Viva Perennials!
By George Graine, Fairfax Master Gardener
“Herbaceous — A plant that doesn’t have woody tissue and dies back to the ground in the winter in colder climates.” –Pamela Bennett and Maria Zampini in Garden-pedia
Do we need another book on perennial plants or do we need a perennial book that is unlike a bookshelf full of limited and/or outdated information? The answer is obvious because Dr. Allan M. Armitage, known to many in the green industry as Dr. A, has nailed it by producing the most up-to-date and thorough book. In addition to his distinguished academic career, he has written numerous books on a variety of horticultural subjects.
His latest on perennials will be hard to top. The title is “Herbaceous Perennial Plants: A Treatise on their Identification, Culture, and Garden Attributes” — Fourth Edition (Stipes Publishing LLC, 2020). His first book on perennial plants was written 31 years ago and at that time it was the leading resource for this type of plants. Now after three decades of plant exploration, changes to taxonomy, genetics (DNA), laboratory tissue culture and more that have taken place, we now have numerous and improved plants. This new book is carefully researched from many of these various angles. The fourth edition reflects a resource for new cultivars, new genera and even new names. It brings information up-to-date because a lot has changed, horticulturally speaking, since his 646 page first edition in 1989. Now in 2020, Dr. A’s text is close to twice the number of pages.
It is not over the top to refer to this book as the perennial plant bible for newbie gardeners, experienced gardeners, Master Gardeners and landscape designers. Dr. A has a writing style, including subtle humor, that makes for easy and understandable reading for gardeners regardless of their proficiency. No one should be disappointed with his explanations in a tell-it-like-it-is writing style because Dr. A has a unique way of explaining the how and why of herbaceous perennials. In his own words he likes to use the phrase “garden worthiness” in addition to many other attributes such as cultivar selection, size, seasonality, etc. This is an interesting addition to the gardener’s mantra of right plant, right place and let’s add right purpose too. Not to be ignored are more than 300 color photographs that will help to enhance some of the plant descriptions.
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of the book, Dr. A included eight pages of his personal thoughts on gardening in general. This sets the basis for his encyclopedia on perennial plants that follows. He knows how people think and how behavior has changed over time. Included in his “manifesto” and personal introductory remarks is a quote by the Turkish philosopher Heraclitus (535-475 BC) in which he stated, “The only thinking that is constant is change.” Surely, he was not referring to horticulture, but how prescient is this quote today when applied to gardens and gardeners. Nevertheless, this statement is still an accurate one. Take to heart the last paragraph of Dr. A’s thoughts on gardening. He says, “The most important thing about gardening is to have fun. There will be some aches, frustration, money poorly spent, and disappointment, but the pleasure should always outweigh the pain. Don’t get serious, ever, about gardening. The worst oxymoron in all of horticulture is — serious gardener. Don’t be one; let it wash over you and enjoy the day.” Amen Dr. A. That sums it all up!
In summary, perennials are an extremely important part of the garden because they “… have a unique charm and flavor to any garden.” This is true because season after season they add interest and change. Of course, you can probably expect some changes in the near future because horticultural science keeps evolving. So, stay tuned because there is more to come. But … as Dr. A says, “If one wants to see the demise of gardening, keep making it complicated.”