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Re: Book on weeds?

In article <3g3p6l$gev@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, jstone9352@aol.com (JSTONE9352) writes:
> Does anyone know of a good book on weeds.?  What I am looking for is a
> book that is just about weeds and not flowers, trees and then weeds as a
> seperate section but just weeds only.  Something along the line of a Zim
> or Golden book, that is not too scientific but has illustrations and a
> brief description.  I saw one in a bookstore years ago but now I can't
> find one.           John S.


Where are you?  If you're in the north central US, I'd tell you to 
get a copy of Weeds of the North Central States from your local
cooperative extension office.  It's a thickish paperback that will
run you about $5.  My students can use the keys even on the first
day of class (I often start them out with those keys "for practice"),
and there are good line drawings and non-technical descriptions.

My favorite weed id book for the US is Conrad Muenscher's _Weeds_,
and you may be able to find old editions published by MacMillan
for a few bucks in a used book store.  There's an updated version
reflecting some name changes out in paperback from Cornell University
Press.

I like Muenscher because it's not just about weed identification,
(and it has great line drawings!) but it also has all sorts of
important information on the biology of each species.  Understanding
what conditions favor the growth of a certain weedy species sure
helps you control that weed with *much* less work.  The first edition
was done in 1935, I think, and the second in 1955... times when weed
control depended not on herbicides but on cultural controls, and
cultural controls are exactly what most gardeners should be using.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  Univ. Northern Iowa    klier@cobra.uni.edu