1218-Page HORTICA Is Color Cyclopedia of Garden Flora and Indoor Plants

Dr. Alfred Byrd Graf, author of Exotica and Tropica, has completed a long-term project, Hortica, which ended up as a 1218-page endeavor, billed as a Color Cyclopedia of Garden Flora in all Climates and Exotic Plants Indoors.

Dr. Graf, whose earlier efforts earned for him a reputation as an indefatigable, dedicated horticulturist, has taken his latest works to even a greater level, taking pains “to do it right,” even though younger minds might be satisfied with early drafts of written text. Dr. Graf is on his way to becoming a centenarian, but age has not altered his mind or pen, or determination to complete Hortica and see it published. (Working out of an East Coast home base, he does enjoy spending increasing amounts of leisure time at his residence in San Diego County, which boasts of its mild climates, and favorable temperatures the year round in Southern California, which may have added to the time required for Dr Graf to complete Hortica).

As with all of Dr. Graf’s books, Hortica will be welcomed as a convenient pictorial reference volume by nurserymen, landscape professionals, interior landscapers and decorators, scientists, educators, students of Botany, collectors and plant fanciers.

Hortica is said to contain 8100 photos “in living color.” The pictorial section is grouped into 16 categories. A sampling reveals 570 exotic plants indoors, 215 palm and palm-like plants, 552 climbers and creepers, 319 conifers, 1662 herbaceous perennials and annuals, and 2408 flowering shrubs and trees. Also featured in separate pictorial sections are orchids, cacti and succulents, carnivores and curios, water plants, herbs and spices, bamboos and grasses, hedges (plus topiaries) and bonsai, along with edible fruit, nuts and berries.

The subjects were photographed in gardens, botanical collections and arboreta, or in habitat around the world.

Appended by concise descriptive text, giving family, origin, synonyms if any, vernacular or common names, character with measurements and uses. All plants have cold-hardiness zones listed, or a range of optimum climatic tolerance, as a guide for garden planting.

Dr. Graf’s latest effort differs from the companion works, Tropica and Exotica by showing more of the garden flora of temperate and colder climates, while also including the best of warm-climate subjects, “in the interest of comprehensive coverage of plants as growing in horticulture, world-wide.” Being “comprehensive” is an apt description of the author’s work ethic.

There are also 16 explanatory essays on the various plant groupings in Hortica, a common names index, botanical terms with chart, pronunciation guide for Latinized scientific names, a bibliography, plus more.

From: Pacific Coast Nurseryman October 1992 author: Harold Young