The ROM Field Guide to Wildflowers of Ontario [Paperback]

Although the key at the front of the book is an interesting twist on the standard plant identification key, I found it was really no easier to use. All in all I was very disappointed with the ROM field guide to wildflowers of Ontario. I have long loved the ROM field guide to Shrubs of Ontario and expected the same calibre in this. In fact I have always felt the Shrubs of Ontario was one of the best designed field guides I have used. I'm glad I didn't order the ROM guides to birds, and to reptiles and amphibians as they look like the same format as the wildflower guide.

The big problem is the photos. They are very small, many are very dark and hard to see detail, and several appear fuzzy and out of focus. For example, the pictures of tall wormwood (and there are 3 of them) could be mistaken for any number of plants at various stages of maturity. There is no detail drawing or even close-up photo of the leaf. Two pages away, I did not even recognize the mossy stonecrop - and I grow lots of it in my garden. And there are many, many more just as confusing or hard to see.

Another disappointment is the lack of natural history or anecdotal information about the plants. That part of the shrubs guide made the plant more interesting. And I was really disappointed that the guide does not let you know which wildflowers are native and which are "imported".

If you want a good general guide to wildflowers in Ontario, stick with Peterson's or Newcomb's. A great little book, though not as extensive as either of those two, is Ontario Wildflowers: 101 Wayside Flowers by Linda Kershaw. It's only drawback is the limited number or plants it identifies. If the ROM guide had been this page size and format, with the same kind of big, clear photos as Kershaw's book, it could have been a winner.

In the end, I feel the ROM Guide to Wildflowers of Ontario has very little to commend it. I am wondering if my 2 stars may have been generous.

This field guide contains an impressive 550 wildflowers which grow in Ontario. I'm sure that I would be able to find just about anything in here that I see on a hike in the woods. However - the quality of the photographs is very lacking - they are dark sometimes even grainy looking. And this book gives only the essential information on each flower, leaving out the interesting bits like its history and medicinal uses.

So although this book is quite comprehensive, it just isn't enjoyable to read. I think there are many more attractive wildflower field guides out there. I also own the book Ontario Wildflowers: 101 Wayside Flowers, and I prefer it, because although it is missing many flowers, the photos are top notch and it gives me lots of interesting information about each flower.

I think this ROM book would be a useful addition to the library of serious students of wildflowers, but if you are only planning on getting ONE field guide to wildflowers, don't let it be this one.

It takes a little bit of getting used to, but this book will more than reward your effort. With a little practice, using the identification keys up front and the well-presented introductory text and diagrams, you learn to pay attention to how a wildflower plant is actually constructed (the composition of flowers, leaves, stems, etc) and are soon looking at new finds with the trained eye of a botanist. The result is, you can begin to zero in on a much more dependable identification than you would get with other, "more simple" guides. And it's fun! The colour photos are excellent -- more than 1000 of them -- there are distribution maps on every page, and too many other bells and whistles to count. Worth every penny.