ACRYLIC PAINTINGS FLOWERS

Rodale's Flower Garden Problem Solver: Annuals, Perennials Bulbs, and Roses

It's often difficult to tell which of the hundreds of insects, diseases, animal pests, and evironmental conditions are stopping your flower garden from reaching its potential. This thorough manual describes problems and o ffers effective solutions that don't require the use of dangerous chemicals. Designed for quick, easy reference, this guide will help you manage a healthy, beautiful flower garden.

Are gophers gobbling up your garden? Pests preying on your prized peonies? Not happy with your hyacinths? Don't despair! Your plants and garden can be restored to perfect health with this handy reference guide. Black-and-white illustrations accompany the alphabetical listings of plants and their assortment of plagues. You'll find advice about how to prevent problems before they become serious, recipes for natural and organic treatments to ward off insects and other creatures, and what type of plants are best suited to your climate and soil conditions. The chapter on gardening basics, with recipes for different types of organic fertilizers and quicker composts as well as tips on how and where to place particular flowers, will help a newcomer get started. Plant this book in the garage, right next to the rake, hoe, and spade, and use it as a basic tool for getting your garden in great shape.

I thought these flowers were annuals, but a few hardy souls came up again this year, with no tending or coaxing on our part.

Explore #58 - 09/09/2011

Initial image taken with a mini d9 off camera flash from a high central position pointing down.

How to choose the best from over 1,300 annuals and perennials.
The choice of annuals and perennials at any nursery is overwhelming, to say the least. Annuals and Perennials contains all the information needed to make the right choice from the enormous number of plants available. With its compact and easy-to-use format, the book is perfect to take along to the nursery.
Using the comprehensive plant-selection tables, gardeners can see at a glance the most important characteristics of more than 1,300 annuals and perennials, helping them make the best choice for their garden's appearance and cultivation requirements.
The first part of Annuals and Perennials is the plant tables, which are organized by species name and list the plant's characteristics. These are:
Height and spread
Perennial, biennial or annual
Full sun, half-sun, heavy shade
Cool, warm-temperate, subtropical or tropical
Flowering and planting season
Showy foliage, showy flowers, scented flowers
Frost tolerance
Bromeliad, carnivorous, gesneriad or none of these
Suitability to container planting
Indoor use
Having chosen a plant from the table, the gardener then turns to the book's second part, which describes the more than 1,300 species, cultivars and hybrids in greater detail. This includes growing zones and common names, as well as the plants' origins, color variations, growth habit (whether, for example, the plant spreads rapidly), propagation techniques, recommended uses, problem parasites or diseases, and extra cultivation notes. Color photographs illustrate a select number of plants.
Perennials and annuals play an important role in the garden. They can provide season-long, even yearlong, greenery and blooms. With Annuals and Perennials, any gardener will be able to choose the right plant for the right place--and that is the key to a beautiful and successful garden.