The below list of books is an edited selection from an original Maryland Native Plant Society posting [http://www.mdflora.org/booklist.html]. We have added to the list slightly to accommodate Wild Edible Plants and other interesting books.
Note: The Maryland Native Plant Society's mission is to promote awareness, appreciation, and conservation of Maryland's native plants and their habitats.
Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants of Eastern and Central North America (Peterson Field Guide Series); Lee Allen Peterson; 1977; Houghton Mifflin: Boston
Recommended - A beginner's guide. Great starter book to introduce new foragers to wild edible plants.
A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants: Eastern and Central North America (Peterson Field Guide Series); Steven Foster, Roger Tory Peterson, James A. Duke; 1998; Houghton Mifflin: Boston; ISBN: 0-39592-0663
This can not be used as a general Identification book since its key is a confusing combination of flower type, habitat and overall growth habit. It can, however, be used for final identification in combination with an ID book. It describes in a general way the medical uses of specific species by groups such as Native American and early settlers but is not explicit on exactly how the plant was used.
Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (and not so wild) Places; Steve Brill "Wildeman" and Evelyn Dean; 1994; Hearst Books: New York
Shoots and Greens of Early Spring in Eastern North America; Steve Brill; Jamaica, 1990; Self-published: New York
Both Steve Brill books Recommended - Each has good b/w illustrations by the author and a recipe is provided for each of the 25 plants. Brill was arrested in Central Park for eating dandelions and the subsequent negative publicity eventually led to the City's hiring Brill as a resident naturalist.
Euell Gibbons' Handbook of Edible Wild Plants; Euell Gibbons and Gordon C. Tucker; 1979; Donning: Virginia Beach
Highly Recommended - Published after his death, this book is a rare look into Euell's wildfood knowledge. Gibbons books are an important component of any great wild food library. Gibbons covers plants in the kind of depth you rarely find in other books. He reports knowledge based on experience.
Stalking the Wild Asparagus; Euell Gibbons; 25th anniversary ed.; 1962; A. C. Hood; Putney, VT; reprint Distributed by the Countryman Press: 1987
Edible Wild Plants of Pennsylvania and Neighboring States; Richard J. and Mary Lee Medve; 1990; Pennsylvania State University Press: University Park, PA
The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants; Samuel Thayer;2006; Forager's Harvest: Ogema, WI
Highly Recommended - Sam's books have been compared to Euell Gibbons works to be just as experience based. Be on the lookout for his next book.
Handbook of Edible Weeds; James A. Duke; 2001; CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL
Wildfoods Field Guide and Cookbook; Billy Joe Tatum; 1976; Workman Publishing Company, Inc: New York, NY; ISBN:0-911104-77-1.
This is an excellent cookbook and is written by a woman living in Arkansas. The books contains a wide variety of recipes and nice drawings.
Edible Wild Plants: A North American Field Guide; Thomas S. Elias and Peter A. Dykeman; 1990; Sterling Pub. Co.P: New York; Rev. ed. of Field guide to North American edible wild plants; 1982
The Neighborhood Forager: A Guide for the Wild Food Gourmet; Robert K. Henderson; 2000; Chelsea Green Pub.: White River Junction, VT
The Useful Wild Plants of Texas, the Southeastern U.S., the Southern Plains, and Northern Mexico; Scooter Cheetham and Michael C. Johnson; 1995; Austin, TX
A surprising number of plants that grow in Texas are found throughout the east coast. Scooter Cheetham, one of the founders of the Primitive Technology Journal, is publishing 16 volumes of useful plants of Texas of which only three are complete. Highly Recommended super references and well worth the costly investment.
Plants, People, and Culture: The Science of Ethnobotany; Michael J. Balick, Paul Alan Cox; 1997; W H Freeman & Co; 256 pages; ISBN: 0-71676-0274
Ethnobotanists Cox and Balick share two decades of experience living with the indigenous peoples of Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Southeast Asia, conducting fieldwork in the study of how people use plants. The result of their efforts details a story of human culture in relationship to the plants they have traditionally used for medicinal, recreational, and ornamental purposes. These two leading ethnobotanists argue that human cultural origins are inter-woven with plants. They examine everything from the prehistoric use and gathering of plants by hunter-gatherers to modern times.
