Miracle Gro Beautiful Perennials: Simple Techniques to Make Your Garden Sensational

by Marilyn Rogers (Editor)

A comprehensive guide to growing beautiful perennials presents step-by-step instructions on how to select the right perennial plants to suit one's taste, budget, and climate, with advice on how to design, cultivate, and care for a variety of perennial plants. Original. 35,000 first printing.

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 10, 2006

Reviews

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good resource for everything you need to know to grow perennials from start to finish. From choosing the site and deciding on a style, to designing your garden, choosing plants, and growing your garden, this book has you covered every step of the way.

The beginning of this particular book was a bit much for me with its drawings of garden designs; that just seemed like superfluous effort for this casual gardener. But garden design elements are important factors that are often overlooked. For instance, something as simple as considering plant height before planting will prevent the issue of having a tall plant blocking views of a shorter plant. I can also see how the garden design elements and the accompanying drawings would be useful for a larger scale project like a full yard makeover.

I must admit I laughed when I got to the section about laying out the garden. “The first step in planting perennials is to lay out the bed. This also is an excellent time to check the design.” Ha! Let me tell you, I have tried this, and it has never worked out as planned! No matter what the tag says about ideal growing conditions, the plants never work out in my ideal spot. I have moved so many plants around my yard; very few things are where they originally started.

So if you are a beginning gardener take the advice about laying out your garden with an open mind and a flexible attitude. Don’t be afraid to move things around and see if they do better in different locations in your yard. Utilize the techniques set out in the book to establish and care for your garden and you’ll soon have beautiful perennials to enjoy.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 2004 I was in England to attend my daughter and now son-in-law's wedding, and it was there that I first fell in love with the English gardens. Inspired by their beauty, I longed to have an English garden. I started planning by purchasing books on gardening. This how-to book is about perennials and much more, and is very helpful. It contains information on choosing a site, deciding on a style, designing a garden, choosing plants, growing perennial, and other topics and beautiful pictures.
I ended up adding a tree, removing some bushes, adding stones, and white fence and arbor to my garden. I enjoyed it for many years until I injured a preferential nerve in my arm and lost use of one of my hands, moved to another state, and am planning to make another English garden in my backyard.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm trying to add some perennials to my garden and this book had a lot of helpful tips and ideas. I thought they spent way too much time discussing garden plans though...who on earth honestly draws intricate, color-coded sketches of their gardens??