Guest reviewer Kevin Tipple is back with his review of a book on succulent gardening. Check out his blog Kevin's Corner for more book reviews and book news, as well as links to topics of interest.
As we
roll into spring, thoughts here in North Texas turn to planting as well as
worries over baseball sized hail, tornadoes, and all matter of insect and bug
many of which sting. Though the rains have been plentiful these last several
months, drought is always a fear lurking just over the horizon. Cacti are
always an answer to drought. Like cacti, though not thorny at all in many
cases, are succulents. A solidly good resource on them is the new book from
Tuttle Publishing, A Beginner’s Guide to Succulent Gardening: A Step-by Step Guide to
Growing Beautiful & Long-Lasting Succulents by Taku Furuya.
The
100 page book is designed for the novice succulent gardener. It features twenty-one
popular varieties with tons of information by way of color graphics of various
types. Then there are the numerous pictures throughout the book showcasing
various succulents and their possibilities.
After
a little bit of general information including how to use the book, the book really
gets going with opens with a section on “Spring/Fall Types” starting on page
eight. In addition to the picture of the plants, there are several pages of
information on how to pick a healthy one at the nursery, best soil, how to
transplant from the store bought container, how to propagate (how to make more
off that first plant), and various tips on growing them including a simple month
by month chart. Along with pictures of the various versions of the particular
type of succulent, there is clear and concise color coded information on when
they flower, level of difficulty to grow, the origin of the plant, and more.
Each section is setup the same way with a lot of information and plenty of
pictures for the particular variety.
You
may or may not know that cacti are a form of succulents. While you may think
that Cacti always meant something with spikes or thorns, it does not always. In
this case, most of the varieties depicted in these pages do not have spikes or
thorns making them safe from children and pets. Obviously, you don’t want
either one eating succulents, but you don’t have the thorn issue that you do
with many cacti.
Though
some do and if you have pets or children this is something to pay attention to
so that one avoids injuries. The first selection in the Spring/Summer/Fall Types
starting on Page 64 makes that very clear. “Moon Cactus” starts the section off
and it should be a familiar one to anyone who spends time shopping towards
Christmas as such items are always in the grocery stores. There is a lot of
info including the fact that the native region for those is Japan. I now know
my high school biology teacher was wrong about them and a certain test grade
should be adjusted immediately. While many of the chosen varieties in the
previous section did not have thorns or spikes, many in this section do and
that may or may not be of concern depending on your personal environment.
Fall/Winter/Spring
Types is the final section and starts on page 80. The very few listed here the
more difficult ones to grow in the book. Nothing in this section is easy and
all of them require significant amounts of care.
A
Beginner’s Guide to Succulent Gardening: A Step-by Step Guide To Growing
Beautiful & Long-Lasting Succulents by Taku Furuya closes with a couple
of pages devoted to the growing fundamentals for all succulents, a glossary,
and a short section how to combat diseases and pests.
This
is a comprehensive book aimed at beginners that will also prove very helpful to
experimental Gardner. Whether you want to grow just a couple inside the house
or multiples ones outside in the yard, there are suggestions here for you.
Something and quite possibly more than one will strike your fancy in the very
good book, A Beginner’s Guide to Succulent Gardening: A Step-by Step Guide To
Growing Beautiful & Long-Lasting Succulents by Taku Furuya.
A Beginner’s Guide to Succulent Gardening: A Step-by Step Guide to
Growing Beautiful & Long-Lasting Succulents
Taku Furuya
Tuttle Publishing
ISBN#978-0804851190
March 2019
Paperback
96 Pages
$14.99
Material
supplied by Twyla Marr, Publicist, Tuttle Publishing with no expectation of a
review.
The Bristol Public Library does own a copy of this book. Check the new nonfiction shelves to see if it's available! If not, you can put it on reserve.
The Bristol Public Library does own a copy of this book. Check the new nonfiction shelves to see if it's available! If not, you can put it on reserve.
Kevin
R. Tipple ©2019
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