Vegetables / Roger Phillips & Martyn Rix ; assisted by James Compton and Alison Rix ; layout by Jill Bryan, Gillian Stokoe, and Lucy Su.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In addition to detailed coverage of more than 650 types of vegetables from around the world, all of which can be grown in the U.S., this primer on vegetables and vegetable gardening gives descriptions of the important vegetable families, tips on culitvation, lists of seed suppliers, and more. Over 1,000 color photos. Index.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

This new addition to the popular Random House gardening series presents over 650 varieties of vegetables grown and consumed around the world. A British import, it uses the metric system and suggests some growing techniques that may not hold true for all of North America. Otherwise it is a solid offering. Nonbotanists will make good use of the index, arranged by plant families and not alphabetically by common name, to locate the lettuce or peruse the peppers. Information is provided on the origin, characteristics, and cultivation of each type of plant, followed by notes on specific cultivars. As with other books in the series, this book is exceptional for its color photographs. Vegetables are photographed both in the field and in an almost diametrically opposed setting with a stark white background and perfect studio lighting. This striking visual presentation will appeal to amateur and experienced gardeners alike. Highly recommended.-- Virginia A. Henrichs, Chicago Botanic Garden Lib., Glencoe, Ill. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

If a gardener needs a single visual guide to the vegetable kingdom, this may be the one. Generously illustrated with color photographs that regard both the larger landscape and the root tendrils on a turnip with a serious eye, the book documents more than 650 types of vegetable, mainly those that can be grown in North America and northern Europe, but also takes stock of Asian specialties currently in demand. Search out parsnips, for example, and you'll find the pale, soggy-looking specimens of five different kinds lined up, as if for mug shots; a glimpse of parsnips au naturel --in the ground, not the studio--is also on hand, as is a brief note on the parsnip's history and its cultivational needs. Extensive, equally explicit spreads on more popular vegetables abound, whether the culprit is spinach or the humble broad bean (shown both with pods zipped shut and split open, seeds intact inside). Though not mainly a source of gardener's tips, the book offers simple instructions to the grower, as well as fodder for anyone curious to know more about the first European sighting of potatoes (1537) or the multitudes of possible potatoes (``Duke of York''; ``Epicure''; ``Mona Lisa''). (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Booklist Review

This large-size paperback, with more than 1,000 photographs, is the sixth volume in the Random House Garden series. It provides descriptions of vegetable families, the history of vegetables, and advice on cultivation, fertilization, and pest control. There are the common vegetables here, plus some very exotic ones--sacred lotus, mizuna, rocket, houttuynia, good King Henry, glasswort, Madeira vine, udo, celtuce, and taro, to name a few. Truly encyclopedic coverage worldwide, without which no vegetable gardener should be. ~--George Cohen