Poisonous Plants
Toxic plants of North America; George E. Burrows and Ronald J. Tyrl. Ames; 2001; Iowa State University Press
Herbaceous Plants
Newcomb's Wildflower Guide; Lawrence Newcomb; 1989; Little Brown & Co; ISBN: 0-316-60442-9
Highly Recommended - Probably the best book for carrying around on a day hike. Very good for general use. It has an easy to use key that is good for many common, and not so common species.
Herbaceous Plants of Maryland; Melvin Brown, and Russell Brown; 1964; Port City Press: Baltimore, MD.
Highly Recommended - This is the definitive source for identification of herbaceous plants in Maryland. It is not simple to use but the key will get you to a definitive identification. Too large for most people to carry hiking. This book includes the flowering vascular plants plus ferns, grasses, sedges, and rushes, but excludes woody plants and mosses.
A Field Guide to Wildflowers : Northeastern and North-Central North America (Peterson Field Guides); Roger Tory Peterson, Margaret McKenny; 1998; Houghton Mifflin Co: Boston; ISBN: 0-395-91172-9
A good book for the beginning student.
National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers: Eastern Region; William A. Niering, Nancy C. Olmstead; 1979; Knopf: New York City; ISBN: 0-394-50432-1
A book appropriate to the beginning student. It has beautiful color photographs (which can be worth pages of descriptive text), but it is somewhat incomplete.
A Guide to Wildflowers in Winter: Herbaceous Plants of Northeastern North America; Carol Levine; 1995; Yale Univ Pr; 329 pgs. ISBN: 0-300-06560-4
Woody Plants
The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees: Eastern Region; Elbert L., Jr. Little; 1980; Knopf: New York City; ISBN: 0-394-50760-6
Recommended - A good book for the beginning student. This book is organized by leaf type and has a fairly easy to use key that will lead you to the basic types of tree (oak, birch, etc). It has very good color pictures of leaves, bark, flowers, and fruit and it has an interesting historical/cultural comment on many species.
Woody Plants of Maryland; Melvin Brown, and Russell Brown; 1972; Port City Press: Baltimore, MD; 347 pgs.
Highly Recommended - This is the definitive source for identification of woody plants in Maryland. It is not simple to use but the key will get you to a definitive identification. Too large for most people to carry hiking.
A Field Guide to Eastern Trees (Peterson Field Guides); George A. Petrides, Janet Wehr, Roger Tory Peterson; 1998; Houghton Mifflin Co: Boston; ISBN: 0-395-90455-2
A good book for the beginning student. This book has an effective and easy to use key. It covers only trees , not shrubs nor other small woody plants.
Trees of the Eastern and Central United States and Canada; William M. Harlow; 1957; Dover Publication; 306 pgs. ISBN: 0-486-20395-6
Although centered on New York State, this book has a very thorough key that usually gets you to the right place. It is organized by family, so once you're familiar with the basic types of tree (oak, birch, etc) you can easily locate the species. It has very interesting information about the uses of the species as well. Good photos of leaf, bark, flowers, and fruit. It includes some shrubs and small trees. Some southern species found in Maryland are missing. Very inexpensive and easy to carry in a pocket.
Fall Color and Woodland Harvests A guide to the More Colorful Fall Leaves and Fruits of the Eastern Forests; C. Ritchie Bell and Anne H. Lindsey; 1990; Laurel Hill Press: Chapel Hill, NC; ISBN0-9608688-1-X.
A paperback that can fit in a large pocket. It has a key appropriate to the autumn.
Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast; Leonard Foote, and Samuel Jones; 1989; Timber Press: Portland, OR.
City of Trees : The Complete Field Guide to the Trees of Washington, D.C.; Melanie Choukas-Bradley, Polly Alexander; Johns Hopkins Univ Pr; 334 pgs. ISBN:0801-833-205
This is a very readable and extensively researched look at the trees of Washington D.C. It's a good field guide for identifying trees, but it also tells the fascinating stories behind many of the trees planted in D.C.
Grasses
Agnes Chase's First Book of Grasses : The Structure of Grasses Explained for Beginners; Lynn G. Clark (Editor); 1996; Smithsonian Institution Press; 162 pgs.; ISBN: 1-560-98656-5.
