The Ultimate Rose Book

I checked this out from my local library. It is simply amazing. Each rose is intensly described, has pictures, and has entertaining sections about roses in other cultures, histories, and uses. This is a very (okay, not too very) useful book if you are a hybridizer as it provides info about each rose about its parentage, etc,.,. Modern Rose 10 is more apt for the rose hybridizer, but this is a book to browse and gaze at some of the incredibly photographed pictures.Enrique

This book has a picture for every single rose it lists. And it tells you about the certain aspects of every rose listed like: Is it fragrant?, Does it bloom more than once a season?, and is it known to get black spot?, mildew? or any other diseases roses can get? And it also includes a little history/backround of each rose. The book in addition to listing roses has a small section in the back that tells you how to grow roses from clippings and it tells you how to graft buds onto different bushes. Intersperced throughout the book there are also articals on stuff like the history of the rose in america and the search for the legondary blue rose which has still yet to be found. The only cons I found in this book were that it is hard to find some of the roses listed (I still can't find acouple of the roses shown in this book anywhere for sale)and the two other cons are that this book is HUGE so it is unlikely that you could take it with you for rose shopping and this book only covers roses that were avaliable up to about 1989 so newer roses like Black Magic from jackson & perkins are not listed.

Lately, I've been on a rose book collection spree, and a gift certificate for Valentine's Day allowed me to purchase two new and relatively expensive rose books, THE ULTIMATE ROSE BOOK and BOTANICA'S ROSES. Reading the reviews, I wondered which one would turn out to be "the best" however, both are excellent, and both have qualities that will make them more or less appealing to a reader and/or gardener.THE ULTIMATE ROSE BOOK is much larger (taller, not thicker), but both books are very heavy. The quality of the photos in both books is excellent. The paper stock is fine and thick, but BOTANICA's is slick and glossy, while ULTIMATE ROSE is less reflective of light making it easier to read. Both contain additional information rose lovers will enjoy.ULTIMATE ROSE contains fewer entries per page, but the type is much larger, making reading a bit easier for the sight impaired. Entries are in alphabetical order within three categories: "Wild Roses", "Old and Modern Roses" and "Miniature Roses." For example, in the main section, "Old and Modern Roses", Stirling Macoboy lists 'Honorine de Brabant' a bourbon rose with 'Honor' a large-flowered rose (modern hybrid) and 'Hot Chocolate' a cluster-flowered rose (i.e., floribunda). The subtitle of Macoboy's book is "1,500 roses...selected for their beauty, fragrance and enduring popularity." His entries include some information about parentage, blooming pattern, and a bit of history. For example, I just purchased a 'Comte de Chambord' rose and ULTIMATE ROSE is the first of a dozen books to tell me the rose is named for the sad son of Charles X who refused the crown of France and died in exile. BOTANICA'S also follows an alphabetical scheme, grouping roses into "Wild Roses" and everything else A-Z. BOTANICA'S lists 'Honorine de Brabant' with 'Honore de Balzac' and 'Hoot Owl', but also lists 'Honor' and 'Hot Chocolate' which ULTIMATE ROSE does not. BOTANICA'S also lists Growing Zones in addition to growing conditions and information about parentage and blooming. In summary, if you can afford it, buy both books as they both contain useful and interesting information that surprisingly does not overlap. If you are more concerned with the nitty-gritty growing information, BOTANICA'S is the better buy. If you want an easy to read book with a bit of history and mythical lore, and a book that contians a select list of choices recommended by an expert rosarian, Macoboy's ULTIMATE ROSE is the better buy.

I purchased this book in 1994 for $50 I didn't really have and never regretted doing so. If you adore roses of any sort, want to know floribunda from grandiflora, or just want your two bushes to survive; you must have it. I am cheap and passionate about horticulture. If you need to know about roses, buy only this book! Anything else is about as useful as a government pamphlet.

For sometime I have been searching for a rose encyclopedia which not only reviews roses but also provides PHOTOS FOR EACH VARIETY REVIEWED. Alas, this book is the closest I am ever going to get! In this book more than 1,500 roses around the world are discussed in detail. For each entry a description containing plant history, appearance, (e.g. flower color) and growing tips is accompanied with a COLOR (quite astonishing and beautiful!) photograph. In addition to these reviews, there are articles featuring the history and cultural significance of roses. Furthermore, the author includes several quick lists for roses with special qualities (e.g. fragrance). I find these lists very useful and rather handy during my plant and garden theme selection process. I do have one complaint about the arrangement of the non-climbing roses. The author places the non-clmbing roses in the same category with climbing varieties. For someone who just wants to look for a climbing rose, there is no quick way of identifying one but to read through the entries within each category. Unfortunately, I can not find a quick list on that subject either. Oh, well, no one (in this case, no book) is perfect. Nevertheless, I highly recommend this book to any reader. In fact, this book will no doubt take one's breath away. If you have ever wondered how a person could get "hooked" on roses, just take a look at the book cover (a floral arrangement of roses). Time to order!