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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent--"plain speak" good advice, July 7 2003
This review is from: House Plant Encyclopedia (Hardcover)
I have a huge assortment of plant/gardening books, and often do alot of cross-referencing w/my hobby. This book is one of the first that I always pick up. It's "plain speak" approach (i.e. author will say, "I have always found..." etc.) is just terrific; I often find myself wondering how "Ingrid can help me with this?!" The tips are a wonderful "sidebar" feature, both highly informative, and just interesting! The descriptions the author provides of each plant is a true DESCRIPTION....detailed, and geared to educate the reader. They're not just a bullet-point listing of a few of the essentials on the plant, with questions left unanswered. I went to my library over and over again, consulting this book on a number of plants questions and issues, until finally, I got my own precious copy!! 100% worth the investment of time and money for your gardening needs, both indoors and (gosh, what a bonus!) outdoors as well.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
very disappointed, not worth to buy, Jan 17 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: House Plant Encyclopedia (Hardcover)
At best, I would say it is an ordinary plant book. For the three things I wanted to look for, I didn't find any good answer in it. First, I would like to know what kind of plants I have in my house (my mother gave them to me.) Just by looking at the pictures in this book as the book suggests, I would only identify several very very common plants. Second, I want to know how to take care of them. There are symbols in the book about light, water, food etc, but the paragraph I thought should be more specific on it simply repeats the symbols above (which as in a book, it is redundent and takes more space than it should.) Third, I like to know some tips on keeping the plants in good shape. However, what I found most the so said tips are like "I put my (a certain kind of) plant outside beside a pond and under a tree in summer." They are not very useful at all. It is either a book that helps you focus on making one specific decent, healthy plant, nor helps you to know and take care of many plants in general. I read it several times and tried find some positive sign that I should keep it, but I returned it at last.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very comprehensive!!, Jan 26 2003
This review is from: House Plant Encyclopedia (Hardcover)
This is a wonderful book. Having only recently discovered the joys of houseplants, I was looking for a thorough and comprehensive book that would help me identify my plants, and properly take care of them. This book does both and more. There is a section devoted to the conditions and care required for a wide range of houseplant species, plus great sections on diseases, pests, and common mistakes. After each in depth section is an "at a glance section" for quick reference. Another very important and often overlooked feature is that it has a list of poisonous plants, so that we can make sure we place plants that can be dangerous out of reach of our pets and children (or better yet, avoid buying them all together). I am also a big fan of its construction. Sturdy hard cover binding and glossy pages make it easy to wipe off all of the potting soil that gets dropped on it. :-) Great book! Worthy investment!
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