Review
Although they don’t look as sexy as a hardback on roof gardens, they are where you turn to for help -- Sunday Express, June 3 01
The appeal of the books is their clear photographs, drawings and charts with no-nonsense text -- Oxford Times, May 01
The ever-selling Dr Hessayon, of whose no-nonsense guides the books pages thoroughly approve -- The Guardian, 11 August 01
The traditional Experts are bibles for many in the trade -- Garden Trade News, May 01
Book Description
From the Back Cover
* Hundreds of houseplants illustrated in full colour in the exhaustive A-Z listing. * Each plant listing includes a quick reference 'secrets of success'. * Chapters on choosing the right plants for the environment, displaying plants, plant classification, propagation and pests and diseases.
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
In reality there have been all sorts of changes in the world of house plants. Orchids were regarded as specimens for the specialist grower in 1980 – now you can buy the easier varieties in garden centres everywhere. Kalanchoe, Pot Chrysanthemums, Air Plants, Weeping Figs and Boston Ferns are much more popular nowadays and many new types of house plants appeared in garden centres and department stores during the 1980s and early 1990s. Mikania, Radermachera, Leea and Lisianthus were all on the shelves before they appeared in the pages of the textbooks.
The popularity of house plants has continued to grow and the market is slowly changing. For the first time we are now buying more flowering plants than foliage ones and the purchaser is more likely to be 20-30 years old than 45-55. Our attitude towards indoor plants is also slowly changing – more and more people are willing to buy showy but short-lived specimens rather than always turning to evergreen varieties. Even the American Space Agency has brought about a change in our attitude towards plants – during the 1980s it was discovered that Scindapsus, Chlorophytum, Ivy, Spathiphyllum, Chrysanthemum and Aloe are extremely effective in removing pollutants from the air.
Things change and the fashion for certain plants will alter in the years to come. But the basic fascination for growing plants in the home will no doubt remain with us and will continue to increase. There are things to learn if you are a beginner but you don’t need a book like this one in order to learn about the beauty, variety and popularity of house plants – just look around you. Everywhere you will find them, the impressive indoor gardens in public buildings … tiny pots on windowsills … scores of colourful varieties offered for sale in garden shops.
The charm of house plants may be universal, but many millions are allowed to die needlessly each year. You have to face the fact that your living room or hall is not a particularly good home for them – most plants would be much happier in the moist, bright air of a well-lit laundry. This means that you can’t just leave them to look after themselves – each plant needs some care and each variety has its own particular requirements. It is the purpose of this book to tell you the secrets of success and the special problems you are likely to find.
Forget about green fingers. Anyone can grow the more popular varieties and make them look attractive. If you choose delicate or fussy types then green fingers won’t help you but a conservatory will. If everything dies as soon as you take it home, then you are doing something seriously wrong and the answer is in these pages. If your plants look sickly and unattractive then it is a matter of poor choice, incorrect upkeep or lack of knowledge about house plant display. Once again the answers are here. Exciting displays are not difficult to make … increasing your stock is surprisingly simple … here you will find the key.
