Book Review: Nevada Gardener’s Guide

Linn Mills and Dick Post. Nevada Gardener’s Guide. Revised Edition. Franklin, Tennessee: Cool Springs Press, 2001. 272 pages.

Few, if any, people move to Nevada for the gardening, but it is possible to grow a healthy and productive garden in the Silver State. In the NEVADA GARDENER’S GUIDE, authors Linn Mills and Dick Post–respected authorities in Southern and Northern Nevada, respectively–help the novice gardener learn how to develop a greener thumb.

The authors start by walking the reader through the basics of Nevada gardening. As a desert region, Nevada has large swings in temperature. Two helpful maps show the heat zones and cold-hardiness zones, which the plant descriptions that make up the meat of the book refer back to. This is invaluable–by following Mills and Post, you will pick the right plants for your region, which should save plenty of heartache later.

Like other gardening books, the NEVADA GARDENER’S GUIDE has detailed information about individual plants. Most of the book is made up of single-page summaries of individual plants. Each has a photo, a descriptive paragraph written by one of the authors, , info on how to plant, growing tips, care instructions, tips on design, and the authors’ “personal favorite” variety. The full-color illustrations on each page give the reader a good idea of what their plant should look like when in good health. With the watering, sun, and pest-control information, keeping them in good shape should me much easier.

After the introduction, the book is divided into 12 parts, each dealing with a different category of plant: a few include annuals, cactuses, ground covers, palms, shrubs, and trees. If it grows in the soil (or a pot), you’ll likely find it in here.

In short, this is an indispensable aid to gardeners in any part of the state. Armed with the information here, you’ll feel better picking out plants in the nursery, planting at the right time, setting your watering timers. It’s a wonderful reference work that should pay for itself many times over.

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