This is the latest edition of a botanical classic first published in 1922. This book divides the complexity of grasses into twelve lessons. It provides a good way to gain a basic understanding of the taxonomy of grasses. Each grass type is illustrated by detailed line drawings. The first chapter surveys basic vegetative and reproductive parts and then the remaining eleven lessons describe increasingly complex spikelet and inflorescence varieties, including the taxonomic context and structure. This book is dense and has chapters with titles like "Paired Spikelets with Hardened Glumes and Membranaceous Lemmas" but it is a good background for those intending to answer the questions found in most grass identification keys.
Field Guide to the Grasses, Sedges and Rushes of the United States; Edward, Knobel; 1977; Dover Pubns; 96 pgs; ISBN: 0-486-23505-X.
This is a small compact field guide that holds a wealth of information. It uses a remarkably easy key based on the general appearance of the inflorence through which one can usually quickly identify a plant.
This identification guide is primarily focussed on grasses of the Northeastern US many of which are also found in the mid-Atlantic states. It is aimed at helping botanical amateurs identify common grasses. It does not do a very thorough job of explaining the ecology of a species once you have identified it, but, grasses are hard to identify and this book can be a great help.
Ferns
A Field Guide to Ferns : And Their Related Families : Northeastern and Central North America (Peterson Field Guides); Boughton Cobb; 1999; Houghton Mifflin Co; ISBN: 0-395975-123.
Recommended - This fern ID book, like all the Person field guides, is small enough to carry easily.
Guide to Eastern Ferns; Edgar Theodore Wherry; 1948; University of Pennsylvania Press: Philadelphia; 255 pgs.
This classic is out of print. It covers the identification of the ferns and fern-allies of the region from Pennsylvania and New Jersey to Virginia.
Mushrooms
Mushrooms Demystified: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fleshy Fungi (second edition); David Arora; 1976, 1986; Ten Speed Press: Berkeley, CA
Book is Well-regarded by mycophiles. Author writes in technical style yet easily understandable by layman. Emphasis is on West Coast mushrooms, however.
Wetland / Coastal
In Search of Swampland : A Wetland Sourcebook and Field Guide; Ralph W. Tiner; 1998; Rutgers University Press; 380 pgs. ISBN: 0-81352-5063
This is a good introduction for the non-scientist. It covers the "how, what, and why" of wetlands, as well as how they develop over time. It has many good illustrations.
A Field Guide to Coastal Wetland Plants of the Northeastern United States; Ralph W. Tiner, 1987, University of Massachusetts Press: Amherst,MA, ISBN 0-87023-538-9
This book covers: 1. Coastal Wetland Ecology: A General Overview (different tidal wetland habitats, their description and characteristics, & typical species of each); 2. Identification of Coastal Wetland Plants (easy to use diagnostic keys); 3. wetland plant descriptions and illustrations (this is over half the book, organized by environment). Each entry has the scientific and common names, family, full description, habitat, range, similar species, and very accurate diagram drawings. Over 150 species are covered.
Common Plants of the Mid-Atlantic Coast: A Field Guide; Gene Silberhorn; 1982; Johns Hopkins University Press; 255 pgs. ISBN: 0-801-82725-6
The best drawings available in a wetland field guide. Ideal for salt and brackish marshes, beaches, dunes, maritime forests, and tidal wetlands (both brackish and freshwater).
Chesapeake Bay. Nature of the Estuary. A Field Guide; C. P. White, 1989, Tidewater Publishers, Centerville, MD. ISBN: 87033-351-8
A natural history arranged into nine sections matching the major habitats of the area.
Wetland Plant Identification: Field Guide to the Submerged Aquatic Vegetation of Chesapeake Bay; Linda Hurley; 1992; U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Pond and Brook: a guide to nature in freshwater environments; Michael J. Caduto, 1990, University Press of New England. ISBN 0-87451-509-2
Field Guide to Nontidal Wetland Identification; Ralph W. Tiner, 1988, Maryland Department of Natural Resource and U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services, Newton Corner, MA, Annapolis, MD. Cooperative publication. 283 pp.
