Product Description

With allergy problems reaching alarming, epidemic levels, horticulturist Tom Ogren sets out to investigate the role that urban landscaping plays in this urgent health crisis. What he discovered was startling: The vastly disproportionate cultivation of all-male plant varieties produces large amounts of intensely irritating airborne pollen. This extensively researched, comprehensive, plant-by-plant reference alerts gardeners and helps them make landscaping choices that can drastically reduce their exposure to harmful allergens. Complete with alphabetical entries of basic planting information, growing zones, and allergy ratings.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #309997 in Books
• Published on: 2000-06-01
• Released on: 2000-06-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

From Library Journal
This book presents a new idea and does so very well indeed. Ogren, a former landscape gardening instructor, proposes that in our private and public landscaping we need to reduce the use of plants that cause allergies. Until the publication of this book, the information needed to make allergy-free choices had not been compiled in one easily accessible source; nor had a scale been devised for rating plants that cause allergies. Here, Ogren accomplishes both these aims. His introductory material presents many plants and allergies new to this reviewer, and he shows how to apply his ideas. The main part of the book consists of plants listed in alphabetical order by their scientific names, with numerous cross references to their common names. Brief annotations provide descriptions and notes regarding allergies. The most important feature, however, is the rating of plants on a scale from one to ten (with ten causing the worst allergic reactions). As David Stadtner, a practicing allergist, writes in his foreword, "the book should be in the library of every nursery and municipal park department." It should be in public and academic libraries as well.
-Carol Cubberley, Univ. of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
“ALLERGY-FREE GARDENING will quickly prove its worth on the shelves of allergy sufferers.” —Indianapolis Star “Tom Ogren likes to talk about sex, sex, and more sex . . . with the allergy season in full bloom, this fascinating and useful book is a must-read for garden-loving allergy and asthma sufferers.”—San Jose Mercury News “This first-of-its-kind reference offers the avid gardener, landscape designer, and urban planner a chance to create a safe haven that offers allergy relief to the asthmatic, hay fever, and sinus community.” —Booklist“Will quickly prove its worth on the shelves of allergy sufferers.” —Indianapolis Star“This year’s break-through book.” —Harrisburg Patriot-News“This fascinating book will be a blessing.” —Seattle Post-Intelligencer“Look for Thomas Leo Ogren's innovative book.” —Orange County Register E: The Environmental Magazine tells us that a copy of the book “should be as close at hand as your Benadryl.”

About the Author
THOMAS L. OGREN is a former landscape gardening instructor, nursery owner, gardening radio show host, and author, with an M.S. in agricultural science. He currently resides in San Luis Obispo, CA.

Customer Reviews

Male Plants
As I have an allergy to pollen, I have to have mostly male plants in the garden. This is the best book I found that gives descriptions to all the plants I am able to use, and especially the most hazardous to my health.

The Bible for allergy sufferers
As someone who has a history of allergies to almost everything, this book truly has become the Bible of allergies for me. In my opinion, this really is the best book ever written in regards to allergies. Tom Ogren outlines the allergy potential for every plant you've ever heard of, and a few you probably haven't heard of. When we moved into our new Southern California home a couple of years ago, we used this as a bible for landscaping -- if the book gave it a good pollen rating, we planted it. If it was a high pollen rating, we didn't plant it. The result? My allergies are better now than they have been at any time in my life, and this book has played a huge part in that! Even if you're not allergic to plants, get this book if you do any landscaping -- if everyone would follow his suggestions, there's no question we'd reduce the amount of allergic reactions by a huge amount. I can't say enough good about this book!!

Great Book!
I have owned this book for several years now and couldn't do without it. I do a good deal of gardening and before I buy any new plants at the nursery, I consult Allergy Free Grdening. My allergist suggested I buy this book, and I am very glad that I did. AFG helps me pick out trees, shrubs, vines, & flowers that will not cause allergies. It is very easy to use, interesting, useful, and surprisingly, kind of fun to read. There is also a good deal of solid advice on how to grow different kinds of plants.
Several of my friends also own this book and we all find it terribly useful. If you have allergies or asthma, or if you have a husband, daughter, son, or good friend who does, this is the book to own. It would also make a wonderful present for your favorite doctor, especially so if he/she is an allergist. I highly recommend Allergy-Free Gardening.