The 20-30 Something Garden Guide: a no-fuss, down and dirty gardening 101 for anyone who wants to grow stuff
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Urban farming is the hot new movement sweeping the country: growing food closer to where we live, whether it's on a condo deck, in a backyard or in a community garden. The 20/30-Something Garden Guide gives that busy, mostly urban, cohort a fun, non-intimidating introduction to the basics of gardening. These are the folks who want to know where their food comes from, and they're hip to the importance of good health and the environment. They may not have a lot of free time or change in their pockets, but if they could find a no-fuss Gardening 101 that spoke their language and gave achievable goals, they'd go for it. This is that book: high graphic appeal, fully illustrated, step-by-step projects and essential tips. Garden expert Dee Nash divides her book into four types and sizes of gardens, starting with "Farming Your Patio, Balcony or Deck," and giving incremental goals for the first year, and the second and third. With this guide as a basic roadmap, new gardeners can be as creative and out-of-the-box as they want. It's theirs to enjoy.
The art of container gardening
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The Book of Container Gardening
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With the skill, flair, and ingenuity that so delighted readers of "The Book of Fresh Flowers" and "The Book of Dried Flowers, " Malcolm Hillier has created the ultimate guide to growing garden plants in window boxes, barrels and tubs, pots, urns, and hanging baskets. Drawing on a glorious profusion of plants for all seasons, he imaginatively combines flowers, foliage, and berries to come up with eye-catching schemes that complement containers of all shapes and sizes. He explains the principles of designing a scheme and planting it, then provides a wealth of advice on the care and attention needed to keep the plants in their very best condition and ensure a healthy, long-lasting display. Large color photographs of sunbaked roof terraces, shady court-yards, and wind-swept balconies demonstrate how containers can be arranged to enhance a garden or decorate the individual features in it: brick walls and wooden fences, flights of steps and fire escapes, porches and pergolas. Lavishly illustrated with color photographs and supplemented with all the practical know-how needed to ensure success, "The Book of Container Gardening" i
The Complete book of houseplants & indoor gardening
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Container Gardening: 250 design ideas and step-by-step techniques
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For people who don't have space or time for traditional gardening and who need expert advice on choosing and using plants and containers to create their own container garden, large or small. At long last, a smart and sensible gardening guide from the most trusted name in gardening. Compiled from the pages of Fine Gardening magazine, Container Gardening will inspire readers with: dramatic plant combinations step-by-step techniques to plant and care for containers under all conditions, including regions with short growing periods. The experts at Fine Gardening will show even a beginning gardener how containers can create boundaries, direct traffic, break up wall space, and soften edges throughout the year.
The Container Garden Month-by-Month
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Edible Paradise : how to grow herbs, flowers and veggies in any space
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Learn how to create your own no-dig, organic garden with permaculture design and techniques. Vera's 15 years of experience as a no dig gardener provides a vast amount of knowledge on growing fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers. The book is divided into two sections, container gardening and permaculture kitchen gardening. Part One shares knowledge especially useful to urban gardeners and those with little space. Part Two advises on starting and maintaining a garden. Vera's specialty is creating beautiful and delicious polycultures and she offers a range of examples to get you started and the knowledge to experiment. She also includes recipes for your fresh harvests. Chapters on making compost, building raised beds, and a monthly job guide make this useful for all levels of gardener. Vera demonstrates that gardens can look beautiful and be productive, and her advice and examples encourage us to look at our own growing spaces in a different light. We no longer need to hide our veggie patches; they can take centre stage. Why not incorporate cut flowers with herbs, brassicas and peas? Or plant a pottager garden? These examples will help people create edible paradises everywhere, like patios, balconies, windowsills, allotments, community and school gardens, front and back gardens and anywhere else we can grow.
The Flower Garden: A Guide to Growing Cut Flowers on Your Windowsill
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Discover how to grow without a garden and reconnect with nature as you create an abundant flower meadow from your windowsill. The Flower Garden is a beautifully illustrated guide to show you how to start growing stunning blooms even in the smallest of spaces. Covering all the basics from growing from seed, how to maximise your space to understanding your light and drying flowers; this book is an essential reference to those with an urban space and who are itching to get planting. Packed with 'recipes' for the best flowers to grow throughout the year - you will soon have a balcony or roof terrace covered in enviable blooms to admire, pick or share. This neat, easy-to-use format is aimed at gardening beginners, looking to grow their own flower garden.
Gardening in Containers: creative ideas from America's best gardeners.
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America's best gardeners share their secrets for designing beautiful container gardens. Gardening in Containers is filled with clever and inspiring ideas for creating dynamic plant combinations, designing containers for year-round interest, selecting the best plants, and using containers throughout the garden.
Grow Bag Gardening: The revolutionary way to grow bountiful vegetables, herbs, fruits, and flowers in lightweight, eco-friendly fabric pots
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Grow oodles of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers with no heavy lifting or digging required! Grow bag gardening utilizes lightweight, eco-friendly, fabric planter bags to grow great plants with minimal space and care. Get all the know-how you need to successfully grow a hearty homegrown harvest in Grow Bag Gardening. Grow bags are perfect for urban, container, rooftop, balcony, and patio gardeners--but those with lots of property will find them useful, too. Grow bags fold flat for easy storage and are 100% frost-proof, so there's no lugging heavy pots indoors for the winter. They can be used for many seasons and their mobility means you can easily move these pots around to maximize sunlight. Fabric grow bags offer gardeners a great way to grow that's cost effective, simple, and beneficial to plants. In the pages of Grow Bag Gardening you'll learn: Why gardening in these special fabric planter bags results in big yields How this no-weed, no-mess method of gardening is a real game changer What makes this method so good for your plants (hint: no root circling!) Where and how to set up your grow bag garden to reap the biggest rewards Step-by-step instructions for continual harvests, sewing your own grow bags, building a specialized trellising system, caring for your grow bag garden, and more. Who can use grow bag gardening? Everyone! From school gardens to urban homesteads, everyone has room to grow their own veggies in a grow bag garden. Kevin Espiritu, author of Field Guide to Urban Gardening and the mastermind behind the popular website EpicGardening.com, offers an in-depth look at this revolutionary gardening method and how it can help feed the world, one grow bag at a time.
How to Grow Your Dinner Without Leaving the House
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A vegetable garden is not an option for everyone, and so container growing has become desirable for people with little outside space Many have discovered the love of growing houseplants and want to take their skills to another level; others are inspired by the idea of growing their own food organically and sustainably. The book covers all the essentials of growing a range of edible plants in pots, and meeting each crop's specific needs. Author Claire Ratinon brings her urban food growing expertise to this popular subject, in a book designed to appeal to new gardeners and anyone who would like to take on the rewarding challenge of growing their own dinner, even if they've only got a window box or balcony to work with.
