Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation: From Seed to Tissue Culture

Livre vraiment très utile

Das Buch: Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation: From Seed to Tissue Culture ist ein sehr gutes Handbuch zur Anzucht und Vermehrung von Gehölzen, in das die beiden renomierten Autoren ihre eigene Erfahrung und intime Kenntnis in der Gehölzanzucht und -vermehrung einfließen lassen.Es geht m.E. in vielen, v.a. erfolgversprechenden Details über das hinaus, was etwa deutsche Bücher zum proffessionellen Baumschulwesen (wie etwa Der Baumschulbetrieb von Andreas Bärtels) zu diesem Themenkomplex mitzuteilen haben.Abgesehen davon, daß es dem deutschen Leser gute Englischkenntnisse abverlangt, ist es ein absolut empfehlenswertes praxisorientiertes Handbuch, das alle gängigen Methoden der vegetativen und generativen Gehölzvermehrung in einzelnen Kapitel und bei jeder, in botanisch-alphabetischer Ordnung aufgeführten Pflanzenart, soweit für dieselbe üblich, behandelt.Typisch amerikanisch ist die für unsere Gewohnheit die etwas schnoddrige oder simple Aufmachung: ein dem großen Format nicht angemessener dünner Paperbackeinband, dazwischen Seiten in einfacher Kopierpapierqualität und Schwarzweissabbildungen in schlechter Wiedergabe. Auf die ebenso farblosen Fotografien hätte aufgrund der schlechten Auflösung auch verzichtet werden können.Dennoch ist der Wissens- und Informationsgehalt allemal die Anschaffung wert!

This is probably not the book to get for a beginner, who just wants to take cuttings from their favourite garden shrub (look for info online or get the RHS propagation book). But if you propagate temperate climate trees and shrubs, this is the book to get.. I will doubtless be referring to it many times in the future. Pictures are black & white and small, but they're adequate for their purpose and this is not the sort of book you get for glossy pictures. It covers a wide range of woody plants: trees, shrubs and climbers, which would grow in any region of US, although it covers far fewer options for the southern, almost sub-tropical regions. It has some less hardy classics, like Albizia julibrissin, but mainly, it covers hardy species. It's written mainly for US audience, so where/when to take cuttings from a particular species, for example, will refer to US regions, and suppliers listed for grafting equipment are all in US, but there are UK (and EC) seed suppliers listed. The fact that it's mainly written for US audience does not detract from its usefulness for UK propagators, it just means you might have to look up the climate zones sometimes, to get full benefit. I am not aware of any similarly detailed book written for UK audience - I have the RHS propagation book, but this is far more useful for woody plants, and covers more of them. It covers grafting, budding and tissue culture, and not only in the general chapters, but also instructions for each species. Although not all propagation methods are covered for each species, guess it's "where appropriate" - have taken 2 pics of randomly selected pages from Encyclopedia section.Contents are:How to Use ManualSeed Propagation, includes: Provenance, Sources, Collection & Handling, Storage, Viability, Treatments to Overcome DormancyCuttings, includes: Why Cuttings?, Types of Cuttings, Collection & Handling, Factors Affecting Rooting (includng rooting hormones), Media & Fertilisers, Rooting Structures, Containers & Bottom Heat, Mist Systems, Fog Systems, Light in Propagation House, Sanitation, Aftercare, Overwintering & StorageGrafting and BuddingTissue Culture (both are just as detailed as the 1st two, won't include all sub-headings, see 3rd pic)Encyclopedia - about 300 pages of dense info about how to propagate each speciesAppendixes (sources, references for tissue culture etc)Scientific Name IndexCommon Name IndexAs said, this is not a glossy coffee table book, and the paper quality and cover reflect this, probably to keep price low. It's perfectly adequate - it's about the contents, not appearance. I bought mine "Used - Like New" and I am very happy with its condition and it arrived within estimated time from UKPaperbackshop.I am so glad I finally bought this, and would definitely recommend..

Poor quality print on demand. Didn't realise it was print on demand until it arrived.

M. Dirr's books are a MUST in my greenhouses. This book is primarily text with some line drawn examples. It is arranged in alphabetical order based on the Latin names of plants. There is a cross reference in the back for common names. For each plant included he describes in great detail:--what different modes of propagation were attempted-- what percentage of results were achieved for each mode (cutting, seed, tissue culture, etc.)-- details for what method should be used for seed-- What IBU rooting hormone was best-- what time of year the propagation was done-- what climate region the specimen was propagated in-- what part of the plant to do tissue culture from-- graftingI am still working my way through this book as I have not read it from cover to cover. It has been a great reference for propagating at my nursery. It is great support material for my customers also. When someone comes in and says "I want to get some starts off my Grandmother's [insert plant here] before the house sells. Please Help." I can flip to the section of the book that describes all the ways to help, and find the one best suited to my customer and the time of year it is.This will not go in depth on every available rootstock for apple trees or grapes or roses...for that you will need a more specialized book that focuses strictly on the species. But as a general reference guide this is AWESOME!