50 in '08: 18

[sakon76]

Title: Roses Love Garlic: Companion Planting and Other Secrets of Flowers
Author: Louise Riotte
Length: 235 pages


Again, a book I'd heard of and so happily snagged off the library shelf. Its main reputation is as a companion planting guide, so that was what I was expecting.

It wasn't what I got.

Oh, there's a section in there on companion planting, all right, along with sections about just about anything under the sun! The author is definitely knowledgeable (there is a bibliography) and was basically putting all of her tidbits of knowledge, somewhat organized into this book. While I found her to be a little bit of a snot (she recommends against coriander because "the foliage and fresh seed have an evil smell"--funny, I find it a delightful scent!), there were enough little gems in this book to make it worth a read. I didn't realize flax could be grown in a garden setting, I now know more about Venus flytraps than I did before, and think the mating habits of the Trichoseros parviflorus orchid are quite funky indeed. Plus I have a minor story idea regarding the flowers of long-buried seeds that bloomed in bomb craters in WWII. I didn't learn too much about what I'm already growing, but I was entertained and found a few things (kiwifruit grows on a vine!) I'd like to try growing at some point in the future.

Verdict: Recommended.

Comments

[mmouse15.livejournal.com]

Have you read her previous book, Carrots Love Tomatoes? I found it to be quite a handy book. Alphabetical listing of many garden plants, a companion garden plan, a list of poisonous plants and which parts are poisonous, and a bibliography. Written in 1975, so may pre-date Roses love garlic, but one reference book I use over and over.
And I shall have to go to the library and look at Roses love Garlic. Thank you for the recommendation.