Book Review

Gardening With Roses
Designing With Easy-Care Climbers, Ramblers, & Shrubs
by
Judith C. McKeon

Graphics by Broderbund Clickart

     "Easy-Care--"  it sounds good, doesn't it?  Especially when talking about roses, a flower that has a reputation for being fussy and disease-prone.  Judith's book encourages rose admirers to try the new cottage gardening style as a way of dealing with and frankly covering up some roses' tendencies towards defoliation.  Her main focus however, is on the wonderful old and modern landscape roses that truly are hassle-free.  So many of the old roses that were nearly lost when hybrid teas became all the rage have made an outstanding comeback; many are actually preferred.  Several varieties have the appealing quality of season-long bloom as well as disease-resistance and winter hardiness.
      Included in this book are concrete garden plans that you can use for your own garden or modify to suit the specific needs of your site.  Every garden style is here.  Charming doorway, kitchen, city, patio, cottage, rock wall, eighteenth century, mixed border, seaside, bird and butterfly, formal, and children's gardens are all carefully diagrammed with a complete plant list.  Judith tells you how to mix the right perennials with the right roses to get the effect of your dreams.
       You'll come away with a more complete knowledge of rose varieties and their care after reading this book.  It's packed with information on species roses, gallicas, damasks, albas, centifolias, moss roses, China roses, damask perpetuals, bourbons, noisettes, climbers, ramblers, floribundas, miniatures, hybrid teas, English roses, and the modern shrub roses.  Included is a listing of roses that are shade-tolerant and disease-resistant.  Tips on rose selection, planting roses, and their specific needs abound.  A primer on rose grades is most helpful.  Every gardener who would love to incorporate roses without hassles into their gardening scheme should read this book. 
     

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Copyright (C) J. Kovalcsik 1999