Kids' Container Gardening: year-round projects for inside and out
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With 18 projects gleaned from the author's experience as director of the Good Earth Kids' Club, Kids' Container Gardening will teach enthusiastic young gardeners how to create an assortment of container gardens that are simple to make, that are fun to work on, and that make great gifts. Organized by season, the books' chapters will help kids develop their green thumbs with projects ranging from "Great Big Garden Bowls for Mom," "Father's Day Fountains," and other special occasion/holiday containers to sand art terrariums. In addition to providing the basics on plants and gardening, this helpful guide also includes a glossary of terms, a listing of plants used in the book, a list of resources, and numerous photographs to show kids that they're proceeding on the right path as they create their individual containers.
A Little Piece of Earth: how to grow your own food in small spaces
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A hip, eco-friendly guide with fun and easy projects for all levels. Eating locally has so many benefits--for the planet, for your health, and for your tastebuds--and you can't get much more local than your very own backyard. But is planting a garden too big a commitment? Then this book is for you. A Little Piece of Earth is all about starting small, with more than fifty self-contained, doable projects. Whether you have a yard, a terrace, a rooftop, or just a windowsill, there are plenty of ideas and inspirations to choose from. Harvest your own precious vanilla pods from a pot indoors. Grow savory shiitakes on a small log in your kitchen. Build a miniature vineyard trellis on your deck or build a raised bed on your patio. Recipes for using your homegrown bounty are sprinkled throughout. Charming illustrations guide you through step-by-step, and there's a complete resources section. This is about making dirt work for you, taking some control over your food supply, and, most important, enriching your life with the quiet, simple pleasures of produce raised organically with your own hands.
Little Potted Gardens: simple secrets for glorious gardens--indoors and out
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Potted gardens are a terrific solution for those with too little time or space for a full-blown garden. Even apartment dwellers with only a small patio or windowsill can create magical and productive miniature gardens with pots, boxes, and other containers. Little Potted Gardens offers easy-to-follow directions, inspiring photographs, and fun tips for choosing and filling containers of all shapes and sizes, indoors and out. Whether the intent is a bountiful harvest or a splash of fresh colour, this book offers hundreds of ideas for gardening without a garden.
Micro Food Gardening: Project plans and plants for growing fruits and veggies in tiny spaces
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Tiny plants are poised to take over the gardening world. And no category of tiny plants is as welcome and wildly embraceable as tiny edibles. Not only are they cute as a button, but they're tasty and nutritious too! In Micro Food Gardening, author and small-space gardening pro Jen McGuinness, introduces you to a world of miniature edible plants and dozens of DIY projects for growing them. Not everyone has room to grow a full-sized tomato plant or a melon vine that takes up more room than your car, but everyone has space for a micro tomato that tops out at the height of a Barbie doll or a dwarf watermelon with vines that won't grow any longer than your leg. From miniature herbs and salad greens to tiny strawberry plants, baby beets, and mini cabbages, you'll quickly discover that micro gardening offers a surprisingly diverse and delicious array of edible opportunities. Plus, with step-by-step instructions for a plethora of DIY micro food gardening projects, you'll be up and growing in no time at all. Whether you micro garden on a high-rise balcony, an itty bitty patio, a front porch container, or even in a basket on the handlebars of your bicycle, there are mini food plants ready to start cranking out fresh produce just a few weeks after planting. Creative projects include: A window box of mini potatoes for a porch, deck, or fire escape railing A mini lettuce table that serves to both grow food and hold your beverage A compact "cake tower" of strawberry plants A wine box spice garden A mini food fountain with herbs, veggies, and edible flowers A small-space omelet garden for cooking up the perfect breakfast Plus, several indoor food-growing projects will have you enjoying homegrown micro veggies year-round, even in cold climates. With advice on plant selection and care, project plans, full color photography, and growing tips, Micro Food Gardening is here to show you the joys of growing your own fresh, organic food, no matter where you call home.
Movable Harvests: fruits, vegetables, berries : the simplicity & bounty of container gardens
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The New Terracotta Gardener: Creative Ideas from Leading Gardeners
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Shows how to use terracotta planters for growing and displaying flowers, and recommends plants for container gardening
Permaculture in Pots : how to grow food in small urban spaces
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In these times of rising food prices and renewed interest in all things local, growing food in cities is becoming the big urban trend. Permaculture in Pots shows you how to get started with whatever space you have available--appealing to those who feel powerless to meet their own subsistence needs through lack of growing space. Month by month we learn what to grow on a balcony or in a container garden, using low impact permaculture principles. It doesn't matter when you pick up the book and start your journey of container gardening--wherever you are in the year, open the book to that chapter, and it will tell you what you should be doing. Each month's section details things to be done: how to plan ahead for the next season, and which fruit, vegetables, and herbs to be sowing, growing and eating. There are recipes, photos and anecdotes from the author's experience growing food on her small balcony in a London suburb. Kemp is warm and self-effacing, and makes an excellent guide. Each month has its own herb, with growing tips and culinary and medicinal uses for each. As uncertainty rises about whether those outside the property ladder will ever get to own their own home, Permaculture in Pots gives power and opportunity back to generations who are becoming more aware of the need of self-sufficiency, and yet find themselves in rented homes with concrete where gardens once were.
Space saving ideas
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Just because you don't have lots of space is no reason not have a garden. Many great gardens are grown in small spaces. Use containers on a balcony, or combine vegetables with flowers. Vegetables look good, so enjoy them where ever you can find room.
Tiny Victory Gardens: growing food without a yard
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Regenerative farmer Acadia Tucker proves it's possible to grow food without land. In this, her third easy-to-use gardening guide, Tucker describes how to cultivate bountiful container food gardens in pots, planters, and raised beds. Climate activist and farmer Acadia Tucker fell in love with container gardening after glimpsing its potential to produce food--lots of food. By applying select growing practices, and managing for square inches rather than square feet, she has come up with instructions for growing a small-scale farm on your patio, your stoop, or in your dining room. If what you want is a garden big enough to line a windowsill, she's got you covered there. Her book, loaded with helpful illustrations, includes: Profiles of 21 container-friendly crops Recipes for cultivating potted farms Tips on finding the right container Information on designing for small spaces--and making food gardens beautiful Guidance on how to raise crops in pots all year long Tucker also describes how to maximize the environmental impact of growing food in pots. She offers tips on attracting pollinators, shows how to build microbe-rich living soil, and explains ways to ditch harmful pesticides and fertilizers. Her goal is to make it easier for anyone with access to a patch of sun to grow food, no backyard required.
