Good Perennial Garden Book Reco?

I'm going to plan my first garden & I'm thinking it will be mostly perennials. Of course, I've never done this so I really don't know where to start. Does anyone have any good suggestions on books or other sources for how to plan a garden? I've looked on Amazon.com, but I thought someone here at DGs would have a better reco on where to begin.

Thanks in advance,
Morph

Well Morph, I have so many book's on perennials and other plant's but to tell you the truth the most info I get on any gardening for the past year is right here on DG!!!!! If you check out poppysue's homepage I believe you can get to her garden pic's! There are wonderful pic's there and it will give you ton's of idea's on how to place your plant's. Here is the link, there is alot of info here for you to check out!http://communities.msn.com/poppysuesgarden/homepage.msnw

sue



sue

This message was edited Friday, Jan 4th 9:36 PM

Hey Morph! You are a real person. LOL Enjoyed talking to you in chat the other night. I have several books too and look at magazines all the time. Honestly I would suggest you make a list of plants you like and research them. I have found that a lot of the magazines list new plants that are out of my budget and books seem to give a lot of info and possible combos but no real plans. Or, you may just need a trip to the library. Ours has many shelves of great garden books. I guess a lot depends on if you are going formal or cottage. Gee, much help aren't I? ha ha
Good luck!
Michele

I find that most of the books and plans don't fit well in my zone 3/4. Dave just added a zone search to the plant database and it's wonderful for finding plants that will grow in your zone. Try it out and see what you find.

Ha! Thanks for the plug Ruby! Gee...I'm flattered =) Truth is ... I'm not much of a planner. Nothing ever turns out like I planned it. There's always something that fouls up. I just started small ... and added, & added more, & added more.

Take a trip to the book store and browse the garden section. There's lots of great books. I think a good perennial encylopedia is your best bet. One that tells zone, height, width, soil & light... One of my first was "Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Perennials". It has good descriptions, nice pictures and some gardening basics too. You can also find lots of garden books on the bargain shelf at any of the book stores. I like the magazines too. And don't forget the free catalogs... they're always a good source for information about plants. White Flower Farm has gorgeous pictures!

Wow - I see the Rodale's book is on the bargain list now - http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0875965709/qid=1010234821/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_11_1/107-7418758-6597304 I paid $28 years ago. That's a good buy!

Thanks everyone for your advice & links! Ruby42, one of the first photos I looked at when I joined DG were poppysue's garden pix. She had so generously sent a variety of seeds for only an SASE that I had to see what creativity lurked in her flower gardens! Her landscaping is just gorgeous & is a lofty goal but it's exactly the vision that pops into my mind when I think about starting my garden. It's encouraging to hear, poppysue, that you started small. From your pictures, I was certain you had it planned in advance and/or are a landscaper. Also, thanks for the tip on the Rodale's book on the bargain list! I'll will definitely try the zone search, JoanJ ~ thanks for the suggestion. I'm sure that will be a good guide & I don't know why I didn't think about that one. Guess I'll use everyone's advice & just jump in with some general foundation thoughts (no pun intended :)

Yes, Badseed, I am a real person of sorts. I've thought about virtual & parallel universes a bit, but I still linger on the earth in my human form ~ good to have met you the other night as well ;) It was my first visit to the chat room.

Happy New Year to all & thanks to everyone for your invaluable advice! Better than a book!

Morph

Morph, just remind me in the spring and I can send you some perennials to add to your garden!!!!!!!! There are some plant's that I just have ton's of and others that might have to go just to make room for my HOSTA addiction!!!!!
sue

I ordered the Rodale's book & it was a great book at a great price. It came on Saturday from Amazon.com. Thanks for the lead, Poppysue!