Xeriscaping for Florida Homes
By Monica Moran Brandies
Size 8.5" x 11", 184 pages, b&w photos, appendices include resource list and extensive plant directory illustrated with color photos, bibliography, index.
ISBN 0-8200-0418-9, $18.95
 

 

Water is a resource that is becoming more precious all the time in Florida, as recurring droughts, global warming, burgeoning population growth and sprawling land development continue to take their toll. Do your part to alleviate the shortage, and do it painlessly within the constraints of your time and financial budgets while creating a more attractive, enjoyable landscape in the process. It's easier than you think—and more fun—so don't wait another day to transform your thirsty yard into a beautiful, water-saving garden! And if you think Xeriscape means you must have a stark, desert landscape, think again...

ANY plant can be a "Xeriscape plant" if it's placed in the proper watering zone

This book takes into account the special problems faced by Florida gardeners. It will help you to:

1. Use the seven basic Xeriscape principles successfully
2. Evaluate your current landscape plan
3. Make the best use of the water you give your plants
4. Incorporate water-saving products into your activities
5. Efficiently collect and reuse water
6. Conserve water every day—inside your home, too!

And because it's easiest to learn by example, it has:

1. Sketches and descriptions of different types of installed Xeriscape gardens
2. Extensive plant charts that cover every area of the state

About the Author
Mrs. Brandies is a full-time freelance writer whose work has been published extensively. She writes about gardening, landscaping, family life, handicapped children, religion, travel, self-help, crafts, how-to, parenting, food, nutrition, health, business, people and the environment.

Once a regular contributor to the garden pages of the Des Moines Register, the Muscatine Journal and the Tampa Tribune, she now writes and takes photos for the Grower's Guide pages of the Brandon News. Her weekly newspaper columns have appeared in various local papers for nearly 25 years.

Books to which Mrs. Brandies has contributed include Step-by-Step Landscaping and New Garden Book (Better Homes & Gardens), All About Trees and All About Ground Covers (both by Ortho Books). With Lois Trigg Chaplin she co-authored The Florida Gardener's Book of Lists and with Betty Mackey A Cutting Garden for Florida. She has also written the following gardening books: Xeriscaping for Florida Homes, Florida Gardening: The Newcomer's Survival Manual, Herbs and Spices for Florida Gardens, and Ortho's Guide to Herbs. Her first book, Sprouts and Saplings, was published by Strawberry Hill Press. In 1997 she expanded her repertoire into autobiographical essays with Bless You for the Gifts, a delightful collection of stories about family farm life.

Mrs. Brandies' magazine credits include Better Homes & Gardens Ideas, Nursery Digest, Midwest Living, Family Circle, Woman's Day, Family Digest, Catholic Digest, House and Garden, Flower and Garden, and many others.

Copyright © 2003-2008 Great Outdoors Publishing Company, Inc.