A Field Guide to Wildflowers : Northeastern and North-Central North America (Peterson Field Guides) by Margaret McKenny
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Book Reviews of A Field Guide to Wildflowers : Northeastern and North-Central North America (Peterson Field Guides)
Book Review: Comrehensive but difficult to use...
Summary: 3 Stars
I found this book to be more comprehensive than the comparable Wildflower Guide from the Audubon Society. This book shows more complete drawings of the plant (not just the flowering portion). However, this book does not contain photographs and instead contains artistic representations (black and white line drawings with occassional colored drawings). Additionally, some plants are not catagorized under what I would say is the correct color section... i.e. Western Ironweed has *PURPLE* flowers, but is found in the *PINK* section. I find this book difficult to use for identifying an unknown species. It is most useful to me in identifying the variety when you have some idea of the species. When comparing this book against the one from the Audubon Society, I prefer this one simply because this book shows more of a complete image of the entire plant. This book has limited usefullness for me, but I'm giving it an average rating because I haven't found anything better yet.Book Review: Great help for class wildflower project
Summary: 4 Stars
This book really helped my son with his wildflower project for science class.
Many of the other books we checked out of the library were too complicated for him (and I) to use and were not detailed enough.
It is organized by flower color which made it easier to get a correct identification. The only down side is that all of the flowers are not pictured in color...some of them are drawn in black and white within a color family.
However, I would recommend this book as it was easy for my 8th grade son to use on his own for the project.
Book Review: indispensable!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have used Petersons books for decades, and continue to update to new
issues while cherishing my issue from the 1970's. Anyone seeking to
comprehensively identify wildflowers from color plate photographs alone
is not only missing the point of field work, but may miss the flower as
well- colors look different in different light and in different photo- op's.
There are many other features to consider in correct plant ID.
The relevant ID features are often more obscure, yet are dutifully pointed
out in the Peterson guides - characteristics such as "mottled stems",
"fringed bracts", various leaf attachment features, size and range of
plant, and so on. As the director of a high quality school dealing in
herbal studies and nature research, as well as a college level teacher,
this and a small cadre of supplemental ID resources, including Steve
Brill's book, are going to remain on my list of required books for
all students , one they will use , along with their friends and family,
again and again.
Book Review: A great help to flower identification
Summary: 5 Stars
I have used this book for many years and it is the easiest most comprehensive book on the subject. It is never esay to identify a flower you do not know, but with a little practice, this book is a big help. Book Review: Easiest book for everyone
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been teaching in the outdoors using field guides with novices for 18 years, so I offer this advice to assist beginners in choosing a wildflower guide. I have used both this book and the Newcomb book and greatly prefer this one, although Newcomb's is very good. Newcomb's uses a series of keys, which I guess some people find more "sophisticated." Although the key in Newcombs isn't hard to use, I find that the Peterson guide is faster and easier to use in the field. I have also observed that beginners are less likely to make mistakes using the Peterson wildflower guide. The big plus of the Peterson book is the identification system. The flowers are first arranged by color and the book is color coded. Although wild plants may not always be showing their flower colors, 9 times out of ten when the amateur is identifying a flowering plant, it will be in bloom. You can use the Peterson guide to learn the key characterisitics of a blooming plant so that later on when it is not blooming you will still be able to find it in the book and recoginze it. In the next stage of the Peterson wildflower guide's organization, the plants are arranged by similar visual characteristics. There is a simple outline and description of this system at the beginning of the book. The book utilizes helpful icons, which are featured at the tops of all the descriptive pages for quick thumb-through reference. I have found this icon system very helpful in teaching plant identification because it provides a systematic approach that the beginner can pick up quickly and easily. The Peterson system greatly facilitates intial accuracy of identification at the level of plant family. Once you learn the system of what to look for when observing a plant, the icons allow speed and efficiency when using the book in the field.
At the final stage of identification, the species level, the Peterson guide has excellent written descriptions and the important subtle differences between species are well highlighted, with both text and arrows on the drawings. As other reviewers have stated, the Peterson book has more illustrations than Newcomb, and the highlighted habitat/range descriptions also help in quickly placing a plant. The black and white illustrations are not bothersome since you already know the flower color, and line drawings show key characteristics clearly. The use of illustrations instead of photos is always preferred in a field guide, even though photos seem like a good idea at first glance. A good illustrator shows the plant in the best light and makes sure the key features are visible and prominent.
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