Palms Won't Grow Here and Other Myths: Warm Climate Plants for Cooler Areas [Hardcover]

Hurrah for Dr. Francko! He has achieved the near-impossible feat of writing a book on hardy palms and other exotics that is at once scientific and accessible. Low on guesswork and assumptions, high on facts, figures, and solid experience, it will surely set the standard for this increasingly popular hobby. -- Martin Gibbons Palm Centre 20021008 A wonderful book! An indispensible, fun-to-read resource for amateur as well as seasoned gardeners and commercial landscapers who want to achieve that tropical look north of the tropics. David Francko's book will revolutionize your gardening ideas. -- Gerry McKiness Gerry's Jungle 20021008 This is a 'must-have' book for the adventurous gardener. David Francko has written the definitive text for those who are not afraid to the push the envelope. Thanks to David Francko, your dreams can come true. -- Tamar Myers Palms 20021008 David Francko has produced an excellent read on how to achieve a tropical look in the temperate garden. His treatment of specific plants is wonderfully precise and fills a need for detailed information for the serious gardener. -- Kyle Brown Kyle Brown Nurseries 20021114 All I can say is, at last, zone map liberation for gardeners. Francko provides both the why and the how of successful experimentation with growing plants several zones away from their supposed homes. He gives the real skinny on bananas and bamboos -- great chapter. I suspect his brand of calm, well-reasoned and lucid explanations on handling winter for plants both temperate and tropical will soothe the panicked beginner and become the bible to consult when well-seasoned gardeners get a little worried by some winter event. This is looking like a book to keep on the desk rather than stow in the bookcase. -- Diane Heilenman Louisville Courier-Journal 20021114 If you've ever been tempted to add palms and other subtropical to your landscape, wait no more. David Francko's book explains how, and is based on the successful experiences of both professional and amateur gardeners. -- Jeff Stevens Southeastern Palms 20021114 With this highly readable guide in hand, plant lovers can look forward to the challenge and the prospect of animating their gardens with a new and expanded palette of exciting possibilities. -- Alice Joyce Booklist 20021122 A must-have for the northern gardener who longs for a touch of the south. -- Robert Haehle National Gardener 20030212 Witty and knowledgeable ... [Francko] gives gardeners hope of having a garden singularly different from all others. -- Joanne S. Carpender National Gardener 20030218 Francko dispels ... myth with his witty and knowledgeable slant on growing many varieties of plants. -- Joanne S. Carpender National Gardener 20030218 This book includes some fascinating information that'll help you decrease your winter losses whether you're growing palms or azaleas. Harrisburg Patriot-News 20030206 If you're up for the extra work and patience required to add a tropical flair to your garden, Palms Won't Grow Here and Other Myths will give you plenty of information and incentive. -- Jean Starr Munster (IN) Times 20030215 I've been encouraged [by this book]. -- Anne Raver New York Times 20030209 This guide is recommended for the gardening collections in public libraries. -- Shannon Hysell American Reference Books Annual 20030327 Adventurous gardeners will welcome this book... Offers a logical approach based on understanding and accommodating plant needs. With humorous asides and practical tips, Francko challenges cool-temperature gardeners to consider growing exotic, tropical plkants that they have previously considered too tender for their climate. -- Yvonne England American Gardener 20030423 A very personal account of gardening successes, written in a friendly, accessible style... For anyone living in a cold climate and wanting to grow palms, this book may awaken an obsession that no therapist can touch. -- Scott Zona Palms 20030506 A groundbreaking new book. Martha Stewart Living 20030406 An adventurous guide to growing warm-climate plants in cold-winter climates. Northwest Horticultural Society 20030507 Helps adventurous gardeners grow plants they never dreamed possible. Publishers Weekly 20030517 Adventurous gardeners will welcome this book... With humorous asides and practical tips, Francko challenges cool-temperature gardeners to consider growing exotic, tropical plants that they have previously considered too tender for their climate. American Gardener 20030522 If defying Mother Nature is your cup of tea, here's the guidebook to help you along the way! Green Thumb Chatter 20030527 A welcome addition ... Will help educate the beginner and also provide essential information to those gardeners who have more experience. -- Will Giles Garden (Peterborough) 20030611 Even if you decide against trying to grow a banana tree, you'll learn a lot. More From Isthmus 20030611 You can enjoy it without putting a shovel in the soil. -- Marty Figley Michigan Observer and Eccentric 20030626 Garden members who have summer homes in the north, visitors from non-tropical areas, and landscapers who have to deal with a wide range of climates will all appreciate this book. -- Susan Knorr Fairchild Tropical Garden 20030708 It's a unique and encouraging reference for gardeners in cooler areas. -- Jeff Stevens Southeastern Palms 20030721 Gardeners who persist in thinking beyond the hardiness box will find much encouragement for their adventuring. -- Helen Chesnut Victoria Times Colonist 20030524 This book is for adventurous gardeners. -- Don Davis Lynchburg News and Advance 20030709 A valuable effort for marginal areas like Berkeley. Taxon 20030515 The discussion of physiology is at least as interesting as the plant descriptions and advice. -- Ann Milovsoroff Pappus 20030123 This book continues Timber Press' reputation as a publisher of broad-interest nature books with usefulness and appeal beyond the intended audience. -- Scott Ruhren Plant Science Bulletin 20030930 Francko's book is a treasure. -- George Weigel People Places Plants 20040401 Camellias have always been a wished-for plant but I gave them up for my Zone 6 garden after my last winter-kill. Well, I might try again--especially if I can get a banana to winter in-ground as David Francko promises in Palms Won't Grow Here. -- Donna Williamson HortResources Newsletter 20040121 Francko's writing is complete and concise, with enough scientific information to satisfy the professional botanist but enough explanation to make the book useful for the enthusiastic amateur horticulturalist. -- Kate Bertin Forsyth Independent Press 20041118

Hardy palm expert David A. Francko, has recently been a featured guest on Martha Stewart Living TV, as well as NPR's Science Friday with Ira Flatow. Francko is chair of the Department of Botany at Miami University in Ohio and his academic specialty is aquatic plants. He is co-investigator on the university's Hardy Palm Project, and for many years he has experimented with warm-climate plants in his own gardens. Francko's findings have been published in scientific journals and presented at national and international conferences. As part of a network of adventurous gardeners living in cooler regions of the world, Francko refuses to accept the common wisdom that "Palms won't grow here."