Bizarre Botanicals: How to Grow String-of-Hearts, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Panda Ginger, and Other Weird and Wonderful Plants

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Overview

Gardeners love tulips, lilies, and pansies — the common, but beautiful, plants found in the average garden. But there are realms in the plant world far beyond these familiar favorites. In Bizarre Botanicals, plant experts Larry Mellichamp and Paula Gross take readers on a curious botanical journey of weirdly wonderful plants that can be grown at home.

Bizarre Botanicals features over 75 astonishing plants that have extraordinary abilities — from pyrotechnic spores that can burst...

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More About This Book

Overview

Gardeners love tulips, lilies, and pansies — the common, but beautiful, plants found in the average garden. But there are realms in the plant world far beyond these familiar favorites. In Bizarre Botanicals, plant experts Larry Mellichamp and Paula Gross take readers on a curious botanical journey of weirdly wonderful plants that can be grown at home.

Bizarre Botanicals features over 75 astonishing plants that have extraordinary abilities — from pyrotechnic spores that can burst into flame when ignited to flowers that lure insects to their deaths. Each plant profile includes essential care and cultivation information. A difficulty scale alerts gardeners to how easy (or difficult) it is to grow the plant at home.

There’s no reason to forsake lilies and petunias. But after reading Bizarre Botanicals, gardeners will want to take a walk on the weird side and try a few of these peculiar plants for themselves.

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Editorial Reviews

Philadelphia Inquirer
"If you seek entertainment while your garden sleeps, give Bizarre Botanicals a whirl."
Toronto Star
A fun, easy read.
New York Times
Lighthearted but substantive.
Houston Chronicle
For the gardener who wants to stretch beyond the everyday into the realm of… wicked fun.
Our State
Bright, full-page photos add to the fascination as readers discover nature’s most mysterious plants.
— Lori K. Tate
Garden Design
[The authors] provide vivid descriptions and photos, along with a wealth of practical tips.
Garden Design
"[The authors] provide vivid descriptions and photos, along with a wealth of practical tips."
Library Journal
Both at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, Mellichamp (botany & horticulture) and Gross (assistant director, Botanical Gardens) have created an informative and visually arresting book devoted to a dizzying array of plants not frequently found in typical American gardens. After addressing questions that beginning gardeners may have, the authors turn their focus to the plants themselves, which are organized into ten sections, each with an overall introduction. Plants range from uncommon carnivores to more familiar (but still unusual) orchids and succulents. Each plant is described in a one- to three-page summary, accompanied by a color photograph and a short paragraph of growing tips. Both common and Latin names are provided, with plants in alphabetical order by Latin name. The plants vary in hardiness and ease of growing, so gardeners of all climates and skills will find something to suit their situation. There is no resource list of nurseries and stores where the bizarre botanicals can be purchased; readers will be required to search for retailers on their own. VERDICT Perfect for gardeners of all levels who wish to cultivate out-of-the-ordinary plants and for armchair gardeners interested in thumbing through photographs of unusual botanicals.—Sharon E. Reidt, Marlboro Coll. Lib., VT
Dominique Browning
…comes complete with seductive photographs and a lighthearted but substantive text.
—The New York Times
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781604690767
  • Publisher: Timber Press, Incorporated
  • Publication date: 10/13/2010
  • Pages: 284
  • Sales rank: 679,900
  • Product dimensions: 6.60 (w) x 8.10 (h) x 1.00 (d)

Meet the Author

Paula Gross is the assistant director of the University of North Carolina Charlotte Botanical Gardens. She has a masters in horticulture from the University of Georgia, and teaches courses on horticulture and plant identification. In addition, she writes a periodic column on horticultural issues and provides information on gardening questions.

Larry Mellichamp is a professor of botany and horticulture at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte where he has taught for over 30 years. He is also director of the University’s botanical gardens. He has written many technical and popular articles on plants and gardening, appears regularly in the local media, and has co-authored three other books.

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  • Posted December 7, 2010

    Highly Recommended! - If you love intersting plants

    If you Love Bizzare Plants you will Love this book! Bizarre Botanicals is a great book with alot of information on just that Bizarre plants. I work with plants such as the ones in this book every day on my new job, and for alot of information i have began refering to this book as a learning tool. When visitor's and customers come up to me and ask a question if i dont know the answer i refer to the book. Dr. Mellichamp and Mrs.Gross have included wonderful pictures of the plants as well. Together they have added a humoress remarks to how some of the plants react and do what they do. As many of these plants are still an on going study to figure out why they move, or how they digest insects. Or in the case of a Titan Arum only flower and last for 12 hours. This books is just the begining of information on some of the worlds bizzare plants, but its a step in the right direction if you want to learn more about these wonderful, wacky, and bizarre plants .

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