All New Square Foot Gardening, 3rd Edition, Fully Updated
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Apartment Gardening: Plants, projects, and recipes for growing food in your urban home
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"Forget the 100-mile eat-local diet; try the 300-square-foot-diet - grow squash on the windowsill, flowers in the planter box, or corn in a parking strip. Apartment Gardening details how to start a garden in the heart of the city. From building a window box to planting seeds in jars on the counter, every space is plantable, and this book reveals that the DIY future is now by providing hands-on, accessible advice. Amy Pennington's friendly voice paired with Kate Bingham-Burt's crafty illustrations make greener living an accessible reality, even if readers have only a few hundred square feet and two windowsills. Save money by planting the same things available at the grocery store, and create an eccentric garden right in the heart of any living space."
The Complete Guide to No-Dig Gardening: Grow beautiful vegetables, herbs, and flowers--the easy way!
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A lush, productive vegetable, herb, and flower garden doesn't have to require endless hours of time and unlimited energy. No-dig gardening methods let you keep the rototiller in the shed and focus on what you like best--planting and harvesting! With the step-by-step instructions in The Complete Guide to No-Dig Gardening, you'll discover how to build healthy, easy-to-plant garden soil by adding layers of organic matter using one of several different no-dig techniques. Whether you garden in a small, urban backyard or on several acres in the country, this simple approach lets you grow more food and blooms than ever before, and leave the gas-guzzling tiller behind forever. Plus, when you don't disturb the soil, weed seeds stay buried deep where they can't germinate and carbon is kept sequestered in the ground. No-dig gardening techniques also lead to reduced watering needs and a healthy population of beneficial soil microbes that help feed your plants by breaking down organic matter and releasing nutrients. In addition to extolling the endless benefits of no-dig growing, author and veggie-growing expert Charlie Nardozzi hands you the tools you need to: Create a new no-dig garden from scratch Transition an existing garden to the no-dig method Build the most productive, nutrient-rich soil possible Recycle yard waste by building a Hugelkultur planting mound Discover more about some great variations of no-dig gardening, including raised beds and containers Bring your no-dig garden indoors for a continuous harvest Welcome oodles of fresh, homegrown veggies, herbs, and flowers into your life--with no back-breaking work required!
Crops in Tight Spots: grow amazing fruit and vegetables wherever you live
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Short of outdoor space but want to grow fruit and vegetables? Congratulations. Really, lucky you. Not for you the back-breaking trudge of tending large spaces of land, the weeding, digging and pest vigilance. Gluts? They will mean nothing to you. Instead you can look forward to small but perfectly formed bursts of flavor. Handfuls of fresh leaves, berries and tomatoes, just when you want them, and at arm's reach. As more of us live in cities with restricted outside spaces, growing food becomes all the more important, not just for the delicious results, but as a mindful way to connect us to the seasons and to nature. Full of tried-and-tested, fool-proof crop ideas exclusively tailored for containers, raised beds and small gardens, Crops in Tight Spots guarantees vegetable growing success for even the most newbie of gardeners and limited of spaces.
Field Guide to Urban Gardening
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Field Guide to Urban Gardening helps you choose the best methods to match your unique small-space challenges and growing goals, and provides the nuts-and-bolts information you need to participate in any method you choose.
Grow Great Grub
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Your patio, balcony, rooftop, front stoop, boulevard, windowsill, planter box, or fire escape is a potential fresh food garden waiting to happen. In Grow Great Grub, Gayla Trail, the founder of the leading online gardening community (YouGrowGirl.com), shows you how to grow your own delicious, affordable, organic edibles virtually anywhere.Grow Great Grub packs in tips and essential information about-- Choosing a location and making the most of your soil (even if it's less than perfect)- Building a raised bed, compost bin, and self-watering container using recycled materials- Keeping pests and diseases away from your plants - the toxin-free way- Growing bountiful crops in pots and selecting the best heirloom varieties- Cultivating hundreds of plants, from blueberries to Thai basil, to the best tomatoes you'll ever taste- Canning, and preserving to make the most of your garden's generosity- Green-friendly, cost-saving, growing, and building projects that are smart and stylish- And much more!Whether you're looking to eat on a budget or simply experience the pleasure of picking tonight's meal from right outside your door, this is the must-have book for small-space gardeners - no backyard required.
The Minimalist Gardener
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Low input, year-round "no-dig" gardening that provides your kitchen with fresh healthy food, without breaking your back Written by an acknowledged expert, this friendly guide will help you grow food in whatever space you have - large or small, rural or urban - with minimal purchased inputs, and maximum satisfaction. It explores a cutting edge of permaculture gardening that is eminently practical and visionary all at the same time. Patrick describes an evolving system that is totally chemical free, requiring little input from outside the garden gate. His minimalist approach uses techniques such as no-dig, raised beds, perennial vegetables and self-seeding salads as ground cover, and mulching when appropriate. This minimizes garden maintenance whilst growing an abundance of produce year round. Patrick describes how to select plants based on what you like to eat and how to combine them in polycultures that confound would-be pests. He mixes annual hybrids, heritage varieties and perennial vegetables and has a pragmatic approach to selecting seeds and seed saving. There are also tips on fruit growing, from berries to fruit trees, including how to choose rootstocks and varieties.
No Dig Organic Home and Garden: Grow, cook, use & store your harvest
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No dig organic gardening saves time and work. It requires an annual dressing of compost to help accelerate the improvement in soil structure and leads to higher fertility and less weeds. No dig experts Charles Dowding and Stephanie Hafferty, explain how to set up a no dig garden, including how to: * Make compost and enrich soil * Learn skills you need to sow and grow annual and perennial veg * Harvest and prepare food year round * Make natural cosmetics, cleaning products, and garden preparations The no dig approach works as well in small spaces as in large gardens. The authors' combined experience covers methods of growing, preparing and storing the plants you grow for many uses, and includes recipes and ideas for increasing self-reliance, saving money, living sustainably, and enjoying the pleasure of growing your own food, year round.
No-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture
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From a veteran organic grower: a unique agricultural methodology that delivers higher yields, higher quality, and higher profitability--absolutely free of herbicides or pesticides No-till farming has rapidly grown in popularity among vegetable growers due to its high-quality, high-yield, high-profit results. Renowned organic grower Bryan O'Hara perfected the technique during the multi-year transition of his Connecticut vegetable farm to a no-till system. His vibrantly healthy, resilient plants are testaments to the value of allowing the inherent biological functions in soil to do their work. In No-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture, O'Hara describes the methods he has developed, which are completely free of herbicides or other pesticides and require only a few acres of land and minimal capital investment. He asserts that this flexible, ecological methodology is as important for soil fertility as it is for his economic success. This comprehensive manual delves into all facets of a dynamic, holistic growing system, including: No-till bed preparation techniques Seeding and transplanting methods Irrigation Use of fertilizers (including foliar feeds) Composting (preparation and application) Culture of indigenous microorganisms to support soil biology Pest and disease management Year-round growing Harvest and storage techniques O'Hara also explores the spiritual dimension of managing a farm ecosystem: observing the natural balance between plants, soil, air, water, and sunlight and the ways in which working to maintain that balance influences practical production decisions. Whether you're a high-yield producer, a homesteader, or a market gardener, No-Till Intensive Vegetable Culture is the go-to vegetable grower's manual for the twenty-first century. O'Hara's advanced yet accessible methodology will both help you respond to natural systems and adapt to meet future challenges.
