The Complete Houseplant Survival Manual: Essential Gardening Know-how for Keeping (Not Killing!) More Than 160 Indoor Plants

This has been such a useful book on my houseplant journey. I have never been someone who could keep plants alive but suddenly at age 32 a switch went off and I am now a plant person. I am sure all of this information is available in some form online but it is so nice to have everything easily accessible in the same format for each plant and in bullet points. This book is pretty much a basic care encyclopedia. It has a lot of general plant care information including how to propagate all different kinds of plants to help you start your plant army. It also breaks down information by plant species to give more specifics on care. The information makes it super simple to make sure you are giving your new plat friend enough water, light, fertilizer, and humidity. It has what soil is best for each plant and tips for how to troubleshoot what is wrong with your plant. I reach for this book whenever I bring a new plant home and it has made me much more confident in my crazy plant lady adventure.

The title of this book is definitely telling the truth. I couldn't come up with any question for which I failed to find an answer. None of the information is too technical for the average house plant lover, and it is all easily accessible. The author begins her book with a brief introduction telling us how house plants benefit us, both physically and emotionally, followed by a useful plant identification guide. The greater part of the book is made up of three chapters covering blooming houseplants, foliage houseplants, and houseplant care. In the first two chapters the selected plants are illustrated with beautiful, large color photographs, and each one gets a description and a summary of it's needs in your home. Many also have troubleshooting guides. The final chapter gives readers a wealth of information and advice for keeping their house plants happy and healthy, with more photographs and helpful drawings. There are lots of cross-references in this section, so you are won't miss anything you might need to know about, such as all aspects of watering and drainage. The author ends with a glossary of houseplant terms, lists of plant suppliers and plant societies, a very useful cross reference between common and botanical names of plants, and an index to the book. This very complete guide to house plant care will be helpful to anyone who loves a house plant or a house full of plants, and I definitely recommend it.

I am not particularly fond of house plants. I have however received over the years a fair number of them, and have bought some myself, because my wife likes them. In my situation, I feel like I have received a lot of good tips about plants to make me appreciate them more and care for them better. I now understand better what types of soil to use (apparently there are 6 common types of soil), why/how to repot, how to water, and where to place plants. Another weird thing thay I never understood, namely the trimming of plants, is explained well here. Plants are apparently not like people. You can cut away large portions of them and they dont't mind, or even enjoy it. Another magical part that I didn't think possible was plant propagation. In short and rough words, you can apparently cut away parts of the plant, and make a new plant out of that. This works for almost all plants. Who would have guessed? :D This book contains sections that help you identify your plants. If so, identification is harder if you're reading this on a kindle device. To make up for this, look up the plant classes on the internet, and you'll be fine. I do recommend this book to whoever likes house plants, but people who are only trying to not kill their plants (like myself) can also benefit a lot from this :p

I liked this "survival manual" because it is practical and useful. It is NOT a picture book about how to create attractive interiors with plants. It is a growing guide to 160 specific house plants or plant types with specific information about each plant's needs, soil, longevity, and propagation as well as troubleshooting for common problems. Each plant gets a 2-page spread with a great photo and consistent format. At the end are basic growing tips relevant to all house plants. The book helped me pick out plants that would thrive at my house and also helped me address some problems I was having with existing plants.

Excellent book, highly recommend - contains a lot of specific info as well as a great glossary and reference section with useful diagrams and high quality information

This is perfect for what I wanted. When we moved into our new house, several friends gave us houseplants as gifts but not all of them did very well in our new home. This book helped me figure out what each one was, what light and water it needed, and how to better take care of it. They are all SO MUCH happier now. It was really easy to use, to find my plant, and get the info I needed quickly. I love it!

Tells you all you need to know to have successful houseplants: how houseplants earn their keep, individual information on 160 different plants, sensibly grouped by whether they bloom or not, and good advice on how to care for your plants. Provides knowledgeable advice missing in other books like the pretty but expensive, vacuous, and heavily-reliant-on-whitespace Houseplants: The Complete Guide to Choosing, Growing, and Caring for Indoor Plants : for example, I think most people after transplanting or repotting a houseplant would give it water. Pleasant tells us don’t water newly transplanted or repotted plants for a few days to let the wounded roots wall off their injuries and to signal the healthy roots to spread out to seek water (p. 313), while Steinkopf and others leave it up us to find out the hard way that watering your newly potted plant too early promotes only root rot, not new growth.

Exactly what I was looking for. Helps tell humidity, water and light requirements for many of my houseplants

One of the best books for all common houseplants. This is must have for any person having house plant. Very good quick reference for common problems you typically see and their remedies. Very good size and good pictures for every page. Added advantage is the section on Orchids :)

After reading the other reviews about this book, I decided to purchase it myself. I am very grateful for the honest reviews that others have left. It makes it a great deal easier choosing the best book you pay for. With that being said. This book is absolutely one to have in your library, I have plants in my house that I thought I knew what they were however, after seeing certain pictures in this book I have realized what I thought I had plants wise is not the case.. But now I know!!! The only thing I wish is that this book was bigger only because it is so informative and I love learning new things about plants that I may not have but now might want to buy. I would highly recommend this book 100x over.

Lots of pictures to identify your plants

This book offered many useful tips. I thought I knew a lot already as I always research my plants on line. Loved the trouble shooting section. Well worth the money.

I love this book! Exactly what I was looking for. It has all my houseplants in it (I have over 50, but there are 160) and it tells you everything you need to know! If you’re a houseplant lover, this book is exactly what you’re looking for!