Just 3 JM books

If you had to choose no more than three Japanese Maple books, which would they be?

I have the Vertrees 3rd Edition and I would like to augment it.

 

The best complement for this book is the Vertree's "Pocket guide to Japanese Maples" (with Peter Gregory). For me, it is very valuable and the best ratio price/value info; because it has more cultivars and more pictures (although descriptions are shorter). It works great for a quick look for main info about one particular cultivar.

The other book could be the classic Maples for Garden, from C.J. & D.M. van Gelderen. I got mine used in excellent condition.

If you want to research more from this genus (and I mean, an exhaustive taxonomic study of the genus) you can get also "Maples of the Word". It is a serious book for botanists, in my opinion (although too deep for what I'm looking for).

Nelran

 

Thanks, really good pointers.

 

As good as any book out there is THIS FORUM!! Truly, the amount of info here is amazing! Plus there's a lot more photos than in a book! :-)

 

Well, that's true! But I seem to be stuck in a Time Warp, the more I read and learn, the more I see there is to learn and the more questions I have! LOL. My short list is now long and the short-short list is getting out of hand.

But I have to agree, it IS WAY more fun when you're crazy.

 

Another book I like is "The Gardeners Guide to Growing Maples" by James G S Harris. Published by Timber Press in 2000. It covers the entire Acer genus, and includes short sections on Botany, Habitat and Origin, History of Maples, Classification of Maples, an A-Z of maple species, and a good section on cultivation, including a primer on grafting. It lists approx 150 Japanese maple varieties in the index, and has plenty of good photos of leaves.

 

There is a great note about JM books at http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=2773&highlight=maple+books. But there are over a dozen books mentioned in the note.

My question is, if you could only have three, which ones and why? It's probably a silly question, but was curious to see which books are considered the most useful as a resource. I don't have the physical space for more than a dozen maple texts at this point.

I thought that I would pretty much have it covered with the most recent Vertrees book and internet research. But recent events have lead me to believe that I need more hard information. Specifically, it was suggested I compare the entries on a cultivar I was researching between the 2nd and 3rd edition of Vertrees.

This a list of the books I've seen mentioned:
Gelderen, D. M. v., P. C. d. Jong, et al. (1994). Maples of the world. Portland, Or., Timber Press.
Gelderen, C. J. v. and D. M. v. Gelderen (1999). Maples for gardens : a color encyclopedia. Portland, OR, Timber Press.
Le Hardÿ de Beaulieu, A. (2003). An illustrated guide to maples. Portland, OR, Timber Press.
Mulligan, B. O. and American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboretums. (1958). Maples cultivated in the United States and Canada. [Lancaster, Pa.], American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboretums.
Vertrees, J. D. (1978). Japanese maples : momiji and kaede. Forest Grove, OR., Timber Press.
Vertrees, J. D. (1987). Japanese maples : momiji and kaede. Portland, Or., Timber Press.
Vertrees, J. D. (2001). Japanese maples Portland, Or., Timber Press. 3rd Edition ISBN: 978 0 88192 501 2
"The Gardeners Guide to Growing Maples" by James G S Harris. Published by Timber Press in 2000 ISBN 0715310941 (this one has come up a few times, so I'm thinking it's probably a really good resource)
"The Book of Maples" by Masayoshi Yano in Japanese and English - lukewarm reactions on this one
"Trees in Britain,Europe and North America"
Hillier's Manual of Trees and Shrubs. (David & Charles)
Timber Press Pocket Guide to Japanese Maples ISBN: 978 0 88192 799 3
Rushforth, K. (1999). Trees of Britain and Europe. Collins ISBN 0-00-220013-9
MAPLES by Rosemary Barret (2004) Firefly Books ISBN 1-55297-885-0 (I'm reading this now, a friend and I swapped, she's reading my 3rd Ed Vertrees while I read her Barret)
The New Ornamentals Society CULTIVARS OF WOODY PLANTS (one thousand three hundred pages available online with a membership or printed for more $)

 

I was just on Amazon looking for the Vertrees 2nd edition and stumbled across...
Japanese Maples: The Complete Guide to Selection and Cultivation, Revised and Updated Fourth Edition by Peter Gregory and J. D. Vertrees (Hardcover - Aug 15, 2009)

Has anyone seen a sneak peak of this? What will it have to offer that the 3rd ed doesn't?

 

I didn't know about this 4th edition. I'll check. Thanks Winter!!!

 

I checked in Amazon and I alredy pre-ordered it. (It's not in inventory, and even Amazon doesn't show the cover yet. Winter, you found a pretty fresh edition! (Probably the ink isn't dry yet).

Thanks

Nelson

 

Apparently not on the appropriate Timber Press web page yet.

http://www.timberpress.com/books/forthcoming.cfm

 

You're welcome.

I was instructed by someone I trust, "If you can only have two books on Maples have the Vertrees second edition and the Maples of the World book." So I added the 2nd edition and Maples of the World to my library today. When you get the fourth edition, please let me know how you like it and what it has to offer that the 2nd and 3rd do not.

 

Sure, I will, winter. I just have the 3rd edition of Vertrees book; but just for curiosity: Why somebody reccommended the 2nd. edition of Vertrees book instead of the 3rd?

Just for info, (I don't know if this happens for all books in Amazon that not reached yet their inventory, but I checked my order and the Shipping estimate is..... August 19, 2009?!!

 

LOL!

Yes, I've pre-ordered from Amazon before with huge lead times (never quite this much). But since you don't get charged till the book gets shipped, it doesn't cost you anything and it sends a vote for the book that MAYBE will help inspire Timber Press to get it out expediently. :)

I was told that in the Vertree 2nd edition the groups are elaborated upon. I've also heard that the photos of the cultivars are different from one edition to the next and that there may be some drawings in the 2nd not in the 3rd. When I searched in Amazon for the second edition by name, I could not find it. I found it there when I put in the ISDN located earlier in the post. Or you can try http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0881920487. BTW, when I was just there you could preview pages, maybe you can compare.

 

Huh, I just tried the preview and up in the top left corner where it shows you what you're previewing it shows the third edition.

 

That sounds really interesting. A Primer is probably just right for me.

 

Yep, I checked and found the same mistake: On the upper right corner of the website it indicates "return to the second edition".... Looks like a wrong path... Anyway, I can't compare these two editions, but it seems to me that doesn't have sense cut info (drawings?) from 2nd to 3rd. Anyway, I hope that the 4th will include more details.

Nelran

 

Although not specifically a Japanese Maple book my copy of Niwaki : Pruning, Training and Shaping Trees the Japanese way by Jake Hobson arrived yesterday. Looking through it briefly last night it does seem to be very good.

Some sections of it can be viewed here http://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&id=dR9074_8QioC&dq=niwaki&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=25GyaHZ5q5&sig=ePiKocQXvkH68RuaIWU9_gAxUgA&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result#PPA5,M1

Yorkie