Rating: 
Summary: One of the best succulent books I've seen
Review: Beautiful pictures and helpful information are what makes this such a fantastic book. Descriptions of individual species is a bit sparse, but this doesn't detract much from the overall appeal of this book.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best succulent books I've seen
Review: Beautiful pictures and helpful information are what makes this such a fantastic book. Descriptions of individual species is a bit sparse, but this doesn't detract much from the overall appeal of this book.
Rating: 
Summary: This should be on the shelf of all cacti collectors.
Review: I recommend this book to all cacti collectors, especially beginners. I have more than a dozen cacti book on my shelf but this book, with its colorful plant catalogue, stands out to be my most referenced book. The other book than I also refer to frequently (and would also highly recommend) is "Cacti: The illustrated Dictionary" by Preston-Mafham. There are a few reasons for my love for this book by Terry Hewitt. Firstly, its plant catalogue, while not matching Preston-Mafham's book in terms of number of species illustrated, contains more than a 100-plus of the most commonly grown cacti and succulents. You will therefore, still most likely find a new plant that you've just acquired in the book. Incidentally, this is in contrast to Preston-Mafham's book, which only illustrates globular cacti; it has nothing on other form of cactus and succulents. Secondly, Terry Hewitt gives a very succinct description of each species, giving information such as their natural habitat, flowering habits and other characteristics and needs of the plant. Thirdly, the book contains other equally useful chapters on propagation, care and pest control. This beautiful book should definitely be on the shelf of all cacti and succulents collectors.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent reference, not just for beginners
Review: If you had to limit yourself to just one book, this should be that book.For novices, this book has excellent basic advice for getting started, including many pictures and of how to display and plant them. For those with more experience, the book is a handy first reference before searching a specialized botanical tome. This book makes the specific point that (popular, commonly available) cacti are no more difficult to grow than any other house plant. The book thoroughly covers the needs of these plants, including what kind of soil, how much water, what temperature and amount of light they prefer. The largest section has all of the popular genera, including the tropical varieties. This section has excellent photography of the plants at their best. If a person had a cactus that's in this book, that person would very likely be able to identify it from the descriptions and pictures. The book usually describes the distinguishing feature that classifies the plants of that type. Typical and maximum sizes are given, along with the plants' growth habits and the age at which they first flower (some varieties do not flower until they are many years old). Also included in this section is the hardiness, or how cold the plants can get before they die. If you don't live where these plants naturally grow, this is very important information. For instance, many kinds of cactus grow where it snows in the winter and can be grown outdoors in most of the USA. At least one of each of the different general forms of cactus is shown: columnar cacti, prickly-pear types, barrel types, etc. Following the section on specific cacti is a fairly representative section on popular succulents. There are so very many different kinds of succulents in the world, even a book ten times thicker would barely scratch the surface. This book concentrates on those species which are most commonly planted alongside cactus. The lists at the back of the book are almost worth the price of the book itself. There are lists that categorize cacti and succulents in every which way, including many species that were not pictured or discussed in the main sections. There are lists by how easy the plants are to grow ("easy", "moderate", "difficult"), lists by temperature range ("cool", "temperate", "hot"), and other useful groupings. These lists help make this book continually valuable, even as one's experience and knowledge grows beyond the basics. This author (Terry Hewitt) has written other books on cacti and succulents. Those books are also excellent, and worth purchasing for the unique information that they contain, but mainly as supplements to this book. There are also other excellent cactus books that are more complete, but also more technical - or more specialized (for instance, there is an entire reference work on just the "opuntia" (prickly-pear) species). This book is perfectly written for the average amateur cactus lover.
Rating:
Summary: Kill Your Lawn - Part 2
Review: Several years ago I converted my front lawn into a cactus garden. Actually, it's a hybrid cactus/zen garden. It has the requisite stream [dry of course] and dry pond. The buddhas have been replaced by coyotes and the lamps by Mexican-style chimneys. My neighbors seem to like it [at least they haven't tried to run me out of town]. Terry Hewitt's The Complete Book Of Cacti and Succulents has been an invaluable reference in my cactus education. It's a DK book and therefore has the killer DK style that I love so much. It's not as comprehensive as Miles Anderson's The Ultimate Book Of Cacti And Succulents [which Terry Hewitt consulted on], but it is still an excellent reference. My rating is actually higher than 4 stars, but not high enough to make it a 5 star book.
