DRYLAND GARDENING

by Ferne

Dryland Gardening-Plants that survive and thrive in tough conditions

It's that time of year when this gardener sits back and rests her backside but not her eyes or imagination. The first book picked up was DRY LAND GARDENING-Plants that survive and thrive in tough conditions by Jennifer Bennett published in 2005 by Firefly Books.

This turned out to be better than my expectations. There is a light weight section of "how to" at the front but the major portion--and for me--more interesting part of the book is a reference guide of plants that are particularly suitable for dry and hot conditions....Handy for someone who lives in Zone 5b on the northern edge of the Canadian Okanagan in British Columbia....Hot summers and cold winters with modest amounts or rain or snow.

The best surprise was to find that most plants selected were suitable for Zones 2 and up--not the assortment of southern desert plants I thought I would have to weed through. Zones were marked nice and visably at the top too and more recent varieties recommended under "favourites" were zoned individually where necessary. Information was basic, useful and accurate.

If you are a beginner, this might not give the detail you would like under "how to grow" but if you know that you have dry conditions or a dry area, and aren't sure what would thrive or what would rot, this will be a useful book to have on hand. For those who are looking for recent information on "improved" or other modern selections, you will find some listed here with brief but no nonsense descriptions.

There are sections on Herbs, Grasses & Ground Covers, Bulbs, Perennials & Vines, Annuals and Shrubs.
There is a good 'source' area in the back with addresses, information websites, phone numbers, and cost of catalogues etc. Although the majority of these are American there are few for Canada and one for England. Price will vary but should fall into the $15 to $25 sort of range.