Mosses and Other Bryophytes
Mosses and Other Bryophytes: An Illustrated Glossary; Bill Malcolm and Nancy Malcolm; 2000; Timber Press; 220 pgs. ISBN: 0-473-06730-7
This glossary briefly defines the botanical terms likely to be used in the descriptions of mosses and other bryophytes, and is illustrated with more than 900 remarkable photographs taken at various levels of magnification, mostly using a microscope, that reveal the amazing details of structure in nearly 400 mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. The book will be of interest not only to those specifically concerned with mosses but to naturalists in general.
More Advanced Guides
Woody Plants of Maryland; Melvin Brown, and Russell Brown; 1972; Port City Press: Baltimore, MD; 347 pgs.
Highly Recommended - This is the definitive source for identification of woody plants in Maryland. It is not simple to use but the key will get you to a definitive identification. Too large for most people to carry hiking.
Herbaceous Plants of Maryland; Melvin Brown, and Russell Brown; 1964; Port City Press: Baltimore, MD.
Highly Recommended - This is the definitive source for identification of herbaceous plants in Maryland. It is not simple to use but the key will get you to a definitive identification. Too large for most people to carry hiking.
Manual of the Vascular Plants of the Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada; Henry A Gleason & Arthur Cronquist; 2nd edition, 1991; New York Botanical Garden: Bronx, NY; ISBN 0-893273-651
A very complete identification guide. This is the definitive identification book for plants of this geographical region.
The Illustrated Companion to Gleason & Cronquist's Manual; Noel Holmgren; 1998; New York Botanical Garden: Bronx, NY; ISBN: 0-893273-996
At $125 this book is a bit pricey but it is a very useful reference. It consists of 827 plates containing meticulously rendered b&w botanical illustrations arranged and labeled to cross-reference with Gleason and Cronquist's 1991 edition. It also contains useful diagnostic details not previously presented.
Gray's Manual of Botany : A Handbook of Flowering Plants and Ferns of the Central and Northeastern U.S. and Adjacent Canada; Merritt Lyndon Fernald, out of print at this time but used copies are generally available.
Dictionary of Plant Names; Allen Coombes; 1997; Timber Press: Portland, OR; 195 pgs. ISBN: 0-88192-294-3
A dictionary that gives the meaning of thousands of words commonly found in the binomial names of plants. It makes for fascinating reading and knowing what these words mean can often help you remember them.
Regional Books
The Plants of Pennsylvania : An Illustrated Manual; Ann Fowler Rhoads, Timothy A. Block; 2000; University of Pennsylvania Press; 1040 pgs ISBN: 0812-2353-55
Developed in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Flora Database project and compiled by botanists at Pennsylvania's Morris Arboretum, this guide provides a means of identifying the more than 3,000 species of ferns and fern allies, gymnosperms, dicots, and monocots that are both native and naturalized in the state.
Atlas of the Virginia Flora; Harvill, A.M., Jr., Ted R. Bradley, Charles E. Stevens, Thomas F. Wieboldt,Donna M. E. Ware, Douglas W. Ogle, Gwynn W. Ramsey, and Gary P. Fleming; 1992; Virginia Botanical Associates:Burkeville, VA; 144 pgs.
A very helpful book which will let you know if something you're seeing and wondering about is likely be in the area. It is especially helpful if you are in a MD county bordering VA. [This book is available from A.M. Harvill, Route 1, Box 63, Burkeville, VA 23922]
Flora of West Virginia; P.D. Strausbaugh & Earl Core; 1977; Seneca Books: Grantsville, WV; ISBN 0-89092-010-9
Guide to the Vascular Plants of the Blue Ridge; B. Eugene Wofford; 1989; University of Georgia Press; 384 pgs. ISBN 0-8203-1080-8
Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas; Albert E. Radford; 1968; University of North Carolina Press; ISBN 0-8078-1087-8
An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada; Addison Brown, Nathaniel Lord Britton; 1913; Repinted 1970; Dover Publications; 695 pgs. ISBN: 0-48622-6441
Ecology and Plant Communities
A Field Guide to the Ecology of Eastern Forests: North America (Peterson Field Guide Series); John C. Kricher, Gordon Morrison; 1998; Houghton Mifflin Co; 544 pgs. I SBN: 0-39592-8958
This is not a field guide in the usual sense, but is an introduction to forest ecology from the naturalists perspective. It is a good first book.