Rating:
Summary: Kill Your Lawn - Part 2
Review: Several years ago I converted my front lawn into a cactus garden. Actually, it's a hybrid cactus/zen garden. It has the requisite stream [dry of course] and dry pond. The buddhas have been replaced by coyotes and the lamps by Mexican-style chimneys. My neighbors seem to like it [at least they haven't tried to run me out of town]. Terry Hewitt's The Complete Book Of Cacti and Succulents has been an invaluable reference in my cactus education. It's a DK book and therefore has the killer DK style that I love so much. It's not as comprehensive as Miles Anderson's The Ultimate Book Of Cacti And Succulents [which Terry Hewitt consulted on], but it is still an excellent reference. My rating is actually higher than 4 stars, but not high enough to make it a 5 star book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book- great info.- great photos!
Review: Terry Hewitt's Complete Book of Cacti & Succulents may not exactly be complete (it is not an encyclopedia), but it is thorough and is an excellent book especially for beginners. Hewitt discusses the anatomy and discovery of cacti/succulents, how to plant them, propogate them, how to keep them healthy, and even discusses how best to display the plants. And of course the most important part: the plant catalog. He covers hundreds of cacti and succulents in full color. In addition to the many desert cacti I'm happy to say that Hewitt also covers epiphytic cacti including aporocactus, aporophyllum, epiphyllum, and the Christmas cacus. In the back of the book the author includes Plant Selection Lists. In these lists he lists the plants that are best for beginners, as indoor pot plants, those that are easy to flower, those that grow best in the different climates, etc. And I again want to stress the many, many beautiful, clear full color photos throughout the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Complete but still Very Good
Review: The book is very well produced and the photography is very good. The author is well known and respected in Cacti circles and the book reflects his knowledge and status. The first section relates to the history and discovery of cacti and shows some amazing photographs of cacti in their habitat. It goes on to show how best to display your cacti in suitable containers and then a chapter on the differing shapes of the plants and their flowers The plant catalogue itself does not show too many of the different genera, but the popular ones are there and what it does do is show photographs of a number of species within a certain genera and this appeals to me. Too many books try to over-reach themselves and try to cram in as many genera as possible, showing a photograph of one species and very short descriptions of one or two other species. In this book the descriptions of each plant give the average height, flower colour etc. and also the min. temp. each plant will stand. The book shares space equally between true cacti and succulents and they are presented separately which makes the book layout clean and easily readable. At the end of the book are several pages on plant selection in sections, i.e. Plants for beginners; Plants for the Greenhouse; Free Flowering plants etc. This is another plus. One criticism I have is that many of the plants are photographed from directly overhead, this may be aesthetically pleasing, but does not give a true reflection of the size and shape of the plant and is not really my cup of tea. But this is a small moan about what is otherwise an excellent book. At this price the book is a good buy and there is something for everyone interested in the care of these unusual plants. I am happy to have this book in my collection.
Rating:
Summary: I'd reccommend this to anyone out there collecting cacti.
Review: This book is definitley the one to buy if you are just begginning to collect cacti and succulents. It is still useful even if you have owned cacti and succulents for some time, and is a reference material that can be used again and again. The book starts with the basics of cacti and succulent growing, and moves on, detailing how to plant them, how to arrange them is creating a display, and a massive amount more of infomation, all just helping you get started. From there it details the more complicated things, like grafting a cactus onto a stock for instance, and the best ways to propigate them. The most valuable part of the book though is a detailed 'Plant Catalogue', which gives specific information on the needs and identification of ovver 100 different plants. This is definitley the book you want to buy for your Cacti Collection.
Rating:
Summary: Not the "Complete" Book without Yuccas!
Review: This is a georgeous book, but it doesn't mention Yuccas at all! There is very little on Agavaceae in general.
The outstanding photography makes it somewhat worthwhile. All of the plants are photographed on white seamless, so they really pop off the page.
|
