Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1684733 in Books
• Published on: 1998-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 524 pages

Review
" It's margarita time! If you're looking for a banana that can bounce back from zero-degree temperatures or plants that merely look tropical, this book has them, along with 400 color photographs."
-- Boston Globe, December 3, 1998

Synopsis
A compendium of some 2,000 plants which either appear to be or literally are tropical, plus cacti and succulents. Ideal for gardeners in USDA hardiness zones 8 and higher, it also lists some plants suitable to cooler zones as annuals or die-back plants. Each entry provides complete information on cold- hardiness as well as cultural requirements and

Customer Reviews

I love THE TROPICAL LOOK!
This book just received the American Horticultural Society's Garden Book of the Year Award. It's filled with over 400 color photos of tropical and tropical-looking plants from both coasts -- Lotusland in Santa Barbara, the Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek CA, the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden, Fairchild Tropical Garden in FL, David Fairchild's home in Coral Gables (The Kampong), Texas gardens and various other locations around the country and the world.

The plants are easily found in alphabetical order, first by genus and then by species (with nearly 5,000 species, cultivars and hybrids listed) and the pronounciation of each has been mercifully included. The encyclopedia portion of the book also includes the plant's family name, the plant's common name, the growing zone, light and moisture requirements, special considerations of the plants and how to propagate. The author's obvious love of these plants shows through in the lively descriptions, and when you're reading about a new discovery you have Mr. Riffle sharing your passion for the plant and telling you what you need to know to ensure its survival.

Chapters following the encyclopedia read like horticultural cheat sheets for those of us without formal training who want to learn: If you don't know your leaf shapes from a hole in the ground, illustrations and names are in the back of the book along with illustrations of other leaf terms, inflorescences and stems, and flower shapes and parts. A glossary complements the illustrations with definitions of terms such as "ovate" or "petiole" as well as words commonly used such as "perennial." Also in the back of the book is a conversion chart for fahrenheit to celsius, inches to centimeters and feet to meters along with formulas for conversion if you don't want to take the entire table with you.

Plant lists are included for those with a landscapes to fill and special needs to be addressed such as which plants are salt tolerant, erosion controlling, fast growing or drought tolerant. If you know you want tropical-looking plants but don't know where to begin, there are lists such as ferns, fragrant plants, groundcover plants, shrubs, trees, and hedge and screening plants.

I leave The Tropical Look on the desk and am constantly using it as a reference when reading other garden books or magazine articles. Obviously, I love this book!

difficult
This book is lacking pictures. As someone who lives in the tropics I would have appreciated it if next to the plant names there were photos of the plant described. For the "lay" gardener I would not recommend this book. It did not help me in my search for plant names at all...

An excellent reference for creating the tropical look.
Riffle has gifted serious plant collectors and those seeking to create the tropical ambience in their summer gardens, no matter what zone. Deservedly an AHS award winner, Riffle's book details in layman's language what to expect from thousands of exotic plants that we can enjoy on our own turf. A must for the adventurous gardener and the pro wanting creating their own gardens of Eden.