Field Guide to the Piedmont : The Natural Habitats of America's Most Lived-In Region, from New York City to Montgomery, Alabama; Michael A. Godfrey; 1997; University of North Carolina Press; ISBN: 536 pgs. 0807-8467-16
This is for the serious student of native plants. It presents an in-depth look at the plants and animals of the region; their interdependence, and at succession from bare soil to climax forest.
Gardening / Landscaping with Natives
Noah's Garden: Restoring the Ecology of Our Own Back Yards; Sara Stein; 1993; Houghton Mifflin: New York City; 294 pgs. ISBN: 0-395-65373-8
Recommended - This gentle manifesto is a good place to start. It is a personal perspective on growing a garden in which snakes are as welcome as butterflies. In chapters that loosely follow the course of a year -- beginning in the fall and ending the following Thanksgiving -- the author describes how she came to radically change the way she gardened.
Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast: Landscaping Uses and Identification; Samuel B. Jones, and Leonard E. Foote; 1998; Timber Press: Portland, OR; 255 pgs. IISBN: 0-88192-416-4
Gardening with Native Wild Flowers; Samuel B. Jones, and Leonard E. Foote; 1990; Timber Press: Portland, OR; 195 pgs. ISBN: 0-88192-381-8
These two companion books provide practical advice on the uses of wildflowers, and hardy ferns, shrubs, and vines native to the eastern and midwestern United States. Grasses, sedges, and rushes are also covered. Information on which natives are appropriate in shady, sunny, or wetland settings and how to grow them is given. It also includes some information on propagation.
The Natural Habitat Garden; Ken Druse; 1994; Clarkson Potter; 245 pgs. ISBN: 0-517-58989-3
Recommended - This book describes ways to create a garden based on native plant communities. Its emphasis on understanding local conditions, native vs. indigenous plants, natural plant associations, and integrated pest management set it apart from most of the other "gardening" books.
American Plants for American Gardens; Edith A. Roberts, Elsa Rehmann; 1996; University of Georgia Press; ISBN: 0-82031-8515
This book was originally published as a magazine series in the 1920's. It makes a strong case for ecological considerations when creating a garden and its plant lists are arranged according to ecological association.
How to Grow Wildflowers and Wild Shrubs and Trees in Your Own Garden; Hal Bruce, Charles Elliott; 1998; The Lyons Press; ISBN: 0-82031-8515
This book is filled with interesting and useful information on the plants it describes, but those looking for a pictorial, step-by-step, truly "how-to" manual should consult other reference books. It focuses on plants found in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. with particular reference to the Delmarva peninsula. The book describes the author's year-long, three-times-per-week, 90-mile commute through Delmarva and tells us about the flora and fauna he sees on these drives, and then goes into a description of their attributes, their relationship to the environment, and the history of their development and distribution. One note of caution; this book was written in 1976 before there was an understanding of the threat posed by non-native invasive species.
A Gardener's Encyclopedia of Wildflowers: An Organic Guide to Choosing and Growing over 150 Beautiful Wildflowers; C. Colston Burrell; 1997; Rodale Press; 216 pgs. ISBN: 0-87596-723X
The Once and Future Forest: A Guide to Forest Restoration Strategies; Leslie Jones Sauer, Ian McHarg; 1998; Island Press; 350 pgs. ISBN: 1559-635-533
Landscape architect Sauer provides a manual on the processes and resources implicated in the restoration of metro-forests: water, ground, plants, and wildlife. The book includes lists of native species and invasive exotics in the Northeastern US.
The New England Wild Flower Society Guide to Growing and Propagating Wildflowers of the United States and Canada; William Cullina; 2000; Houghton Mifflin Co; 322 pgs. ISBN: 0-39596-6094
Recommended - One of the most authoritative references on this subject. More than a thousand species of flowers are discussed and pictured. This is as much a book for the gardener as the propagator since information on native habitat, cultural requirements, propagation, and design considerations are given for each genus/species.
Manual of Woody Landscape Plants: Their Identification, Ornamental Characteristics, Culture, Propagation and Uses; Michael A. Dirr; 1998 (5th edition); Stipes Publishing Co.; ISBN: 0-875-63795-7
One of the most widely used reference manuals in the landscape/nursery trade. Covers information for native and non-native trees, shrubs, groundcovers and vines. Over 1100 pages, many entries with line drawings.
