Reddit reviews Manual of Woody Landscape Plants Their Identification, Ornamental Characteristics, Culture, Propogation and Uses

Manual of Woody Landscape Plants Their Identification, Ornamental Characteristics, Culture, Propogation and Uses Unabridged. Dirr


https://www.amazon.com/Landscape-Identification-Ornamental-Characteristics-Propogation/dp/1588748685

I would really recommend reading online resources as compared to buying books. With wikipedia and google you can learn about:

• Plant physiology (Vascular system, leaf parts, photosynthesis)
  
• Pest control (Integrated pest management is very interesting)
  
• Soil structures (Clay, sand, silt), Soil Colloids, organic + nutrient lockups
  
• Disease identification (Bacterial, Viral, Fungal)
  
• Advanced propagation techniques (Tissue Culturing is really neat)
  
• Nutrient requirements (Macro vs Micro-nutrients)
  
  My program is structured very open ended and my professors rarely referenced their books but two that I find interesting are related to propagation.
  
  [Manual of Woody Landscape Plants](http://www.amazon.com /dp/1588748685/ref=asc_df_15887486851809347?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=asn&creative=395093&creativeASIN=1588748685) has an introductory chapter that explains a lot of general plant information as well as listing tons of common woody landscape plants and techniques to care for them and propagate them.
  
  American Horticultural Society Plant Propagation focuses more on overviews of various propagation techniques in a 'simplified' way with lots of pictures. Good light reading that is also very informative and may be easier to delve into than the Manual of Woody Landscape Plants. It is also much cheaper.
  
  I am sure you will find some topics that are more interesting than others, the list is certainly not all inclusive but does cover most of the basic stuff I was learning last year. As with learning anything I encourage you to dive deep and get some good google-fu and wikipedia crawling under your belt. Lots of knowledge to be had!
  

Dirr is a god among men.

He's written lots of stuff.

Check your local university websites. Most universities have good resources like these.

http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/

http://hortsense.cahnrs.wsu.edu/Home/HortsenseHome.aspx

Also Dirr manuals are great for plant information. They can be a little technical but are great resources.

https://www.amazon.com/Landscape-Identification-Ornamental-Characteristics-Propogation/dp/1588748685

For a second it looked like Dr. Dirr's manual of woody landscape plants.

The plantsman's bible is Dirr's Manual. It has a very horticultural slant, but is invaluable for someone truly dedicated to plants. It is 1300 pages of comprehensive plant knowledge and will tell you exactly how to germinate seeds of Trochodendron aralioides. The problem for most is that it has no pictures - only line drawings of leaf shapes. This is probably not the book you need, but is a tremendous resource for someone with a thirst for knowledge.

http://www.amazon.com/Manual-Woody-Landscape-Plants-Characteristics/dp/1588748685/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1408405815&sr=8-4&keywords=dirr%27s+encyclopedia+of+trees+and+shrubs

My favorite plant book for casual reading is Dirr's Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs. It has color photos of seemingly every tree and shrub in existence, as well as discussions of their landscape value.

http://www.amazon.com/Dirrs-Encyclopedia-Trees-Shrubs-Michael/dp/0881929018/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408405815&sr=8-1&keywords=dirr%27s+encyclopedia+of+trees+and+shrubs

When I was a budding plantsman, my father gave me a very useful book which I still refer to today. This National Arboretum publication gives a broad overview of all different types of plants(vines, annuals, perennials, evergreens, aquatic plants, shade trees, etc) and is a great way to come up with ideas of what to plant.

http://www.amazon.com/National-Arboretum-Outstanding-Garden-Plants/dp/0671669575

If you are more interested in just selecting plants online, Monrovia has an excellent website that lets you narrow down plants by requirements.

http://www.monrovia.com/plant-catalog/

Dirr's Hardy Trees and Shrubs http://www.neebo.com/Textbook/dirrs-hardy-trees-and-shrubsb9780881924046/ISBN-9780881924046?kpid=0-88192-404-0&gclid=CPWWmbu9yMICFQ4S7AoddVAA0A

Dirr's Manual of Woody Landscape Plants
http://www.amazon.com/Manual-Woody-Landscape-Plants-Characteristics/dp/1588748685

Both are awesome.