ONDRA, Nancy J.

PERSONAL: Female.

ADDRESSES: Home—Pennsburg, PA. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Storey Publishing, 210 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA 01247.

CAREER: Rodale Press (magazine publisher), Emmaus, PA, former editor; Pendragon Perennials (rare-plant nursery), Emmaus, PA, former owner; currently freelance writer and editor.

WRITINGS:

(With Rob Proctor) Rodale's Successful Organic Gardening: Annuals and Bulbs, Rodale (Emmaus, PA), 1995.

Easy Plant Propagation: Filling Your Garden with Plants from Seeds, Cuttings, Divisions, and Layers, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 1998.

Soil and Composting: The Complete Guide to Building Healthy, Fertile Soil, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 1998.

Landscaping with Herbs: Beautify Your Yard and Garden with Easy-care Herbs, Rodale (Emmaus, PA), 2000.

Taylor's Guide to Roses: How to Select, Grow, and Enjoy More than 380 Roses, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 2001.

Grasses: Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design, photography by Saxon Holt, Storey Books (North Adams, MA), 2002.

(With Stephanie Cohen) The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer, Storey Publishing (North Adams, MA), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS: Gardening expert Nancy J. Ondra is the author of more than a half dozen books on gardening and related subjects. She has written on topics such as organic gardening, soil and composting, plant propagation, using herbs as landscaping elements, and growing and tending hundreds of varieties of roses. A former gardening book editor for the publishing house Rodale, Ondra also owned a specialty rare-plant nursery in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, for six years.

In Ondra's Grasses: Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design the gardener offers a variety of suggestions for the use of ornamental grasses as integral parts of landscape design. Once considered simple background elements or space-fillers, ornamental grasses are becoming more popular as a prominent component of design, noted Booklist reviewer Carol Haggas. Low-maintenance grasses offer a visual and textural lushness to garden borders, containers, pathways, open spaces, and slopes. Ondra discusses cultural issues of gardening with grasses and "concentrates her efforts on extolling their multifaceted design distinctions," Haggas stated. She also offers references and descriptions to help gardeners choose the proper types of grasses for conditions ranging from hot, dry spots to low-lying bog areas. Ondra "elevates grasses from garden understudies to starring roles," Haggas commented. A reviewer for Gardening Live remarked favorably on Ondra's "uncommonly intelligent, informative text," concluding that the books is a "stunner."

Ondra collaborated with Stephanie Cohen to tackle basic issues of garden design with perennials in The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer. The authors bring "a refreshingly relaxed attitude to a well-worn topic," commented a reviewer in Publishers Weekly, and give the topic "friendly appeal." Geared toward beginners who are hesitant to undertake a garden design project, the book provides expert advice designed to build confidence and give novices the knowledge and courage to explore the many facets of gardening.

The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer, written in a chatty, humorous style, is divided into three sections. The first part covers concepts and design principles such as color, texture, form, and scale. In part two, the authors present practical advice on dealing with a variety of different site and soil conditions, including areas with excessive (or too little) sun, shade, and moisture. The section also contains detailed, step-by-step plans for twenty distinct theme gardens, all profusely illustrated with photographs. In part three, Ondra and Cohen delve into their personal experiences and relate the genesis and results of three of their own design projects. The book contains advice on garden renovation intended for new homeowners or determined gardeners who have to tackle and rework an outdoor project that did not quite work out as planned. Also included are several helpful references and appendices, such as a detailed plant list, a zone map, a recommended reading list, planting checklists, recommended perennial types, and other practical information.

The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer "tells both the novice and experienced gardener what to do, what to use, and just about anything else one would need to know to create vivid designs," observed Haggas in another Booklist review. The authors' knowledge and experience result in "an excellent set of design tips," stated a reviewer in Bookwatch. Library Journal contributor Robert Eagan forecasted that the book's "popular appeal" is "all but guaranteed by its chatty style, profuse illustrations, and enthusiastic emphasis on the practical."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, February 1, 2002, Carol Haggas, review of Grasses: Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design, p. 913; January 1, 2005, Carol Haggas, review of The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer, p. 796.

Bookwatch, March, 2005, review of The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer.

Gardening Life, September-October, 2002, review of Grasses: Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design, p. 18.

Library Journal, January 1, 2005, Robert Eagan, review of The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer, p. 138.

Publishers Weekly, December 20, 2004, review of The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer, p. 54.