Roadside Use Of Native Plants; Bonnie L. Harper-Lore and Maggie Wilson; 2000; Island Press: Washington, DC; 665 pgs. ISBN: 1-55963-837-0
This book was first created by the Federal Highway Administration and is aimed at the highway administrator but it contains material useful to all native plant landscapers.
Gardening With Native Plants of the South; Sally Wasowski, Andy Wasowski; 1994; Taylor Publ; 196 pgs. ISBN: 0-87833-8020
This book has a strictly southern US orientation.
Native Trees, Shrubs, And Vines For Urban And Rural America: A Planting Design Manual For Environmental Designers; Gary L. Hightshoe.; 1988; John Wiley & Sons: New York City; 819 pgs. ISBN: 0-471-28879-9
The Native Plant Primer; Carole Ottesen; 1995; Harmony Books: New York City; 354 pgs. ISBN: 0-517-59215-0 --- Out Of Print, but available used
The Wild Lawn Handbook: Alternatives To The Traditional Front Lawn; Stevie Daniels; 1997; IDG Books Worldwide; 256 pgs. ISBN: 0-028-62004-6.
Native grasses, wildflowers, ground covers, and moss are the author's answer to "monotonous single-species turfgrass lawns." Her book is a primer for gardeners who want to reduce or stop using chemical fertilizers and pesticides, conserve water, or turn their yards into a collection of plants that attracts birds, butterflies, and other wildlife. There are detailed instructions on choosing a wild lawn and on installing and maintaining the lawn, and even a chapter on landscaping ordinances.
This book is appropriate for the beginning native plant gardener.
The Wildlife Garden: Planning Backyard Habitats; Charlotte Seidenberg; 1995; University of Mississippi Press. --- Out Of Print
This book has a southern US focus.
Landscaping With Native Trees: The Northeast, Midwest, Midsouth & Southeast Edition; Guy Sternberg; 1995; Chapters Publishing. --- Out Of Print, might find at the city library.
Nature's Design: A Practical Guide To Natural Landscaping; Carol A. Smyser; 1982; Rodale Press: Emmaus, PA; 390 pgs. ISBN: 0-87857-343-7 --- Out Of Print, might find at the city library.
Wild Gardening: Strategies And Procedures Using Native Plantings; Richard L. Austin.; 1986; Simon & Schuster: New York; 96 pgs. ISBN: 0-671-60241-1 --- Out Of Print, might find at the city library.
Propagation of Native Plants
The New England Wild Flower Society Guide to Growing and Propagating Wildflowers of the United States and Canada; William Cullina; 2000; Houghton Mifflin Co; 322 pgs. ISBN: 0-39596-6094
Recommended - This book is useful for the gardener but it also has a very good section on propagation. There is an excellent introduction that covers most of the issues faced in propagation from seed. These include seed cleaning and storage, pre-treatment of seeds, choice of containers and propagation mix, sowing, and the care of seedlings. It also covers propagation by cutting and division.
Growing and Propagating Wild Flowers; Harry R. Phillips; 1985; University of North Carolina Press: Chapel Hill; 325 pgs. ISBN: 0-8078-4131-5
Recommended - This book, based on the accumulated experience at the North Carolina Botanical Garden, covers general gardening topics and the cultivation of numerous species but it's focus is on seed and vegetative propagation. It gives a careful description of seed collection, seed cleaning and storage, pre-germination treatment, and seedling care for more than 150 species of plants appropriate to gardens.
Seeds of Woody Plants in North America; James A. Young, and Cheryl G. Young; 1992; Dioscorides Press: Portland, Oregon; 407 pgs. ISBN: 0-931146-21-6
Recommended - This is essentially a revised edition of the USDA publication "Seeds of Woody Plants in the United States", USDA - Handbook 450. As with the original it contains practical advice for the forester and gardener but it has been expanded to cover over 385 genera.One warning is that this book was written before the dangers of invasive exotics were generally accepted. It contains, for instance, careful instructions on propagating Multiflora rosa.
Collecting Processing and Germinating Seeds of Wildland Plants; James A. Young, Cheryl G. Young; 1986; Timber Press; 236 pgs. ISBN: 0-881920-576
Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination; Carol C. Baskin, Jerry M. Baskin; 1998; Academic Press; 666 pgs. ISBN: 0-120802-600
This is basically a textbook, suitable for ecologists, plant scientists, horticulturists, and foresters.
