Roses Love Garlic: Companion Planting and Other Secrets of Flowers by Louise Riotte

Roses Love Garlic: Companion Planting and Other Secrets of Flowers Reviews

• 
  Jonathan

  I feel guilty rating this at 2 stars, since the amount of work that went into this book is obvious. It has depth, rare knowledge, and a personality.
  
  However, the organization is untenable. I started this book because I wanted to know what sorts of edible plants I could plant alongside perennial or annual flowers to make my edible garden a reality. In reality, only about 20 pages of this book relate to this topic, despite it being the namesake. There is a lot of knowledge crammed in here, most often randomly. Knowing what I know now about the authors life, and how this was their last book, it makes sense. She wanted to leave her knowledge behind for a next generation, which I respect immensely.
  
  None of this makes up for the fact that the book wasn't as advertised, and I still wasn't able to find what edible plants work with tulip.
• 
  Michelle

  Once there was a partly shaded rosebush at the entrance to myLaguna Beach home-I rented, so I couldn't remove the rosebush to a sunnier spot, and the coastal fog rolled in and over this rose bush. It was being eaten alive by aphids. I planted organic garlic bulbs in it's dirt after reading Roses Love Garlic...>/i> , and the new rose leaves grew in full and healthy and the aphids disappeared. I even remember it flowering, and it turned out to be a red rose.
• 
  Sarah Alawami

  Loved the info in book.
• 
  Sébastien

  I'd order two
• 
  Chris

  This book is handicapped by the unfortunate disconnect between the title and content, only a small percentage of which is related to companion planting. It is a topsy-turvy collection of folksy advice and snippets of wisdom that reminds me of a grandmother’s scribbled notes in a journal. So it’s not that this isn’t a useful compilation of garden advice, but it’s more like a chaotic meadow compared to a well -designed perennial border. There’s beauty in both, but your eye just doesn’t know where to start in a meadow scene. And you’ve got to wade through an awful lot of milkweed to find the roses OR the garlic.
• 
  Candace

  I liked Carrots Love Tomatoes by the same author so thought I’d check this out - thinking about the small garden this spring and any seeds to start...
  
  Do love books like these, additional information about companion type “hacks” or aids.
• 
  Onceinabluemoon

  Cover is so cute but didn't live up to my expectations...
• 
  Ash

  Outdated and not what I was thinking
• 
  Cynthia Wheelehan

  A nice introduction to all things companion planting can be used for besides beauty…. A fun and unexpected read…
  
  
• 
  Melissa W

  Some good tips (plant banana peels next to roses) some fun crafts (dying Easter eggs with onion skins), some outdated information (recommendation to plant Autumn Olive - now considered invasive).
• 
  Andrea

  I loved Carrots Love Tomatoes so much that perhaps my hopes were too high for this book. Although there is some useful information, most of the flowers and plants in the book aren't things a majority of people would plant or even have access to. For example a patchouli plant. My biggest takeaway from this book sadly, is that most bulbs are toxic, so don't eat them. Lol ok, I wasn't planning on it.
• 
  Lesli

  Great reference. This works sort of like a dictionary. There are entries for various plants with short blurbs about what or what not to plant together. Riotte also covers a variety of topics like pests and planning. Definitely worth the read and the space on your shelf if you are hoping to make the most of your flower garden.
• 
  Josiah

  This book contains clear and helpful information on dozens of vegetables, herbs, and flowers in an easy-to-find index and chapter system. I highly recommend it!
  
  Writing: B
  Plot: B
  Vocabulary: Easy
  Level: Moderate
  Rating: G
  Worldview: Descriptive
• 
  Erika

  I need to look at this one earlier next year. I also need to save some more money to do anything I want to do from this book. Lots of good things coming, but this year I'm focusing more on the herbs and veggies.
• 
  Slee

  Looking for a lot of information about plants and whom they'd like to be planted with? This is the book you're looking for.
  Let's face it, some plants just need to not be planted by others, and it's always good to know who they are.
• 
  Bob

  A good easy reading introduction to companion planting, I use it infrequently when planning my next seasons planting.
• 
  Christina

  lots of great info
• 
  Noelle

  a few good pointers, but not as indepth as Riotte's first book "Tomatoes Love Carrots"...still good to have as a reference book.
• 
  kyle Wilcox

  Good reference for gardeners!
• 
  Jen Healey

  What a lot of work has gone into this book! An absolute treasure trove of practical knowledge and guidance from a woman who obviously knows her onions (and their benefits). Recommended.
• 
  Meg

  good reference tool. I'll be using this when I plan my garden
• 
  Data

  Lots of interesting factoids, but I fail to follow the organization.
• 
  Ashley

  I found Carrots Love Tomatoes to be useful and thought this would be similar but flower-focused. This just seemed random and disjointed.
• 
  Laura Doyle

  Extremely useful for any gardener.
• 
  Emily

  A solid sequel to "Carrots Love Tomatoes" with the focus on ornamental flowers as companions, but still with the same flaws in writing style and format. An encyclopedic layout but no real sense of organization. Many of the articles are not based on specific plants, but are more random like "high blood pressure", "eyes", "rose facial mask", and "plants with party tricks". Not a bad thing, but it's sometimes odd: "sharing" and "older citizens with green thumbs". Still, there are some gems of wisdom sprinkled about, and it's fun to flip around and read random tidbits of thought from a woman who so clearly loved to have her hands in the dirt.