Weeds of the Pacific Northwest

Weeds of the Pacific Northwest is an illustrated guide to invasive common "weeds" in the Pacific Northwest curated and written by Mark Turner (photos) and Sami Gray. Due out 13th Feb 2024 from Hachette on their Timber Press imprint, it's a comprehensive 456 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats. .

Well written, information dense, and accessible, this is a very well curated guide to controlling and eradicating "weeds", mostly aimed at the home gardener. It's problematic that quite a significant portion of the plants in this volume are, in fact, native species which find inclusion in the volume because of their propensity to grow and flourish where they're not welcome. Nearly all of the native wild "weeds" are important food sources or shelter plants for native animals and wildlife, so rooting them out with relish seems a bit harsh.

-However- there are certainly times when non-native plants are invasive, noxious, unwanted, and unwelcome. This book expends a lot of effort on teaching readers how to eradicate most anything efficiently (and ruthlessly/successfully). Successful identification is key, and much of the book is taken up with an illustrated encyclopedia of plants/weeds. 

The author spends a fair bit of time delineating the most common techniques for removing and eradicating pest plants including burning, physical removal, smothering, and herbicides. He discusses the relative merits of each and what they're best suited to.

Four stars. Beautifully photographed, weighty, and information dense. Some readers will be philosophically opposed to removing native species, and herbicide use, but the information included in the volume is sound, for what it is. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.