BLOOMING!

Written by flower farmer (yes, there is such a thing!) Rachel Siegfried, The Flower Book takes the gardener on a detailed season-by-season tour of the best blooms to grow when and in what growing zones. Then, she takes it a step further, providing inspiration for harvesting the garden to create beautiful and lasting arrangements, using single flowers as the anchor for her designs – while following her three Fs: foliage, focal flowers and final flourish – with near-mathematical precision. Stunning photos of peonies, poppies, roses and snapdragons are in this 200-plus page encyclopedic tome, along with a few interesting varieties, such as astrantia, celosia and St. John’s wort, which all grow in Canada. Siegfried also provides tips on choosing the best stems at the florist, for those without a garden – or a green thumb. —Vivian Vassos