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Via gardenauthor)
Posted by admin to bird and nature books, garden on 2007-12-18, 09:15:00
While book stores offer a variety of books on nature, gardening and bird-watching, your favorite garden center may be the best option for gift books. Most garden centers offer a selection of garden books and many actually have a dedicated area, or small in-store bookshop, in which these books are displayed all year 'round.
Here are a few of my favorite picks... some fairly new, but many of which have resided on my own bookshelves, for years, and should still be readily available.....
"Secrets to Great Soil" and "Bugs, Slugs and Other Thugs"/Storey Publishing.
From Random House - "Trees of North America," "Shrubs," "Herbs," and "Roses."
Many great books from Rodale Publishing (the folks who publish the "Organic Gardening" magazine), with "Rodale's All New Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening" and "Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs" being valuable resources.
Bill Adler, Jr. authored the entertaining and informative "Outwitting Squirrels," "Outwitting Critters" and "Outwitting Deer." "Must-reads" for all backyard birders and gardeners.
From William Morrow Publishing - "The Shrub Identification Book" By George W. Symonds, which aids in the visual identification of vines and ground covers, as well as shrubs. Also, from G.W. Symonds, look for the comprehensive volume, "The Tree Identification Book."
There are many helpful books on the market, when it comes to living among and adjacent to the native deer population. "Solving Deer Problems" by Peter Loewer would certainly be one of my choices, based solely on another of his excellent books, "Gardens by Design" (Rodale Publishing), which is packed with fabulous plans, fresh ideas (even though it was written in 1989) and valuable information... "Gardens by Design" is filled with his wonderful pen and ink botanical drawings (I treasure my signed copy) and is one of Peter's over 30 books that is well worth hunting down.
Garden Way Publishing brings us "Fruits and Berries for the Home Garden" by Lewis Hill, a fine resource for the backyard orchardist.
Meredith Books presents a "Complete Guide to Vegetables, Fruits and Herbs" by Denny Schrock, which includes an encyclopedia, how-to information, selection and care tips, along with ideas on combining edibles and ornamentals in the small landscape.
"A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants" from the American Horticultural Society.
"Rock and Water Gardening: A Practical Guide to Construction and Planting" by Peter Robinson... a must for that ambitious gardener, working with these natural elements.
"Birds of Massachusetts" - a field guide by Stan Tekiela. With approximately 23 other field guides in his series, this one is invaluable for MA residents and visitors, alike.
Go native! "Native Plants of the Northeast: A Guide for Gardening and Conservation" by Donald J. Leopold will present you with about 700 species of trees, shrubs, vines, ferns, grasses and wildflowers, native to the northeastern quadrant of the U.S.
From Houghton Mifflin, we find the terrific colored plates and in-depth information in each book of the Taylor's Guides series, helpful for identification and invaluable for planning. "Annuals," "Perennials," "Bulbs," "Shrubs" and "Trees" are perhaps the most popular in the series, but Ground Covers, Roses, Ornamental Grasses, Orchids, Shade Gardening and Heirloom Vegetables are among their other titles. (My older volume of Seaside Gardening seems not to be on the current list, but I use it often.) Taylor's Encyclopedia of Garden Plants is described as the new cornerstone of the Taylor's Guides series.
Another series worthy of mention is the Peterson Field Guides (I have many, but Peterson's "A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America" remains my most used volume... closely followed by the Wildflowers, Trees, Shrubs and Mammal guides.) These are the kind of guides that you keep at hand for quick ID of backyard flora & fauna... or, toss in the backpack, before heading out on a day hike at the local wildlife sanctuary.
For any reader on your gift list... Books on local, historical sites, many of which are endowed with great natural beauty. Places like Cape Ann, Ipswich and Gloucester (here on the North Shore of MA) are often the subject of talented writers, artists and photographers, whose combined efforts present us with outstanding pictorial references.
If there's anything more addictive than gardening books, it might be books about backyard birds, wildlife and nature in general. I firmly believe that the hardest part of choosing books for fellow bibliophiles, is not selecting a few for yourself, as well. Oh, go ahead - Happy Holidays to yourself, too!
©Deb Lambert 2007
Thanks to the Corliss Bros. Nursery & Garden Center staff for the great book photos, ©2007.
While book stores offer a variety of books on nature, gardening and bird-watching, your favorite garden center may be the best option for gift books. Most garden centers offer a selection of garden books and many actually have a dedicated area, or small in-store bookshop, in which these books are displayed all year 'round.
