As much as you care to know about palms
341777
If you have trouble making up your mind, this otherwise excellent guide will frustrate you. There are 2,500 species of palms in the world, and Floridians Robert Riffle and Paul Craft almost never met one they didn't like -- a lot.

Like mothers who love all their children but have a favorite, Riffle and Craft do praise some palms more than others. This is what they have to say about Cyrtostachys renda from Southeast Asia:

"The slender diaphanous trunks are heartbreakingly beautiful and so thin and lissome as to often bend as if they were long stalks of big blossoms in a bouquet.  . . . The younger stems add incredibly beautiful tiers of leaves from top to bottom; however it is the magnetic attraction of the long, red crownshafts that makes this species irresistible."

Not every entry in "An Encyclopedia of Cultivated Palms" involves quite so much heavy breathing. Of the Samoan palm Clinostigma samoense, they say merely, "There is no more beautiful palm species."

But they say that about lots of species.

Ceroxylon quindiuense of the Columbian Andes, for example, is the tallest palm in the world, and Craft and Riffle label it "beyond spectacular."

In truth, they make the reader believe that palms are underappreciated.

For a plant family that is the essence of the tropics, it is surprising how few species like real heat. Like humans, almost all palms like to be warm but not hot.

Only a few can stand even a short while at below freezing temperatures, but equally few are able to stand the scorching desert the way the date palm can.

Hawaii would have been a paradise for palms, but only one or perhaps two ever made it here on their own.

It is still undetermined whether the coconut floated here by itself or came with the Polynesians. The only native palms are the Pritchardias, all evolved from (probably) one migrant that made its way up from somewhere in the South Pacific.

Once here, Pritchardias radiated into more than two dozen species, but many of these are either extinct or heading that way. They are commonly called fan palms, or loulu in Hawaiian, and a few species are regularly encountered in landscaping.

Many, many of the species in this encyclopedia are either extinct in the wild or probably going. The center of palm extinction is Madagascar, where a rapidly expanding, desperately poor population is eating its way through its forests and the 200 species of native palms.

Elsewhere, the expansion of agriculture, coastal development and an extravagant taste for eating the growing tips of large trees are threatening many species of palms.

There is -- or was -- a palm for just about every situation between the tropics of Capricorn and Cancer, from salty marsh to high desert, though rainforest is the favorite setting.

Mature palms range down from Ceroxylon's 200 feet to just a few inches. The longest, some of the rattan palms, grow over 300 feet, but they have to climb over other trees.

