Synopses & Reviews
Fantastic color photographs and excellent writing make this an inspirational and accessible guide for specialty plant collectors, alpine and rock gardeners, and city gardeners, as well as anyone gardening in small spaces. Readers will learn about the ease and practicality of growing bulbs in containers — bringing year-round color and interest to one's home. Popular classic bulbs are included, as well as a range of more unusual varieties such as the delicate-looking but surprisingly unfussy corydalis, and graceful, late-spring-flowering scillas. The book details how to plan and prepare for a year of flowering bulbs — how to store bulbs during the dormant period and get them ready for planting, how to make homemade shelters to protect plants during the growing season before they begin to flower, and how to create simple accessories that show off the final display. Detailed advice on seed propagation provides gardeners an inexpensive, environmentally friendly, and satisfying method of increasing their range of species bulbs.
Review
"Set apart by its wide-ranging approach, Leeds' guide offers irresistible ideas for enhancing the beauty of bulbs in containers plantings."—Alice Joyce, Booklist, September 1, 2005 Horticulture
Review
"Contains photographs of dozens of intriguing lesser-known bulb plants to whet any plant lover's appetite!"—Cathy Cromell, National Gardening Association Regional Reports, July 6, 2006
Review
"The trouble with this book is that it prevents you from getting your work done — unless of course your line of work involves surfing the Internet and charging bulbs to your credit card. Author Rod Leeds has filled the pages with inspiring writings on bulbous treasures to grow in pots. You will want to have all of them in your garden."—Sara Begg, Horticulture, Fall 2006 Sara Begg
About the Author
Rod Leeds began his career in education and worked as a primary school head teacher for 23 years before taking early retirement. He now lives in Suffolk, England, where his half-acre plantsman's garden provides ample opportunity to showcase his unique collection of bulbs. He is the chairman of the RHS Joint Rock Garden Plant Committee and is actively involved with the Alpine Garden Society, where he is Publications Officer. Rod Leeds lectures and writes widely on gardening topics, calling on his practical experiences. He is a regular contributor to The Plantsman and other specialist plant journals and is author of The Plant Finder's Guide to Early Bulbs.