The Comic Book Guide to Growing Food


Book Description

The first graphic novel guide to growing a successful raised bed vegetable garden, from planning, prepping, and planting, to troubleshooting, care, and harvesting. “A fun read packed with practical advice, it’s the perfect resource for new gardeners, guiding you through every step to plant, grow, and harvest a thriving and productive food garden.”—Joe Lamp’l, founder and creator of the Online Gardening Academy Like having your own personal gardening mentor at your side, The Comic Book Guide to Growing Food is the story of Mia, an eager young professional who wants to grow her own vegetables but doesn't know where to start, and George, her retired neighbor who loves gardening and walks her through each step of the process. Throughout the book, "cheat sheets" sum up George's key facts and techniques, providing a handy quick reference for anyone starting their first vegetable garden, including how to find the best location, which vegetables are easiest to grow, how to pick out the healthiest plants at the store, when (and when not) to water, how to protect your plants from pests, and what to do with extra produce if you grow too much. If you are a visual learner, beginning gardener, looking for something new, or have struggled to grow vegetables in the past, you'll find this unique illustrated format ideal because many gardening concepts--from proper planting techniques to building raised beds--are easier to grasp when presented visually, step by step. Easy and entertaining, The Comic Book Guide to Growing Food makes homegrown vegetables fun and achievable.




The Curious Gardener


Book Description

A wonderful book about the gardening year with practical advice by the top garden writer and best-selling author of The Tulip




The Ann Lovejoy Handbook of Northwest Gardening


Book Description

The organic gardening movement has been long established among vegetable growers. With the mainstreaming of ideas about environmental and ecological preservation, the organic movement has come to ornamental gardening. And one of the primary spokespeople for that movement is Sasquatch’s longtime author Ann Lovejoy. This new book is a complete handbook for ornamental gardening follows the principles and techniques of organic and sustainable gardening. Gardening naturally does mean going without products like Roundup, Weed and Feed, and chemical fertilizers. It also means that gardeners may opt for a selection of native plants that are compatible with local climate and soils. Some of the paradigm shift has to do with getting over the notion that one’s garden needs to be as spotless and tidy as something on a magazine cover. Gardening is all about process, and the methods that Ann Lovejoy explains in this book emphasize good soil preparation, composting, drainage, mulching, and right plant selection. This comprehensive book covers the steps from landscaping and designs to soil preparation to planting beds. She covers all of the elements of the garden: ground covers, lawns, shrubs, bulbs, trees – all with an eye to building a sustainable garden that grows without chemical fertilizers and pest control. You can try to make an Arizona backyard look like a Connecticut estate, but it’s going to take a lot of work, constant maintenance, more water than all the other gardens on your block, and a fat checkbook. There’s a simpler, more gratifying way to garden that is also good for people, pets, and wildlife. This practical book tells gardeners how to achieve that.




A Stranger's Gift


Book Description

Sweep into Florida, where a hurricane leaves a self-made man homeless and faithless. Will he accept the help he needs or refuse the kindness of strangers?




The New Kitchen Garden


Book Description

Covering both basic and more advanced information on the new kitchen garden, this book gives a clear explanation of the subject, and with detailed step-by-step photographs and instructions takes the reader systematically through all the techniques.




The Humane Gardener


Book Description

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.




Get Up and Grow


Book Description

"Clear, modern and inspiring" - Alan Titchmarsh, gardener and broadcaster In this truly innovative book Lucy Hutchings – aka She Grows Veg – proves that vegetable gardening doesn't always require outdoor space. Through clever uses of space and containers, understanding of growing conditions and a unique, design-led approach, Lucy showcases how anyone can grow pretty much anything in their back garden, courtyard, balcony or kitchen. Lucy creates 19 projects, from living vegetable walls and hydroponics basics, to indoor greenhouses and hanging herb racks that have all the decorative style and visual interest of ornamental house plants. With step-by-step illustrations and stunning photography, with Get Up and Grow, you can go from gardening novice to growing pro in a matter of weeks. Lucy is blazing a trail for new-wave gardening with a mantra of anything is possible, for anyone.




No Dig


Book Description

Work in partnership with nature to nurture your soil for healthy plants and bumper crops - without back-breaking effort! Have you ever wondered how to transform a weedy plot into a thriving vegetable garden? Well now you can! By following the simple steps set out in No Dig, in just a few short hours you can revolutionize your vegetable patch with plants already in the ground from day one! Charles Dowding is on a mission to teach that there is no need to dig over the soil, but by minimizing intervention you are actively boosting soil productivity. In fact, The less you dig, the more you preserve soil structure and nurture the fungal mycelium vital to the health of all plants. This is the essence of the No Dig system that Charles Dowding has perfected over a lifetime growing vegetables. So put your gardening gloves on and get ready to discover: - Guides and calendars of when to sow, grow, and harvest. - Inspiring information and first-hand guidance from the author - “Delve deeper” features look in-depth at the No Dig system and the facts and research that back it up. - The essential role of compost and how to make your own at home. - The importance of soil management, soil ecology, and soil health. Now one of the hottest topics in environmental science, this "wood-wide web" has informed Charles's practice for decades, and he's proven it isn't just trees that benefit - every gardener can harness the power of the wood-wide web. Featuring newly- commissioned step-by-step photography of all stages of growing vegetables and herbs, and all elements of No Dig growing, shot at Charles’s beautiful market garden in Somerset, you too will be able to grow more veg with less time and effort, and in harmony with nature - so join the No Dig revolution today! A must-have volume for followers of Charles Dowding who fervently believe in his approach to low input, high yield gardening, as well as gardeners who want to garden more lightly on the earth, with environmentally friendly techniques like organic and No Dig.




The Seasonal Gardener: Creative Planting Combinations


Book Description

Inspiration for stunning planting for your garden throughout the year - from Anna Pavord, one of today's most inspiring and much-loved garden writers, author of the global bestseller The Tulip First published in 2004, and now fully revised and updated, in this inspirational book, acclaimed bestselling author Anna Pavord selects 60 'star plants' - from iris to hostas - and pairs each with two perfect partners: shrubs, herbaceous perennials, bulbs, and annuals that no garden should be without. This classic book reveals how best to group plants in a garden to create a year-long display. Ranging from hydrangeas, salvias and ferns to dahlias, tulips and snowdrops, each star plant is paired with two partners, offering gardeners creative planting solutions to achieve stunning results, season by season.




The Land Gardeners


Book Description

From enriching the soil to creating floral arrangements, The Land Gardeners explores all aspects of creating a productive cut-flower garden. When Bridget Elworthy and Henrietta Courtauld established their firm Land Gardeners, which specializes in cut flowers, they revived the tradition of working with the land to produce abundant, seasonal flowers for use in decoration, design, and events. Yet, as beautiful and idyllic as their designs are, soil health and productivity are their main concerns. Beginning with their philosophy and origins as gardeners, The Land Gardeners provides vital information on everything you need to create your own cut-flower garden, from necessary tools and how to support health to what plants flourish in which seasons and advice on gathering, preparing, and arranging your blooms. In this gorgeous volume, the authors provide a plan for growing flowers in all four seasons. As beautiful as it is informative, this book explores the joy of gathering cut flowers and the importance of surrounding ourselves with healthy, vital gardens.