Neil Sperry's Complete Guide to Texas Gardening

The completely revised and updated "Neil seven and Net map Complete Guide to Texas Plants" has: * 400 new plants * 500 new photographs * 400 new illustrations Other reviews should tell you what you would find in this book. I listened to Neil Sperry on the radio on weekends. So when I bought my new house I also decided to buy this book. A tree had already been planted in my front yard. So I used his botanical illustrations to determine what kind of tree it was. When designing raised guarded, I selected most of the plants from this book. On a visit to local nursery named Winston Gardens I found a beautiful wispy plant called River Privet. A planned this plant to hide the back fences and gives the impression of the forest. I found the plant in a one-paragraph statement in Neil's book. It was everything that he said. I should have looked closer at his varieties paragraph. Maybe he was trying to tell me something. In his radio show he said that they have a tendency to takeover. Ha, not that cute little thing. Three years later the privets are beautiful. However I find my weekends picking up privet-etts from the lawn. Bottom-line; don't just buy the book for the pictures. Read it.

As a longtime Texas resident, first in the DFW area and currently in the San Antonio area, and an amateur gardener, I have collected over the years, every book I can find on the subject of gardening, particurally Texas gardening.Although I believe many aspects of the book could be improved, such as its organization, latest organic techniques, newer varieties etc., (How about a third edition, Neil?) I still believe it is the best single volume reference for the homeowner.(...)

I became a first time homeowner 2 years ago and I didn't know anything about gardening. My friend recommended this book to me and it has been very educational. It is the only book I reference when planning my garden. This book is broken down by topic: Perennials, Annuals, Trees, Shrubs, etc. It explains the differences between all the flowers and what environment is best for each flower/shrub/vine/trees. The pictures are great! There are pictures of almost every plant he describes. I have able to choose my flowers to plant each season from the book so when I go to the nursery I know exactly what I need.

Texas is a different planet, and Neil Sperry has charted it. No other gardening book in the world prepares someone for the extreme climates, the hideous excuse for soil, and the vast assortment of herbaceous critters that exist in this state. You have to have this book to succeed in landscaping endeavors. The pages on my copy are well-worn. It is an excellent, easy-to-use reference bible. A bargain at twice the price.

This book is wonderfully informative. It has hundreds of color pictures to help you choose plants and covers the ones that are native or adapt very well to our climate. Don't be thinking you can check it out at the library. I live in Austin and they have dozens of copies but they are checked out at every branch. IT'S A MUST HAVE!