The Postage Stamp Vegetable Garden: Grow tons of organic vegetables in tiny spaces and containers
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To accommodate today's lifestyles, a garden needs to fit easily into a very small plot, take as little time as possible to maintain, require a minimum amount of water, and still produce prolifically. That's exactly what a postage stamp garden does. Postage stamp gardens are as little as 4 by 4 feet, and, after the initial soil preparation, they require very little extra work to produce a tremendous amount of vegetables--for instance, a 5-by-5-foot bed will produce a minimum of 200 pounds of vegetables. When first published 40 years ago, the postage stamp techniques, including closely planted beds rather than rows, vines and trailing plants grown vertically to free up space, and intercropping, were groundbreaking. Now, in an ever busier world, the postage stamp intensive gardening method continues to be invaluable for gardeners who wish to weed, water, and work a whole lot less yet produce so much more.
The Small Food Garden: Growing organic fruit & vegetables at home
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Fresh food straight from the garden--it's got to be good for you. No matter what size your outdoor space, you can plant, grow, and harvest fresh organic produce using the information in this compact book. Included are vegetables, herbs, and fruit, with tips on planting, growing, and caring for each plant. Investigate the options: look at containers, grow bags, raised beds, and window boxes. Discover what to plant where and how to provide water and nutrients to ensure you grow healthy, productive fruit and vegetables. Plant, grow, harvest, and enjoy your own edible garden. Best varieties of vegetables, herbs, and fruit for planting in small spaces. Color photographs of every featured food plant. Create a water-efficient, organic edible garden.
Straw Bale Gardens Complete: Breakthrough method for growing vegetables anywhere, earlier and with no weeding, Updated Edition
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This new edition of Straw Bale Gardens Complete is the only book you need to get started with the revolutionary gardening method that has taken the world by storm. Written by Joel Karsten, the originator of Straw Bale Gardening, this exciting update contains detailed, start-to-finish instructions for growing vegetables in straw anywhere, plus many new ideas and projects to help you enjoy your straw bale experience even more. Whatever your gardening challenge, Straw Bale Gardening holds the solution. Have a small or unusual space? Straw Bale Gardening is perfect for urban, rooftop, and balcony gardens. Contaminated soil? Planting in straw bales eliminates the problem. Are you inundated by weeds? With straw bales, there is no weeding. The advantages of growing a Straw Bale Garden go on and on: they require 75 percent less labor, their raised height makes planting easier, they extend the growing season, prevent disease and insect issues, are portable, hold water well but are impossible to overwater, they create excellent compost, and can be grown 100 percent organically. Among the new subjects: Cultivating mushrooms in straw and straw bales How to grow plants in hay bales (and how to tell the difference between hay and straw) Tips and ideas for making your straw bale garden more attractive How to make a cold frame with straw bales Trellising projects for growing vertically And much more Assure your success with Straw Bale Gardening with instructions and advice direct from the inventor of the method.
Tiny Garden, Huge Harvest: how to harvest huge crops from tiny plots and container gardens
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When you plant the right varieties of heirloom vegetables, you can harvest huge volumes of fresh food from small garden plots and container gardens. Self-sufficiency expert Caleb Warnock provides step-by-step directions for designing, planting, and harvesting a tiny garden for big harvests that can really feed your family.
Urban Gardening : how to grow food in any city apartment or yard no matter how small
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You could be just months away from a harvest of delicious, fresh organic food from your urban garden. Even if you only have a tiny balcony to work with, you can grow fresh food and flowers there. You've probably already considered container gardening - but what about vertical gardening with vining plants that can grow up the wall or using a vertical aeroponics gardening system that can grow 20+ plants in a 4 square foot area? And rooftops are the perfect spot for an urban garden! Not only will you love all the fresh food but the building owner will love the reduction in their heating and cooling bills and the fact that the rooftop will need fewer repairs and maintenance due to the protection from the plants. Even if you only have a window sill to work with or just a small area by a window, you can build or buy a window garden to grow at least 20 food plants like tomatoes, lettuce, and kale. You don't need fancy equipment or expensive gear to start an indoor urban garden - just a little bit of creativity and the plans and step-by-step instructions included in this book. Also included is a list of the 15 best indoor plants for cleaning, purifying, and removing toxins from polluted city air. Even in the heart of Manhattan, you can breathe fresh, pure air thanks to these incredible plants that have been studied by NASA and proven to remove pollutants like benzene, formaldehyde, and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Whether you're a complete beginner or just want to learn more, this gardening guidebook will teach you everything you need to know to enjoy the fruits of your own special garden. Every section includes action steps, pictures, and step-by-step tutorials so you will know what to do and how to do it to create your perfect garden.
Grow a Living Wall: Create vertical gardens with purpose : pollinators - herbs and veggies - aromatherapy - many more
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Sometimes called "Green Walls" or "Vertical Gardens," living walls are easier than ever to plan and grow! Grow a Living Wall is the first wall-gardening book to focus exclusively on the needs of home gardeners. Make your vertical garden environmentally friendly and sustainable. It's easy with author Shawna Coronado's help! One of her themed vertical gardens is stocked mostly with flowers to make it a haven for bees and other pollinators. Other gardens are filled with vegetables and herbs so anyone with an outdoor wall can grow their own food - beautifully! Even more gardens promote aromatherapy or medicinal plants. Some are designed to provide a green net of air filtration near a living area, or to protect exterior walls from exposure to direct sunlight, which helps to keep the indoors cool. In addition to the comprehensive, step-by-step information that explains the basics of vertical gardening, each of the 20 featured gardens has its own chapter filled with useful tips, stunning photography, and fascinating background stories that point out how much difference a small garden can make. Like author Shawna herself, the gardens you'll find in Grow a Living Wall are positive, life affirming, and sure to produce a smile or two.
Stand up and Garden
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Knowing where our food comes from is a huge issue; food safety and costs seem to figure more prominently in our lives all the time. Many people would like to grow their own vegetables but don't know how to begin--digging, plowing, planting, weeding, and watering a large plot can be daunting. Stand Up and Garden shows how everyone can garden, including those with physical limitations like arthritis or location limitations like apartment-dwellers without backyards. Imagine harvesting radishes, carrots, and strawberries in the spring; herbs, tomatoes, and cucumbers all through the summer; beets, spinach, and even potatoes in autumn. By focusing on containers, trellises, and raised beds, Master Gardener Mary Moss-Sprague has improved upon traditional gardening by developing ways to grow plants that produce large amounts of food--enough for canning and other preservation--in small vertical spaces. New gardeners will find basic planting and growing information for a wide range of vegetables and herbs. Experienced growers will find economical, space- and energy-saving ideas. In addition to vertical gardening techniques, there are tips on overwintering plants and details on sustainable and eco-friendly gardening practices. Step-by-step illustrations and supply lists of inexpensive materials make projects like building a trellis or constructing a raised bed using straw bales accessible to everyone, regardless of ability or skill. There's even a chapter on installing a micro-drip irrigation system--a very helpful innovation that eliminates the need for heavy hand-held watering devices. Use this great reference for inspiration and instruction on sustainable and economical gardening practices and techniques.