The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation: From Seed to Tissue Culture: A Practical Working Guide to the Propagation of over 1100 Species; Michael A. Dirr, and Charles W. Heuser; 1987; Varsity Press Inc.; 1100 pgs, ISBN: 0-942-37500-9
One of the most widely used reference manuals in the landscape/nursery trade. It focuses on cultivars and non-native trees, shrubs, groundcovers and vines but can be helpful with natives as well.
The Prairie Garden; J. Smith, and Beatrice Smith; 1980; University of Wisconsin Press: Madison, WI; 219 pgs. ISBN: 0-299-08304-7
An introduction to the propagation of prairie plant species. These are often the most suitable species for a sunny location. The book is written for people of the North-Central states but it has a good introductory section and many of the species covered are also native to Maryland.
Non-Native Plants (Invasives)
Invasive Plants: Weeds of the Global Garden; John M. Randall & Janet Marinelli, (editors); 1996; Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Brooklyn, N.Y; 111 pgs. ISBN: 0-945352-956.
This book is already considered a classic in the field of non-native invasive plants. Unfortunately, its treatment of ecological impact is superficial.
Ecologist's Book on Introduced Species' Destructiveness; David Pimentel (editor); 2002; CRC Press LLC,Boca Raton,FL.
This book discusses the more than 120,000 non-indigenous species that have invaded six countries, causing tens of billions of dollars in harm each year in the United States alone. It makes compelling reading. The editor-author and his 44 contributing scientist-writers are careful to note that not all introduced species have entirely deleterious effects in their new homes, and many are depended on for human sustenance. Some 98 percent of the U.S. food supply comes from introduced species, such as corn, wheat, rice and other crops, as well as cattle, poultry and other livestock.
The Once and Future Forest : A Guide to Forest Restoration Strategies; Leslie Jones Sauer, Ian McHarg; 1998; Island Press; 350 pgs. ISBN: 1-559635-525.
This book tells you about the environment in a scientific but understandable manner, and suggests ways you can make a difference. The whole book is an explanation of how natural ecosystems work, and how various kinds of human activities disrupt them, opening them to invasion by exotics and further disruption, which in turn..... You will never look at a large, green lawn with admiration again!
Other Useful Books
A Sand County Almanac; Aldo Leopold; 1991; Ballantine Books; ISBN: 0-3453-4505-3
First published in 1949, shortly after the author's death, A Sand County Almanac is a classic. It is one of the most influential books about nature ever published. Leopold's view was that it is a human duty to preserve as much wild land as possible as a kind of bank for the biological future of all species.
Finding Wildflowers in the Washington-Baltimore Area; Cristol Fleming, Marion Blois Lobstein, and Barbara Tufty; 1995; Johns Hopkins University Press: Baltimore; 312 pgs. ISBN: 0-8018-4995-0
An extremely useful guide for finding native plants within easy driving distance of the Washington, DC / Baltimore metropolitan area as well as a few spots on the Chesapeake's Eastern Shore and in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It gives clear directions to many little known areas and describes, by season, the plants one is likely to find there. This book can keep you busy for many many weekends of wild flower exploration.
The Butterfly Garden: Turning Your Garden, Window Box, Or Backyard Into A Beautiful Home For Butterflies; Mathew Tekulski; 1985; Harvard Common Press; ISBN: 0-916782-69-7.
A complete manual on how to attract butterflies to your garden or backyard by planting common plants and flowers that butterflies use for nectar, food, and pollination.
American Wildlife and Plants, A Guide to Wildlife Food Habits; Alexander C. Martin, Herbert S. Zim, A. L. Nelson; 1951, republished 1985; Dover Publications; 500 pgs.; 0-486-20793-5
Lists the food and feeding habits of more than 1,000 species of birds and mammals, together with their distribution in America, their migratory habits, and the most important native plant-animal relationships. Based on research conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Final chapter ranks plants according to their wildlife value.
Butterfly Gardening: Creating Summer Magic in Your Garden; Xerces Society; 1998; Sierra Club Books: San Francisco; 192 pgs. ISBN: 0871569752
