Roses for Dummies

by Lance Walheim, The National Gardening Association

“American Beauty,” “Dublin Bay,” “Rocketeer,” “Betty Boop,” “High Noon,” “Pearly Gates”…with a distinctive name for each of hundreds of varieties, the array of roses that could adorn your garden is both dazzling and daunting. So which ones survive hardily on their own for weeks on end, and which ones wither and die without constant attention? How do you tell a climber from a shrub, and how does each thrive? And don’t even start with pruning! Despite all the (ahem) thorny particulars, gardeners still love to grow these beautiful flowers that would by any other name still smell as sweet. Roses for Dummies does away with the myth that roses have to be high maintenance, instead showing how to choose a type that will blossom in your care. Inside, rosarians of all levels will find useful information Roses for Dummies contains everything you need to know to get started, or, if you’re more advanced, refine your knowledge of roses. Now in a new Second Edition with more than 100 new varieties described, as well as new information on insect and disease control, this helpful guide also Whether looking for nothing more than a sweet-smelling decoration to brighten your doorstep, or looking to enter a major rose competition, discoveries about this much-loved flower await you. Full of pointers, resources, pitfalls, vocabulary, and an eye-popping full color insert, this book will help you grow the roses of your dreams.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Reference

351 pages, Paperback

First published February 14, 1997

Reviews

[T. Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book. I knew nothin' about roses. I live in a house that came with huge old beautiful amazingly fragrant rose bushes. I needed to know about their care because these rose bushes tolerate a lot of abuse and bugs. I want to take care of them and nurture them. I believe this is the book that can help me! I checked this book out from Overdrive. I am going to buy a hard copy for the sake of my roses. They bloom their hearts out for me, so, this book belongs in my home. Yay! 🌹

[Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for anyone who doesn't know a thing about roses! It was a great help to us when we planted our first rose bush!

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of great info for a struggling beginning rose gardener. Good book to have on the shelf for sound advice.

[Bernie4444 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gave me the courage to be ruthless
You can tell from the other reviews that this book has the strengths and weaknesses of the other Dummies Books.
So I will tell you how this helped me. Twice this book has helped me. First I bought a Lady Banks (Rosa banksiae) rose, I did not realize that they grew VIGOROUSLY and could spread over 20 feet. This was a small area. After reading this in the "Roses for Dummies" book I ran outside ad saw Lady Banks reaching for my cat. Needless to say, she (the rose) was moved to a location where she could go wild. My cat has recovered. The more important thing I learned from this book was that you have to be ruthless when it comes to pruning. Before the book, I snipped and trimmed my floribundas, as any sane person would do with their favorite hedge. Well, it got gnarled and mildewed. So back to the book, I went to find in chapter 19 that the proper way to shear this particular type of rose was under the heading of "The sheer pleasure of pruning floribundas and polyanthus" After that, I did not even need to read the mildew section.
The only dummy is the one that does not buy this book.

[Linda (NOT RECEIVING NOTIFICATIONS) · Rating 3 out of 5]

ROSES FOR DUMMIES is just that: a basic A-Z book for those that are new to growing roses. The middle pages are devoted to some colorful pictures of roses that the author and editors of the National Gardening Association want you to consider. Everything else is in black and white. There is enough information here to digest so don't be put off by the cover.

In many cases the information contained in this book was provided by members of the American Rose Society so you can't go wrong. For those of you who have more experience and want colorful pictures and informative descriptions look for the AMERICAN ROSE SOCIETY ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ROSES by Charles and Brigid Quest-Ritson. If there is a rose that still exists you should find it here.

[Sarah Roddis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic and helpful for a beginner like me.