Product Description

Tracy DiSabato-Aust has devoted years of study to creating showplace gardens with minimal maintenance. Her methods of pruning and shaping perennials, produce more flowers, encourage growth, discourage pests, stagger bloom times, and maintain vigorous health.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #270231 in Books
• Published on: 1998-02-15
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 338 pages

From Publishers Weekly
To pinch or not to pinch is not the only question addressed here. Horticulturist DiSabato-Aust affirms that pinching is essential for plant robustness and an extended blooming season. In addition to explaining how and where to pinch a plant, she details correct techniques for deadheading, effectively removing the mystery from perennial pruning by referring to it "as grooming, shaping, shearing or snipping." Recognizing the diverse styles of gardens and gardeners, she demonstrates how different approaches to pruning can produce varied growth and blooming patterns. Also offered is information on site selection, soil preparation, planting and disease and pest control. Most impressive is the extensive encyclopedia of perennials which, drawing principally on her own field experience, focuses on pruning and maintenance practices. Practical appendices include a month-by-month calendar of pruning and maintenance tasks and a list of perennials arranged in 35 categories related to their specific pruning and maintenance requirements. Beth Ann Daye's line drawings and the author's color photos enhance the clarity of the text and make this book invaluable for both home gardeners and professionals.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Get two copies, one for reference and one for circulation. The last two-thirds is an A-Z Encyclopedia of Perennials with exceptional details on the pruning and maintenance of perennials.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Organic Gardening, January/February 1999
Hands-on advice that gardeners of all experience levels will find valuable.

Customer Reviews

Love this book.
This book has helped me more than any other on the subject. I appreciate the way that it is organized. It and jflex-5 (for my pain and flexibility) have made my gardening experience more enjoyable. I also like the low price that Amazon has on this book. So, it works for me.

Not for the Average Gardener
We found this book to be more for the advanced gardener than the first-timer. There are not enough photos of the plants, and they are listed by their scientific names as opposed to their common names. A cross-reference would have been nice.
We were disappointed.

Excellent guide for the experienced gardener
You will be overwhelmed with practical information in this illustrated guide. I recommend it for a person who has already been gardening and wants to tend, update or redesign her beds. This book gives you an up-close view of professional gardening information. It was recommended to me by a landscape architect and well worth it.