Vertical Gardening: Grow up, not out, for more vegetables and flowers in much less space
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The biggest mistake gardeners make each season is starting out too big and then quickly realizing their large plot requires too much weeding, watering, and backbreaking labor. Vertical gardening guarantees a better outcome from the day the trowel hits the soil-by shrinking the amount of "floor" space needed and focusing on climbing plants that are less prone to insects, diseases, and animal pests. Notable author and gardener Derek Fell has tried and tested thousands of varieties of vegetables, flowers, and fruits and recommends the best plants for space-saving vertical gardening. His grow-up, grow-down system also shows which ground-level plants make good companions underneath and alongside climbing plants. Best of all, many of Fell's greatest climbers and mutually beneficial plants are available in seed packets in every local garden center. With a mix of DIY and commercially available string supports, trellises, pergolas, raised beds, skyscraper gardens, and topsy-turvy planters, the vertical garden system reduces work, increases yields, makes harvesting easier, and can be practiced in spaces as small as a container or a one-by-four-foot strip. Vertical Gardening features 100 color photos of the author's own vertical methods and showcases beautiful, troublefree perennials, shrubs, vegetables, annuals, and fruit perfect for this new, rewarding way to garden.
Vertical Gardens: Design guide & 42 case studies
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GUIDELINES: A thorough technical introduction provides guidance to architects and designers exploring vertical gardens, an innovative and ever more popular response to increasing urbanization. CASE STUDIES: Injecting green spaces into cities, providing gardening solutions in limited space, and combating the endless concrete, metal and glass of our cities, vertical gardens comprise an exciting field of landscape architecture. This book features the most exciting projects from around the world, illustrated with full color photographs, plans and in-depth explanations from the architects. It will be an inspiration to architects, students and those interested in urban design.
Vertical Vegetables: Simple projects that deliver more yield in less space
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Vertical Vegetables is the secret to making the most of your space; when you grow upward rather than outward, you will double or triple the yield from your small-space garden. In Vertical Vegetables, author Amy Andrychowicz shows you a thing or two about growing up. Gardening vertically, that is. With practical principles and the incisive background information you'll need to start, Amy shows you how to build nearly two dozen growing structures, including trellises, arbors, archways, wall pockets, towers, and more. Bigger yields per square foot may be the main reason for vertical growing, but vertical gardens also offer opportunities that go beyond the purely functional--they can be beautiful, too. Among the many projects in her new book, Amy has included several that are eye-wideningly stunning, especially once the garden has matured. Freestanding or wall-hung, the projects reflect a wide variety of building materials, too, including dimensional lumber, metal re-bar, fabric, and even "upcycled" everyday objects. Vertical Vegetables is packed with important information, including lists of plants that are best suited for vertical growing. This beautiful project book is your key to more garden produce and improved outdoor living in any space, from tiny and urban, to large and sprawling.
Dig In!
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Grow your own fruits and vegetables from nothing but kitchen scraps! Rather than throwing away leftovers from food in your kitchen, you can use them to grow more. Learn how to turn a single sweet potato into a pot full of them. Grow a salad from the end bit of lettuce and a lemon tree from a single seed. Several of these projects require nothing more than a jar, a windowsill, and a few pieces of food that would otherwise end up in the trash or compost. Step-by-step drawings and photographs make it easy to follow along, and fun recipes will help you enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Early Years Gardening Handbook : A step-by-step guide to creating a working garden for your early years setting
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The practical guide to creating a working garden for children in the early years to enjoy year after year.Whatever time of year it is, involving young children in gardening can be an excellent way to develop a wide range of skills for the EYFS and can bring children of all abilities together.This gem of a guide aims to provide a step-by-step guide to creating an early years garden from first conception to eating your own veg Features: Where to start: how to plan for your garden and g...
Every Nursery Needs a Garden: A Step-By-step Guide to Creating and Using a Garden with Young Children
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'If outdoor activities with young children have always baffled you, then this is the book for you. Practical in style and structure, it has an accessible approach which is based in the best early years practice and provides plenty of challenges and new ideas. It is a must have for your early years setting.' - Kathryn Solly, Headteacher at Chelsea Open Air Nursery School and Children's Centre, UK A garden can be a magical place for young children and offers them rich and engaging learning experiences as they interact with a variety of plants and wildlife throughout the year. This book guides you through the process of creating a garden, however small, for young children. It looks at the impact a garden area can have on children's overall development and the benefits of using natural materials as learning tools. Full of practical advice on how to design, develop resource and use a garden area, this book brings together: advice on planning a garden and how to get children, parents and the local community involved ideas for settings with limited space ideas for different spaces including a wildlife space, a woodland space, a digging area, sand and water spaces and a growing area suggestions of plants, flowers and crops to grow with very young children information about the wildlife children may discover anbsp;calendar guide to activities and garden planning throughout the year ways to encourage children to develop a sense of awareness of the importance of conservation and sustainability guidance on health and safety clear links with EYFS to show how a garden supports the areas of learning and development. Written for all early years practitioners, this book is the definitive guide for those looking to further enhance their outdoor environment and fulfil the potential learning opportunities that a garden can provide.
Gardening for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Special Educational Needs
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Winner of the American Horticultural Therapy Association's Book Publication Award 2014 A garden or nature setting presents the perfect opportunity for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and special needs to learn, play and strengthen body and mind. This book empowers teachers and parents with little gardening know-how to get outside and use nature to motivate young learners. Using a mindfulness approach, Natasha Etherington presents a simple gardening program that offers learning experiences beyond those a special needs student can gain within the classroom. The book outlines the many positive physical, cognitive, sensory, emotional and social benefits of getting out into the garden and provides specially adapted gardening activities for a variety of needs, including those with developmental disabilities and behavioural difficulties, as well as wheelchair users. With a focus on the therapeutic potential of nature, the book shows that gardening can help reduce feelings of anxiety, provide an outlet for physical aggression, build self-esteem through the nurturing of plants and much more. With this practical program, teachers and parents can easily adopt gardening activities into their schedules and enjoy the benefits of introducing children with special needs to nature and the rhythms of the seasons.
