no-one who would not love a drift of Trilium, any 
kind. The real truth about a Triliums would be nice.

The Schmid book describes with apparent abandon all kinds of plants that run 
all over the garden, even here in zone 4, then states Corydalis lutea is a 
nasty weed.  Bishop's weed, archangel all OK, Corydalis not.  He gives Aster 
divaricatis, the white woodland aster, a bad account.  This little aster is a 
native to our hills but if not,  would be planted by me.  All over New 
England, in late September, the North side of shady roads is covered with 
this plant and welcome at that.  It is the inconsistency I found annoying.  
This is good, that is not.

The inference from the word encyclopedia may cause you to purchase this book 
and find you have an entirely different animal.  As a regional account, it is 
quite good.  Probably the publisher wanted a wider sale with that title.  I 
think, the personal account would have been just as good and maybe cheaper.

Several perennial references coming from the U. of Georgia are very good.  
One the Clausen book, is updated.  When I first saw zone 9/10 perennials, I 
was taken back but soon realized this one was a fine overview.  It did not 
pretend otherwise.  Michael Dirr's books come from research in Georgia.  He 
is BTW, no longer there.  He is in NC with a daughter awaiting some serious 
surgery so the nursery journals report.  Just to mention the title and what 
it conveys is probably very important.

If you have spent 50.00 for the AZ encyclopedia, look at the difference in 
what you receive.  

On seeds, I've got to go with you.  This propagation info is what half of all 
gardeners look for and never find.  It sets you off on a long search and ends 
with a stack of books hours later.  Books could be rated level 1, level 2, 
level 3 or similar, just as the PC games played by my grandson.  When he gets 
to level 3 or more, he is so proud of himself.  Just musing.

I love books, I buy books and I have bought a fair number of stinkers.

Claire Peplowski
NYS z4

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