Compendium of Rose Diseases and Pests, Second Edition. R. Kenneth Horst and Raymond A. Cloyd. 2007. The American Phytopathological Society, St. Paul, MN 55121. 83 pages. $69.00. ISBN: 978-0-89054-355-9.
Compendium of Rose Diseases and Pests is an especially attractive and useful book. It is an 8-1/2 x 11-inch paperback full of beautiful glossy photographs. Only seven pages contain no illustrations or photographs. The illustrations are as lovely as the photographs, and the photographs are outstanding. One can identify quite a few rose problems solely by consulting the photographs. I would enjoy seeing these photographs offered as a deck of identification cards for use in the field. The book is useful for horticulturists, pathologists, entomologists, and rose growers and hobbyists alike. I kept the manual handy and found it to be an important guide for rose growers and gardeners, especially here in the humid South. I think I have seen most of the warm-season diseases in the book somewhere here in Florida.
After a short introduction, Part I of the book discusses infectious diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses, graft transmissible organisms, and nematodes. Part II discusses noninfectious diseases, and Part III discusses insect and mite pests. The book ends with the appendix, glossary, and index. The Appendix is a thumbnail guide to the common names and pathogens (or causes of diseases) and pests along with the scientific names and authorities of all the diseases and pests covered in the text. The glossary is short, but comprehensive. The index covers rose types and varieties, common and scientific names of pests, as well as where to find information in the book.
The discussion of infectious diseases is arranged by organism. The section on fungal diseases is 25 pages long. The sections on each fungus present the genus and species of the organism, symptoms, the disease cycle when important for management, the epidemiology, if known, management, and selected references. The sections on diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, graph transmissible diseases, and nematodes include many of the same sections as well as helpful tables of diagnostic, propagation, and assay species.
Part II covers the noninfectious diseases. The section on physiologic problems such as blindness, bullheads, and bent neck is fascinating to read. Environmental imbalances, air pollution, and pesticide toxicity, nutritional deficiencies, and nutritional toxicities are the next interesting sections. Part III covers insect and mite pests and includes some of my favorite photographs. The topics covered for each insect or eight-legged pest include the genus and species names, life cycle, damage, management, and selected references. I especially appreciate the uniformity of each section and part. It makes for a predictable manual where one knows right where to look for information.
Compendium of Rose Diseases and Pests whets the appetite for the entire series of diseases and pests, crop by crop, as presented by the American Phytopathological Society. The series is quite extensive, covering many commercially important crops. Other crops in the series include those from the grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, flowering plants, nut crops, foliage plants, palms, turfgrasses, tobacco, and umbelliferous crops, among others. Many of the books are in advanced editions. The continual updating of these books must be a monumental task and shows the commitment of the authors, editors, and publishers. New pictures, references, diseases, controls, and pests are updated on a regular basis, so the guides remain current.
This useful, pictorial manual is one of the most attractive that I have seen; the entire American Phytopathological Society series is on my wish list.