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Michael Dirr is the guru of woody plants.\u00a0 Beginning in 1975, his \u201cManual of Woody Landscape Plants\u201d \u2013 through six editions as of 2009 \u2013 has been required reading for any horticultural student.\u00a0 These books are very technical and rely on line drawings to illustrate their subjects.<\/p>\n
Working with Timber Press, Dirr changed directions in 1997 with the publication of \u201cDirr\u2019s Hardy Trees and Shrubs.\u201d\u00a0 Described by the author as \u201ca photographic essay that profiles and highlights the most common woody landscape plants,\u201d this proved an excellent way to reach a more general gardening audience.\u00a0 This style continued with \u201cDirr\u2019s Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs\u201d (2012).<\/p>\n
While this last book will remain an important reference because of its inclusion of shrubs and helpful lists of selection criteria, the photographic essay approach reached a new height with the publication of \u201cThe Tree Book.\u201d\u00a0 For the first time, it is written with a co-author, Keith Warren.\u00a0 While Dirr is from the southeast, spending his academic career at the University of Georgia, Warren is a retired tree breeder and nurseryman from Oregon.\u00a0 His voice makes this new book especially valuable to gardeners in the Pacific Northwest.<\/p>\n
Photographs are still the eye-grabbers of this huge book (940 pages!), but the text has been expanded to achieve the right balance of being informative without excess detail, and is often very funny.\u00a0 Reading about Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboretum<\/em>), I learned that in its native Georgia it can reach 60\u2019, but \u201cin the dry summers of the West, a 20\u2019 height is a big tree.\u201d\u00a0 The authors claim this as a favorite species, looking good in all seasons, with the best in the fall: \u201cLike a drum roll, the fall color comes on slowly and intensifies, finally reaching a crescendo.\u201d<\/p>\n The authors do an excellent job of highlighting the best of new cultivars or selections of their subjects.\u00a0 For example, I learned of nine cultivars of one my favorite trees, the Persian Ironwood (Parrotia persica<\/em>) \u2013 I only knew of one!\u00a0 There is even a newly available species, Parrotia subaequalis<\/em>, which in Oregon has fall color that \u201cis consistently brilliant red, brighter than P. persica<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n This is a reference book and not available to check out from the Miller Library.\u00a0 However, if you are planting new trees, or want to learn more about trees, I recommend visiting the library and seeking out this book.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Published in Garden Notes: Northwest Horticultural Society<\/em>, Fall 2019<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Michael Dirr is the guru of woody plants.\u00a0 Beginning in 1975, his \u201cManual of Woody Landscape Plants\u201d \u2013 through six editions as of 2009 \u2013 has been required reading for any horticultural student.\u00a0 These books are very technical and rely on line drawings to illustrate their subjects. Working with Timber Press, Dirr changed directions in 1997 with the publication of \u201cDirr\u2019s Hardy Trees and Shrubs.\u201d\u00a0 Described by the author as \u201ca photographic essay that profiles and highlights the most common…<\/p>\n