Palms are amazingly spindly. Even the most robust come nowhere near the girth of deciduous trees like, say, monkeypod, and some species in New Guinea are more than 500 times taller than they are thick. How these hold themselves up is a wonder.
761325
The book is excellent with a lot of great information on palm trees. It tells about salt tolerance and various palm insects and diseases. I just wish they used color photos instead of drawings of the trees. By Gregg L. Friedman MD, Psychiatrist, Hallandale Beach, FL
3586218
Need to keep track of your calendar?  Want all your friends, relatives and professional contacts in your pocket?  Want a "top secret" hide-a-hole for the 900 passwords you cannot keep in your head?  The Palm Tungsten is for you!  Thank goodness there are still some new ones in storage.  After a decade the mechanical aspects can begin to creak - and cause panic!  Keep an extra on hand!
4917123
Not as much info about individual plants as I would have like, but not bad for the price.  It does have some good info on "care and feeding"  of house plants
1097527
There are "coconuts" in the center that look more like evil seed pods that house some sort of man eating bug, they are not attractive at all. Other than that it is a fairly decent silk palm. I don't think it is worth what I paid though.
3574218
I have not used much, but I like the kleplar was around the glove, not only on the palms ....
3515536
Whatever you are trying to do with palms--planning your landscape, maintaining healthy plants, or growing them from seed--you get exactly the help you need.
1092329
Many of the words of wisdom given here are correct. While I haven't had to replace the screen yet, it IS a known problem in the Palm III community. However, I must say that the 8MB of RAM, the size, and the price make this Palm an unbeatable bargain. I find I cannot get through a day without using it in some way.
There are a number of software packages out there that help out; I personally recommend TealScript, to allow adapting Graffiti to your own "style of writing." I also recommend the metal stylus 3-pack, if for no other reason than to have a handy reset tool without lugging around a paper clip. :)
2927246
It was very interesting to learn what typically (or unexpectedly) goes on behind the scenes at this historic hotel.  I always loved going to the Palm Court.  The book is still informative although rather dated and it made me curious to see who took over ownership after Donald Trump bought it and his (ex) wife Ivanka was made president.  I no longer live easily accessible to NYC so haven't been there in a few years.  However, I hope to return and when I do, I'll hope to have tea or champagne at the Palm Court again.  I understand the Oak Room is now closed but I do hope the Palm Court will continue to furnish lovely music and nostalgic, elegant surroundings.
677971
I have several of Gil Nelson's reference/field guides, and this is a typical example of his fine work. It's somewhat hefty as a field guide, but that's because it is chock full of shrubs/small trees/vines. I really like the way it is organized into Families, this is so important for anyone who has more than just a passing interest in botany. For experienced botanists, the organization by Family will make it a very easy reference to use. For people who are not yet familiar with, or have less knowledge of plant families, this book will help to develop a knowledge of plant families and enrich your understanding of this subject while providing an easy to use reference. The color plates are all grouped together in the center of the book and line drawings within the text help to clarify important structures for identifying a particular plant. In addition to providing information that will help to identify a plant in the field, the text provides information on landscape usage. A fine book that should be in any serious gardener/naturalist library.
1485986
some of the thumb palm area rubbed off, not enough to be problematic, particularly for the price. I'm using them for gardening, which this style is perfect for (I wish I had realized that before trying another style that is now caked in dirt that will not leave). I can get these as dirty as I can (even though I try not too) and they seem to take it just fine. I hand rinsed them and let em dry so they're ready for more.
72058
I'm still trying to figure out my new palm, but it is a lot of fun.
I enjoy the ease of looking around on it as well as setting it up on the computer.  For someone who is not a computer person this was great.
2216365
GREAT TITLE... GETS INTO THE NITTY GRITTY OF HOW PALMPRINTS ARE DEVELOPED.
The book only had one typo that I found that left some ambiguity in a formula. Besides that I would definitely read this to get a real understanding of the Palmprint Authentication Process.
2887416
Tropical Plants for Home and Garden by William Warren is a beautifully done coffee table/reference book on many of the more commonly grown plants in the tropics. The paperback version is my second copy--having purchased the hardback edition a year ago. There is not a lot of cultural information given on the plants--it is a book devoted to plants, not a book on tropical gardening. Luca Invernizzi Tettoni's photographs, however, are vivid and very helpful in identification of the species. I am a writer of garden books, as well as the executive director of a tropical botanical garden, so I am very familiar with the plants in this book. I would recommend "Tropical Plants for Home and Garden" to anyone who gardens in Zones 10-11. Even those who live "up north" would enjoy it as a "tropical getaway".

No one book is perfect, but we have many of William Warren's books on tropical plants/gardens in our reference library, and I have found all of them to be well written and to the point.
3609266
I appreciate the details provided with out being wordy. A good book for the plant enthusiast.
Recommended over other begginer orchid books.
1532466
This book is a must have for any palm enthusiast.  Well written, good scientific descriptions, and great photos of the wonderful palms of Cuba.
3827676
Good: Majesty palms are inexpensive, big, beautiful plants. They're not toxic to pets and look impressive.

Bad: They are native to Madagascar and therefore extremely difficult to keep healthy nearly anywhere in the United States. They need large amounts of sunlight, water, and fertilizer. The latter is typically not safe for pets, vetoing one of the few things this plant has going for it. Majesty palms can also typically be found at home depot or Lowes for about $10.