Gardening with Young Children
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Explore the unique and expansive learning opportunities offered by gardening with children Gardens are where children's imaginations engage nature, and the result is joyful learning. Gardening helps children develop an appreciation for the natural world and build the foundation for environmental stewardship. This book is packed with information and inspiration to help you immerse children in gardening and outdoor learning experiences--green thumb or a perfect plot of land not required. Learn how a gardening curriculum supports learning and development across all domains. You'll also find heaps of suggestions for planning, planting, and caring for a garden suited to your unique setting, such as container gardens, raised beds, in-ground gardens, gardens grown vertically on a wall or fence, and even rooftop gardens. Cultivate children's wonder and appreciation for nature. This book provides More than 60 hands-on learning activities for children of all ages to explore plants and garden creatures Vibrant photographs and classroom stories showcasing great programs from around the country New content reflecting childhood issues and gardening trends that have surfaced in recent years, including concerns that children are becoming alienated from nature, and that childhood obesity is becoming an epidemic Resources to help your garden flourish, seed and garden supply lists, information on poisonous plants, and books about gardens and garden creatures
It's Our Garden: From seeds to harvest in a school garden
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Want to grow what you eat and eat what you grow? Visit this lively, flourishing school-andcommunity garden and be inspired to cultivate your own. At an elementary school in Santa Fe, the bell rings for recess and kids fly out the door to check what's happening in their garden. As the seasons turn, everyone has a part to play in making the garden flourish. From choosing and planting seeds in the spring to releasing butterflies in the summer to harvesting in the fall to protecting the beds for the winter. Even the wiggling worms have a job to do in the compost pile! On special afternoons and weekends, neighborhood folks gather to help out and savor the bounty (fresh toppings for homemade pizza, anyone?). Part celebration, part simple how-to, this close-up look at a vibrant garden and its enthusiastic gardeners is blooming with photos that will have readers ready to roll up their sleeves and dig in. Back matter includes suggestions for further reading and online resources.
Kids' Container Gardening: year-round projects for inside and out
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With 18 projects gleaned from the author's experience as director of the Good Earth Kids' Club, Kids' Container Gardening will teach enthusiastic young gardeners how to create an assortment of container gardens that are simple to make, that are fun to work on, and that make great gifts. Organized by season, the books' chapters will help kids develop their green thumbs with projects ranging from "Great Big Garden Bowls for Mom," "Father's Day Fountains," and other special occasion/holiday containers to sand art terrariums. In addition to providing the basics on plants and gardening, this helpful guide also includes a glossary of terms, a listing of plants used in the book, a list of resources, and numerous photographs to show kids that they're proceeding on the right path as they create their individual containers.
The Age-Proof Garden
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Here, readers will discover how easy it is to carry on gardening into and way beyond retirement. The book shows how to plan a garden that is suitable for older people. It gives an overview of plants that will stimulate all five senses, and covers flower and herb gardens, fruit and vegetable gardens, and much more.
Garden projects in seed planting.
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Gardening for a Lifetime
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From the winner of the National Garden Club's Award of Excellence Although the garden may beckon as strongly as ever, the tasks involved--pulling weeds, pushing wheelbarrows, digging holes, moving heavy pots--become increasingly difficult, or even impossible, with advancing age. But the idea of giving it up is unthinkable for most gardeners. So what's the alternative? In Gardening for a Lifetime, Sydney Eddison draws on her own forty years of gardening to provide a practical and encouraging roadmap for scaling back while keeping up with the gardening activities that each gardener loves most. Like replacing demanding plants like delphiniums with sturdy, relatively carefree perennials like sedums, rudbeckias, and daylilies. Or taking the leap and hiring help--another pair of hands, even for a few hours a week, goes a long way toward getting a big job done. This new edition features an additional chapter describing how Sydney's struggles with hip and back problems forced her to walk the walk. As a friend of hers says, "Last summer you wrote the book. Now, I'm happy to see that you've read it." Gentle, personable, and practical, Gardening for a Lifetime will be welcomed by all gardeners looking to transform gardening from a list of daunting chores into the gratifying, joyful activity it was meant to be.
Growing a Life: Teen gardeners harvest food, health, and joy
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A testament to the influential nature of educational and community gardening programs for teens Part engaging conversation, part comprehensive fieldwork, Growing a Life demonstrates just how influential educational and community gardening programs can be for young teens. Follow author Illéne Pevec as she travels from rural Colorado to inner city New York, agrarian New Mexico to Oakland, California, in order to study youth gardening and the benefits it contributes to at-risk teen lives. Extensive research, supplemented by beautifully candid interviews with students, illustrate the life altering physical and mental benefits that mentored gardening programs can provide. Giving readers the opportunity to examine the largely unexplored topic of urban gardening, the programs discussed present models for future educational and community based gardens. Each destination brings with it an abundance of programs geared toward educating teens by giving them the tools they will need in order to have fruitful futures. With an emphasis on positive psychology, Growing a Life delves into the minds of underprivileged teens and what gardening means to them.
Garden Your Way to Health and Fitness: Exercise plans, injury prevention, ergonomic designs
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Garden designer Bunny Guinness joins forces with physiotherapist Jacqueline Knox in this one-stop guide to all-around garden health. Step-by-step sequences based on the Pilates method illustrate the safe way to push wheelbarrows, lift heavy pots, pick low-lying fruit, and much more in a way that boosts fitness while avoiding stress and strains. The authors also detail a wealth of tactics for achieving beautiful gardens that require a range of exertion levels. They describe planting designs that are best for time-pressed gardeners, how to use daily garden maintenance regimes to stay active, and how to design an outdoor gym. Illustrated sequences guide gardeners through physical exercises to suit their fitness levels. Looking after oneself is also key to good garden health. To this end, a comprehensive guide to growing fruits, vegetables, and herbs, a rundown of the best gardening clothes and ergonomic tools, tips for preventing and treating common ailments, and guidelines for winding down the healthy way complete the indispensable resource.
