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Rating: 
Summary: ridiculous review
Review: After reading a rather scathing review posted on Amazon.com entitled "Get an editor" I chose not to order this book. Later, I happened across the book at Borders, thumbed through and purchased it. The book is is excellent! I believe the review misleads readers. I will address the two specific criticisms: Bad chemistry? Resh very carefully explains the concept of PH ( the reviewer missed this)-reference to a PH of 4.0 as very acidic was relative to the PH needs of tomatoes and, in fact, 4.0 is very acidic for a tomato (just a fact of life, not bad chemistry). Sulphuric acid for novices? Resh talks about sulphuric acid/hydroxides because they are, indeed, used within hydroponics (see hydroponic supply web sites). However, he is very clear that he does not recommend their use and lists the same reasons given by the reviewer (somehow the reviewer overlooked this also).Resh goes on to recommend specific safety measures for those who insist on their use. The book is clearly written, well illustrated and extremely practical. I have read it twice and highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: ridiculous review
Review: After reading a rather scathing review posted on Amazon.com entitled "Get an editor" I chose not to order this book. Later, I happened across the book at Borders, thumbed through and purchased it. The book is is excellent! I believe the review misleads readers. I will address the two specific criticisms: Bad chemistry? Resh very carefully explains the concept of PH ( the reviewer missed this)-reference to a PH of 4.0 as very acidic was relative to the PH needs of tomatoes and, in fact, 4.0 is very acidic for a tomato (just a fact of life, not bad chemistry). Sulphuric acid for novices? Resh talks about sulphuric acid/hydroxides because they are, indeed, used within hydroponics (see hydroponic supply web sites). However, he is very clear that he does not recommend their use and lists the same reasons given by the reviewer (somehow the reviewer overlooked this also).Resh goes on to recommend specific safety measures for those who insist on their use. The book is clearly written, well illustrated and extremely practical. I have read it twice and highly recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: Get an editor in on this book, please! And maybe a chemist?
Review: I am sure that there is some useful information in this book, if only I could get through the terrible writing. Someone needs to teach Resh on how to properly use phrases, commas, and paragraphs; how to avoid sentence fragments; and what the meaning of parallelism is. Also, the chemisty in this book is atrocious. For example, since when was a pH of 4.0 ever considered very acidic? Pepsi is worse than that and rain water can be as low as 5.3. Another example can be found in the section on making your own nutrient solution, why does he even talk about using sulfuric acid or any of the hydroxides to adjust the pH of a solution? Both are _way_ too dangerous for a novice to use around the home (and, by the way, the bases are much more dangerous that the acids -- they will not just burn your skin, they will eat right through it and you can't just wash them off). Acetic acid? Why not recommend lemon juice -- it is safe, cheap, and easily obtained. Unfortunately, from what I can stand to read, most of the information in this book is just like this, seemingly written by someone who has a weak science background but likes to talk about it anyway (and, for the record, I do have a degree in biochemistry, so I have an idea of what I am talking about). On the plus side, the drawings for the hydroponic set ups are fairly clear and easy to understand.
Rating:
Summary: Get an editor in on this book, please! And maybe a chemist?
Review: I am sure that there is some useful information in this book, if only I could get through the terrible writing. Someone needs to teach Resh on how to properly use phrases, commas, and paragraphs; how to avoid sentence fragments; and what the meaning of parallelism is. Also, the chemisty in this book is atrocious. For example, since when was a pH of 4.0 ever considered very acidic? Pepsi is worse than that and rain water can be as low as 5.3. Another example can be found in the section on making your own nutrient solution, why does he even talk about using sulfuric acid or any of the hydroxides to adjust the pH of a solution? Both are _way_ too dangerous for a novice to use around the home (and, by the way, the bases are much more dangerous that the acids -- they will not just burn your skin, they will eat right through it and you can't just wash them off). Acetic acid? Why not recommend lemon juice -- it is safe, cheap, and easily obtained. Unfortunately, from what I can stand to read, most of the information in this book is just like this, seemingly written by someone who has a weak science background but likes to talk about it anyway (and, for the record, I do have a degree in biochemistry, so I have an idea of what I am talking about). On the plus side, the drawings for the hydroponic set ups are fairly clear and easy to understand.
Rating:
Summary: Very helpful
Review: This is my fourth hydroponic book and it tells the story as good as the others do. I give it four stars because it taught me many new things about tomatoes that will come in handy no matter which way I garden. I'm really impressed with the content of this small book in regards to the tomato plant and its fruit. The diagrams are drawn accurately but are small do to the size of the book. The details of the nutrient solutions, how to mix and apply them, has just about scared me off from hydroponics. I don't like dealing with chemicals of any kind. I know that I can buy them pre-mixed but think about this whole thing; what's wrong with this picture? Maybe nothing, but still I wonder. Please consider buying this book for the wealth of information about the growing of tomatoes; it's well worth the small price. And just think, if La Nina' continues to parch the earth we may all be learning how to grow food hydroponically!
Rating:
Summary: Very helpful
Review: This short book is intelligently laid out, with just the right amount of diagrams. The text is easy to follow, even for a beginner. I am in the middle of attempting to follow Howard Resh's advice, as of early October 2001. If he is correct, I could be enjoying my first harvest before November!...
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