The third edition of the comprehensive—and entertaining—gardening reference by the master horticulturalist. This is the long-awaited third edition of Allan Armitage’s masterpiece on garden perennials. Armitage’s extensive traveling, teaching, and trialing experiences provide a depth of understanding of the best ornamental perennials for North American gardens unparalleled by any other garden writer. One of the most definitive and conclusive books written about perennials, the first edition was designated as one of the best seventy-five books written in the last seventy-five years by the American Horticulture Society. Now the third edition of “The Big Perennial Book” (as it is fondly referred to by many practitioners) describes 3,600 species in 1224 pages. More than three hundred color photos complement detailed text filled with the author’s pointed observations of plant performance, cultivar selection, and current taxonomy. In addition, his trademark wit and passion are both in abundance, making reading as pleasurable as it is informative.

This guide unravels the mysteries of seed germination, divisions, cuttings, and other forms of perennial propagation. Containing valuable information on more than 300 species of plants, it is a cultural cookbook of herbaceous perennials.

Diseases of Herbaceous Perennials is a beautifully illustrated, practical, scientifically reviewed reference book that will help you identify and solve plant disease problems specific to these valuable ornamental plants. As the popularity of herbaceous perennials in the landscape continues to rise, there is a demand for more information on how to produce and grow these striking plants successfully.The common diseases of more than 150 popular perennials are included in this new book, arranged alphabetically by plant and accompanied by hundreds of fine color photographs to assist in accurate disease diagnosis. Short descriptions of the cultural conditions that will help these plants remain healthy and thrive are given for each host plant. Tips are provided to assist growers and gardeners in managing challenging diseases. This guide includes extensive color illustrations of diseases commonly found on herbaceous perennials in landscapes and nursery production. Accurate color images assist the reader in correctly distinguishing between disease and insect problems and leads to correct disease diagnosis when faced with a bewildering array of symptoms.

Weeds are successful plants, but on their own terms. Looking at weeds from an ecological viewpoint, emphasising the way in which one species interacts with others, the authors show that weeds are questionable mainly in that they are out-of-place.

This publication presents the latest research in perennial crop breeding and programmes, and provides direction on where the field of perennial crop is heading. Many production systems and agricultural practices are no longer sustainable today as their effects on soils, water, biodiversity, and livelihood are significant. Mainstreaming the use of perennial crops into current practices can contribute to stabilize fragile soils and maintain natural processes essential to obtain stable and high yields. To face the challenges and risks of the twenty-first century, increasing the perenniality of crops and agricultural systems should become a larger research, development and policy focus.

This handbook offers an ideal reference for individuals and organizations involved with the production of food, from both agriculture and horticulture. Designed to be accessible for those who normally speak or read English as their second language, it offers thorough explanations and numerous cross references to the terminology, acronyms and technologies used. The book answers basic questions about how food is produced from plants and aims to demystify the subject of growing food. The focus is firmly on the technical aspects of food crops, animal husbandry, agrochemicals and genetic engineering are only briefly mentioned.

The eighth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series is all about those reliable, grounded plants you can count on: perennials. Perennials are those species whose stems and leaves die back to their crowns each fall, but whose roots remain alive throughout the non-growing months. They include showy flowers like peonies, poppies, lilies, clematis, and lupine, but also edibles like asparagus, fiddlehead ferns, sunchokes, and rhubarb. In this guide prairie gardening experts Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau answer questions like What are the best perennials for building biodiversity in my garden? What’s the difference between species, variety, cultivar, and nativar? What kinds of perennials can I grow in containers? When and how do I divide plants once they’re well established? How do I keep enthusiastic re-seeders from taking over? Which of my perennial babies need to be brought inside for the winter? The pair dedicate a chapter to perennial vegetables and another to mitigating common pests and diseases. The final chapter is a perennial hall of fame, an extended list of recommended plantings for colour, native species, rock gardens, ground cover, fragrance, spring champions, and all-season displays. Janet and Sheryl give you the information you need to make your perennial garden as successful as you can while promoting biodiversity and creating a healthy habitat for pollinators and wildlife.