Bulletproof Flowers for the South

September 15, 1999
Wilson is the former cohost of PBS TV's "Victory Garden." Bulletproof flowers, he explains, are plants able to withstand the extreme heat and humidity of the summer South, which includes all the states from Virginia west through southeastern Kansas, eastern Oklahoma, and eastern Texas; lowland parts of Kentucky and the southern edge of Missouri; and everything south of Virginia except from central Florida on down. Wilson tells gardeners how to minimize the impact of heat and humidity by improving the soil, mulching, creating shade structures, and weeding. He also discusses growing flowers and herbs in containers. There is an encyclopedia of more than 100 flowers recommended by Wilson and a list of flowers and foliage plants recommended by--in Wilson's words--southern experts. Full-color photographs appear throughout the text. ((Reviewed September 15, 1999))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1999, American Library Association.)