Identification Selection And Use Of Southern Plants 4th Edition

Highlighting more than 1,000 plants--from trees and shrubs to vines and grasses--this updated edition of Odenwald and Turners guide keeps with a traditional emphasis on the practical use of plants to solve and prevent landscape design problems.

The American South is famous for its astonishingly rich biodiversity. In this book, Georgann Eubanks takes a wondrous trek from Alabama to North Carolina to search out native plants that are endangered and wavering on the edge of erasure. Even as she reveals the intricate beauty and biology of the South's plant life, she also shows how local development and global climate change are threatening many species, some of which have been graduated to the federal list of endangered species. Why should we care, Eubanks asks, about North Carolina's Yadkin River goldenrod, found only in one place on earth? Or the Alabama canebrake pitcher plant, a carnivorous marvel being decimated by criminal poaching and a booming black market? These plants, she argues, are important not only to the natural environment but also to southern identity, and she finds her inspiration in talking with the heroes the botanists, advocates, and conservationists young and old on a quest to save these green gifts of the South for future generations. These passionate plant lovers caution all of us not to take for granted the sensitive ecosystems that contribute to the region's long-standing appeal, beauty, and character.

DIVOur acclaimed Month-by-Month Gardening series gets a fresh update for gardeners located in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana./divDIV /divDIVFor years, do-it-yourself gardeners in the southern United States have brought their questions to “the Garden Mama” herself, Nellie Neal, for her lifelong expertise in gardening through thick and thin. Now, her regional mastery of the South bolsters our Month-by-Month Gardening series—already the definitive when-to and how-to resource for gardeners in regions across the country—with all the knowledge the Alabama, Mississippi, or Louisiana gardener and home landscaper needs to be successful. Deep South Month-by-Month Gardening includes all the specifics on growing annual and perennial flowers, bulbs, grasses (both lawn and ornamental), edibles, roses, groundcovers, shrubs, trees, and vines throughout the year—including a section on water gardens. From planting, watering, and fertilizing to routine maintenance and problem-solving, Deep South Month-by-Month Gardening educates gardeners of all skill levels on the best practices for satisfying, rewarding results. And best of all, you’ll be reaping the benefits all year round./div

Your garden can be a kaleidoscope of color in every season! Ask any gardener and they will tell you, color is the most important (and most fun!) part of garden design. In The Nonstop Color Garden, author Nellie Neal shows how to use color as an exciting element in your garden during all four seasons--and it's not just flowers! Year-round color is possible by including trees, shrubs, and groundcovers that produce colorful berries and bark, as well as flowers during spring and summer. Even the shapes of plants can enhance your garden by providing all-season architectural interest--Nellie makes it easy to explore it all. The Nonstop Color Garden is perfect for the more experienced gardener, but even an engaged novice will find much to learn about the best plants for nonstop color, garden structure, and garden design. Nellie presents several strategies for crafting a thematically cohesive yet unstylized landscape that includes plant selection and placement. Use the balanced juxtaposition of opposites in texture, size, shape and color. Create unifying pairings of similar foliage types. Work with existing land forms and indigenous vegetation. Everyone who takes pride and pleasure in their garden will not want to miss this informative, fun, colorful book!

Featuring a guide to U.S. planting zones, a color wheel to help gardeners create dramatic effects, and a photograph of each of the 200 flowers discussed in the book, "Tough-as-Nails Flowers for the South" takes the guesswork out of choosing annuals, perennials, bulbs, grasses, and vines that all grow well in Dixie.