The Illustrated Practical Guide to Gardening for Seniors
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This ground-breaking new book shows how easy it is for seniors to carry on gardening, into and way beyond retirement. It looks at different kinds of homes and the gardens they provide, assessing the location, local climate and soil type and evaluating problems such as arthritis and loss of balance. The book also outlines the importance of taking care of your body, summarizing the safety issues, what to wear, warm-up exercises and equipment to make the garden easy to access for unsteady feet or wheelchairs. Included is a directory that profiles the many planting choices available, each with a difficulty rating and a hardiness category. Gardening for Seniors is packed with projects, garden plans and step-by-step sequences. It will appeal to active gardeners in their early retirement through to those with more limited abilities, showing how, by adapting garden activities and the tools employed, the joy of gardening will remain undiminished. - A fresh and inspiring new guide to gardening forthose on their more advanced years, from activeretirees to those with more limited abilities - Essential reading for anyone who wants to enjoytheir garden forever, as well as those that want togive an enjoyment of the garden to enrich the livesof less able seniors in their care - Accessible step-by-step techniques and advice, from planning and equipment to planting andmaintenance, with over 900 instructional andinspirational photographs - Presents a range of special equipment to helpgardeners with a variety of conditions, includinghypertension, arthritis, balance and back problems - Packed with projects designed for older gardeners, this unique volume reveals how you can adaptgarden activities to ensure the joy of gardeningremains undiminished
Late Bloomer: How to garden with comfort, ease and simplicity in the second half of life
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There are times in a gardener's life when what we want to do and what we can do are at odds. Our knees and backs may be complaining, our energy isn't what it was - yet our desire to get our hands in the dirt is as strong as ever. Or maybe we've downsized to a much smaller outdoor space that doesn't look promising at all. What to do? In Late Bloomer, garden designer Jan Coppola Bills shows us how to successfully rethink our approach to gardening as we age. The author is a second-half-of-life gardener who helps her many friends and clients achieve easy care, low cost, eco-friendly, simple and beautiful gardens. It's all about maintaining a joyful, healthful connection with the soil - but without the toil. Late Bloomer is part garden philosophy and part on-the-ground strategies and tips from the author and expert gardeners across the U.S. With color photos on almost every page, this inviting and practical book is organized around the four tenets of the Late Bloomer philosophy: Simplicity. Beauty and Harmony. Comfort and Ease. Relaxation and Letting Go.
Extraordinary Ornamental Edibles: 100 perennials, trees, shrubs and vines for Canadian gardens
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Growing your own food continues to gain popularity, but planting and tending vegetables every year certainly requires more effort than the ease of maintaining a backyard full of well-established hardy perennials. Now, with the help of this volume, gardeners can have the best of both worlds by planning a garden full of edible perennials that are both gorgeous and easy-to-maintain. From Akebia vine, with its scented flowers and tasty purple-skinned seed pods, to shade-loving Japanese Zingiber--there are so many options for Canadian gardeners beyond the traditional veggie plot. One hundred of the most notable trees, shrubs, vines and perennials are highlighted for both their aesthetic and edible appeal, with each entry including such information as ideal exposure, water needs, pollination requirements, harvesting and food preparation suggestions. More than just a listing of delicious plants, Extraordinary Ornamental Edibles is also a comprehensive guide to the edible landscape as a whole with sensible information about microclimates, pollinators, pests, ecological concerns, organic gardening tips, container growing, space-saving espaliers for small spaces, propagation, grafting, pruning, and design essentials--such as selecting edible ground covers and choosing plants for fall colour. Also included are culinary suggestions and recipes for everything from herbal teas to tempura. From cold-tolerant cultivars of exotic fruit such as the new hardy lemon or yuzu, to surprising varieties of better-known garden staples, like columnade apple trees suitable to growing in pots and blueberries that bear pink fruit, this volume details the full range of unique and exciting options, making it an inspiring and easy-to-reference A-to-Z guide to growing extraordinary ornamental edibles across Canada.
Gardening in Michigan
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Gardening is now the favorite leisure pastime in America. Homeowners are realizing the health benefits derived from gardening and the increase in their home's property value.
Gardening Month by Month in Michigan
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Michigan horticulturist Tim Wood and accomplished garden writer Alison Beck bring a wealth of information to this valuable new tool for maintaining and improving your garden throughout the year. The format allows you to keep your own notes on such variables as weather, insects and disease as well as garden highlights. The practical lay-flat binding makes it easy to write your notes while at work in the garden. Each month opens with a beautiful two-page photo spread and has 10 pages devoted to information about annuals, perennials, vegetables, fruits, trees, shrubs or houseplants and information and ideas that will help you keep your Michigan garden looking its best.
The Michigan Gardener's Companion
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The glaciers that advanced and then receded through the Great Lakes region shaped Michigan's terrain and soil in ways that challenge and sometimes confound modern-day gardeners. Michigan today has 450 varieties of soil Before they can garden successfully, Michigan gardeners need to know what soil they have and how to address its shortcomings--and do that within the limitations of the state's climate and northern growing season. This book explains how Michigan gardeners can lengthen their growing seasons through careful plant selection, exploiting microclimates, and using season-extending products. Chapters focus on lawns, vegetables, flowers, and trees, plant diseases, and invasive plants.Author Rita C. Henehan lives in White Pigeon, Michigan. She is a Master Gardener and frequent contributor to garden publications coast to coast, and often appears on the radio program "Green Thumbs Up."
Michigan Gardener's Guide
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Gardening is now the favorite leisure pastime in America. Homeowners are realizing the health benefits derived from gardening and the increase in their home's property value. This book contains easy-to-use advice on the top landscape plant choices. It also recommends specific varieties, and provides advice on how to plant, how to grow and how to care for the best plants.
Michigan Getting Started Garden Guide: Grow the best flowers, shrubs, trees, vines & groundcovers.
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Written by one of the region's most highly respected gardening experts, Michigan Getting Started Garden Guide is a plant recommendation guidebook geared exclusively toward gardeners located in the Wolverine State. Author Melinda Myers shares her extensive gardening knowledge, highlighting her top picks for plants that will thrive in (or in spite of) Michigan's tough winters and other unique growing conditions, guaranteeing success for the Michigan gardener and home landscaper. From soil and water to fertilization and pest management, Michigan Getting Started Garden Guide addresses all the gardening topics of concern to Michigan gardeners. Featured plant categories discuss annuals, bulbs, ferns and groundcovers, ornamental grasses, perennials, roses, shrubs, trees, turfgrasses, and vines. Each plant is showcased with detailed photography; specific advice on how, when, and where to plant; growing tips, such as watering requirements; and descriptions of routine care. Alongside these "nitty-gritty" aspects of planting and growing, Myers shares her inspiration for garden design, the various ways you can beautifully incorporate plants into your landscape, and her favorite cultivars and species. With proven, practical instructions presented through gorgeous imagery and adapted specially for the Michigan climate, Michigan Getting Started Garden Guide is your ticket to successful planting in the Great Lake State.
Michigan Month-By-Month Gardening
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The when-to and how-to schedule for growing, caring for, and maintaining your Great Lakes State garden! Never garden alone! The Month-by-Month Gardening series is the perfect companion to take the guesswork out of gardening. With this book, you'll know what to do each month to have gardening success all year, from January to December. It's full of the when-to and how-tos of gardening along with richly illustrated step-by-step instructions, so you can garden with confidence. Reap the benefits of the gardening successes of author Melinda Myers, who has over thirty years of horticulture experience. With a fresh look and updated information, Michigan Month-by-Month Gardening includes all the when-to and how-to information that has made these books so popular over the years, presented in a new, easier-to-use format with more full-color photography and the most current information available. Complete with specific advice on growing flowers (both annuals and perennials), bulbs, grasses, roses, groundcovers, shrubs, trees, and vines, this book is one no garden lover will want to miss! In the winter, certain tasks are needed to plan for and improve the next growing season. And once things really start growing in the spring and summer, you'll find advice on the best way to get the most beautiful flowers, the lushest lawns, and the sturdiest trees. From planting to watering and fertilizing, and from maintenance to problem solving, Michigan Month-by-Month Gardening shows all levels of gardeners the best practices to grow satisfying and rewarding results.
