Taken from the Eclectic Gardener @ http://www.teachinggarden.org/
Written by Alan Hickman

Usually at this time of year I do a review of some blockbuster of a garden-related tome, but recently a slim little volume came across my desk which seemed an ideal subject for the beginning of December. 'Indoor Plant Gardening for Canada'by Laura Peters, published by Lone Pine Publishing of Edmonton, 264 pages, $21.95. ISBN 1-55105-389-6.
What is so special about indoor Canada? To quote the back-cover blurb: “Canadian homes have conditions that create unique challenges for growing houseplants, and many indoor gardeners feel frustrated when their plants die. This comprehensive book, with its 386 plants, shows you how to achieve success regardless of whether your home is dry or damp, has low light or has cold drafts and hot spots from central heating.'It certainly sounds familiar - hot and dry, with the occasional frigid blast and a trickle of water across the basement floor when it rains!
With twenty-nine volumes on my bookshelves dealing with houseplants, I really wouldn't go looking for a thirtieth, but I do rather like Peters'contribution to the genre.
Like most things though, there is the good news and there is the not so good news so I'll get rid of the negatives first. To quote again from the book: “Readers are strongly encouraged to learn (the) botanical names. Common names are sometimes spread over a number of very different plants and may also change from region to region. Only the true, botanical name for a plant defines exactly what plant it is, everywhere on the planet. Learning and using the botanical names for plants you grow allows you to discuss, research and purchase plants with supreme confidence and satisfaction.'So in what order is the plant list section of the book? The plants are arranged by some arbitrary vernacular name!
If it was good enough for Gracie Fields to sing about 'The Biggest Aspidistra in the World'why list Aspidistra elatior as Cast-Iron-Plant? Why not Parlour Plant or Lager-Beer-Plant or any one of who knows how many other so-called 'common'names? (If you don't know who Gracie Fields was, don't fret - you need to be of a certain age! Look her up in Britannica or on the web.)
The stated rational for the arrangement of the plant list is: “This enables those who are familiar only with the common name for a plant to find it easily in the book.'With due respect, the way to deal with vernacular names is to provide an appendix, cross referencing all the vernacular names for a given plant to that plant's one botanical name. Using the above example, if someone only knows Aspidistra as Parlour Plant - a name actually mentioned inhey're out of luck. Parlour Plant is not in the index.
Nomenclature aside, there is quite a lot to like about 'Indoor Plant Gardening for Canada'. Physically the book is easy to handle, it is appropriately bound and it is printed in clear easy-to-read type. The photography is first class. The pictures are carefully composed to illustrate the techniques being described, and the plant pictures are not only esthetically pleasing, but they have the clarity and depth to readily identify each specimen.
The first sixty pages of the book contain a general introduction to indoor plant growing, spanning everything from a short history of the practice to a thankfully brief list of plant diseases and insect pests. The coverage is refreshingly candid. I'm not used to reading in other peoples'work the following sort of advice: “Newly purchased plants will almost certainly have residual fertilizer in their soil, so it's not necessary to fertilize them for several months, and then only during the growing season. ..... Plants are often damaged or killed owing to excessive fertilizing rather that a lack of fertilizer.'For authors tied to one commercial enterprise or another, telling people they don't need to buy fertilizer when they buy a new plant is simply bad for business.
The remainder of the book is taken up with the plant list. Each genus is allocated two facing pages. Typically the first page has a large illustration, an introductory paragraph, and a line each for the plant's dimensions and 'Features'. In the case of Aspidistra, the features are “tolerates low light, neglect and dry air'. Just my sort of plant! The facing page details the cultural requirements grouped under: 'Growing', 'Tips', 'Recommended'and 'Problem Pests', along with a couple of close-up photographs. Under tips for Aspidistra, it reads “... seems to live forever... Repot no more frequently than every 4-5 years...'It's no wonder the Victorians loved it.
'Indoor Plant Gardening for Canada'is a useful addition to any gardener's library. The photography alone is worth twenty bucks and the introduction works as an education for the novice and a worthwhile refresher for the old hand.