The Comic Book Guide to Growing Food: step-by-step vegetable gardening for everyone
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The first graphic novel guide to growing a successful 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 OnlineGardeningAcademy 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.
Fearless Gardening
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"Fearless Gardening encourages you--exhorts you--to boldly go forth and claim your garden as a space of joy and creativity." --Jennifer Jewell, creator and host of public radio's Cultivating Place Embrace your inner rebel and create the garden you want--even if it breaks the rules. Loree Bohl, the voice behind the popular blog The Danger Garden, shows how it's done in Fearless Gardening, with zone-busting ideas and success stories. Bohl's own gorgeous home garden inspires, with agaves that shrug off ice storms, palms that thrive in the rain, and planting risks that are beautifully rewarded.
Great Lakes: Great Gardening.
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I Just Wet My Plants
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Stories and well rooted advice for both your plants and your everyday life amassed over 25 years of live broadcast radio talking to people just like you. A personal and vulnerable book of how both plants and your life parallel in surprising ways. Rick Vuyst just "wet his plants" and now you have permission to wet your plants too. In the words of a guest on his radio show: "This is not a book about being a great gardener, in fact it is about the process of becoming a joyful gardener. Rick Vuyst has spent a good deal of his life amassing stories, ideas and more importantly, experiences. He shares those freely and allows us to participate in his journeys, his insights and his love of this thing we call gardening. Gardening is not brain surgery, and he encourages to have fun and to experiment. Thank you Rick, I am killing more plants as we speak." Dr. Allan Armitage Professor Emeritus of Horticulture University of Georgia
I need to change my plants
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Liquid Gold: the lore and logic of using urine to grow plants
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A humorous guide to fertilizing your plants for free! Nitrogen pollution of lakes, rivers, and oceans by human urine is a growing problem. Liquid Goldshows how urine can safely be used to grow food, fuel, fiber, and beautiful landscapes while protecting the environment and providing free and safe fertilizer. Featuring a short history of urine use--from ritual to medicinal and even culinary--and many whimsical illustrations, this great bathroom reader is an ideal gift for irreverent gardeners, homeowners, campers, environmentalists, and anyone who urinates. Carol Steinfeldis a writer, urinal designer, and ecological wastewater consultant. Malcolm Wellsis a well-known illustrator and author specializing in underground architecture.
Lazy-Ass Gardening: maximize your soil, minimize your toil
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In this lively and inspiring book, veteran horticulturalist Robert Kourik (aka "Bob") unfolds his manifesto of "Inspired Laziness"--using efficiency and forethought to create gardens and landscapes with a lot less work and a lot more enjoyment. By following Kourik's relaxed and readable guidance, both beginning and accomplished gardeners will discover how to save time and money, enrich their soil, increase their yields, and reduce their effort, all while absorbing "Bob's" philosophy of kicking back and growing more good times. Drawing on over four decades of immersing himself in horticultural work (and writing about it), Robert shares his hard-won secrets for the easiest planning, planting, cultivating, landscaping, irrigating, de-pestifying, and finding enjoyment in settings ranging from window-box herbs to showy ornamental plantings to the now-classic "edible landscape." In Lazy-Ass Gardening, you'll learn how to: Ease into gardening, if you're a newbie. Figure out which edibles to raise, with a careful selection of the most care-free varieties and tips for easy growing. Lay out your garden to balance effective growing area with space for enjoyment, relaxation, and play. Cultivate creatively to grow your own nutrients and build healthy self-sustaining (no-till) soil for the future. Attract the best pollinating insects and deter hungry pests. Plan your "hardscape" (paths, patios, arbors, etc.), for an easy-care (and more fun) aspect of your yard or garden. Choose the right plants for your landscape, climate, soil, and water supply, not to mention your aesthetic and nutritional needs. Learn how to develop a personal garden that manifests your own eccentricities. Grow more, stress less.
The Regenerative Grower's Guide to Garden Amendments: using locally sourced materials to make mineral and biological extracts and ferments
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Revitalize your garden--and go beyond compost--by making your own biologically diverse inoculants and mineral-rich amendments using leaf mold, weeds, eggshells, bones, and other materials available for little or no cost! In The Regenerative Grower's Guide to Garden Amendments, experimental gardener and author Nigel Palmer provides practical, detailed instructions that are accessible to every grower who wants to achieve a truly sustainable garden ecosystem--all while enjoying better results at a fraction of the cost of commercial fertilizer products. These recipes go beyond fertilizer replacement, resulting in greater soil biological activity and mineral availability. They also increase pest and disease resistance, yields, and nutrient density. Recipes include: Extracting nutrients from plant residues using simple rainwater techniques Extracting minerals from bones and shells using vinegar Fermenting plant juices and fish Culturing indigenous microorganisms (IMO) Inspired by the work of many innovative traditional agricultural pioneers, especially Cho Ju-Young (founder of the Korean Natural Farming method), The Regenerative Grower's Guide to Garden Amendments also includes a primer on plant-soil interaction, instructions for conducting a soil test, and guidance on compost, cover cropping, mulching, measuring the quality of fruits and vegetables using a refractometer, and other aspects of sustainable gardening--making it a must-have resource for any serious grower.
The Suburban Micro-Farm: modern solutions for busy people
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Nonfiction Book Awards 2018 Gold Winner Foreword INDIE Awards 2018 Gold Winner (Hobbies & Home category) Nautilus Book Awards 2018 Silver Winner (Green Living & Sustainability category) Reduce your lawn and your grocery budget. Take gardening to the next level! Would you like to grow healthy food for your table? Do you want to learn the secrets of farming even though you live in a neighborhood? Author Amy Stross talks straight about why the suburbs might be the ideal place for a small farm. In these pages you'll learn: How to make your landscape as productive as it is beautiful Why the suburbs are primed with food-growing potential How to choose the best crops for success Why you don't need the perfect yard to have a micro-farm How to use easy permaculture techniques for abundant harvests If you're ready to create a beautiful, edible yard, this book is for you. The Suburban Micro-Farm will show you how to grow your own fruits, herbs, and vegetables even on a limited schedule. From seed to harvest, this book will keep you on track so you feel a sense of accomplishment for your efforts. You'll learn gardening tricks that are essential to success, like how to deal with a 'brown thumb', how to develop and nurture healthy soil, and how to manage garden pests. Although this book has everything a new gardener needs to get started, experienced gardeners will not be disappointed. With helpful tips throughout, you will love the in-depth chapters about permaculture and making money on the micro-farm.
