Start with soil (E-824(2) by 
Healthy Soil by
A guide to soil management for gardeners and horticulturists, this work contains step-by-step instructions for developing, improving and maintaining soil and provides new ways to compost. It discusses problems such as infertile soil and tree roots, and examines regional concerns.
Healthy Soils for Sustainable Gardens / rooklyn Botanic Garden all-region guides ; handbook #192 by
The key to growing healthy, beautiful plants is good soil. This practical all-region guide helps you understand the unique characteristics of your garden's soil and build its natural fertility using organic and sustainable methods. Written by soil and horticulture experts from across North America, it emphasizes the importance of nurturing a diverse ecosystem of beneficial soil organisms, using recycled and renewable organic amendments and mulches, planting nutrient-enhancing cover crops and ornamentals, and selecting plants that adapt with ease to your site conditions.
Operation W. A. T. E. R.: Dr. Thistle goes underground by 
Secrets to Great Soil: a grower's guide to composting, mulching, and creating healthy, fertile soil for your garden and lawn by
Good soil leads to thriving gardens. Encouraging you to get to know the unique properties of your garden's soil, Elizabeth Snell shows you how to properly use composted plant materials and animal manure to amend your dirt so that it is perfectly suited to your growing goals. Covering a variety of mulching and fertilizing techniques, Snell provides all the information you need to give your garden a healthy foundation of rich, nutrient-filled soil that will ensure a bountiful harvest.
Soil Science for Gardeners: working with nature to build soil health by
Build healthy soil and grow better plants Robert Pavlis, a gardener for over four decades, debunks common soil myths, explores the rhizosphere, and provides a personalized soil fertility improvement program in this three-part popular science guidebook. Healthy soil means thriving plants. Yet untangling the soil food web and optimizing your soil health is beyond most gardeners, many of whom lack an in-depth knowledge of the soil ecosystem. Soil Science for Gardeners is an accessible, science-based guide to understanding soil fertility and, in particular, the rhizosphere - the thin layer of liquid and soil surrounding plant roots, so vital to plant health. Coverage includes: Soil biology and chemistry and how plants and soil interact Common soil health problems, including analyzing soil's fertility and plant nutrients The creation of a personalized plan for improving your soil fertility, including setting priorities and goals in a cost-effective, realistic time frame. Creating the optimal conditions for nature to do the heavy lifting of building soil fertility Written for the home gardener, market gardener, and micro-farmer, Soil Science for Gardeners is packed with information to help you grow thriving plants.
Compost Science for Gardeners: simple methods for nutrient rich soil by
Create your own compost and grow better plants. With breathtaking clarity, Compost Science for Gardeners demystifies composting practices and helps readers determine the best technique for their unique situation. This comprehensive science-based book is your key to building healthier soil and growing better plants. Using plain language and easy-to-follow instructions, this essential resource distills and blends the latest scientific research with the author's many decades of knowledge and experience into manageable form, debunking a host of common gardening myths along the way. Learn about: The role of composting in the ecological cycle Compostable materials to incorporate and those to avoid Browns and greens vs the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio The full range of composting methods, including cold and hot composting; composting in piles, bins, and tumblers; and pit and trench composting Keyhole gardening, food digesters, vermicomposting, bokashi, eco-enzyme fermentation, and more The relative merits and impact on the environment of each composting technique Using finished compost to improve soil health Anyone can compost. Whether you are a balcony or backyard gardener, market gardener, small-scale farmer, or homesteader, or even if you are simply looking for a way to keep organic matter out of the landfill, this book will show you how to do it simply, safely, and sensibly.
Bokashi Composting: scraps to soil in weeks by
The safe, clean, and convenient way to compost all your food scraps. Bokashi is Japanese for "fermented organic matter." Bokashi composting is a safe, quick, and convenient way to compost in your kitchen, garage, or apartment, using a specific group of microorganisms to anaerobically ferment all food waste (including meat and dairy). Since the process takes place in a closed system, insects and smell are controlled, making it ideal for urban or business settings. The process is very fast, with compost usually ready to be integrated into your soil or garden in around two weeks. While bokashi has enjoyed great popularity in many parts of the world, it is still relatively unknown in North America. From scraps to soil, Bokashi Composting is the complete, step-by-step, do-it-yourself guide to this amazing process, with comprehensive information covering: Background-the history, development and scientific basis of the technique Getting started-composting with commercially available products or homemade systems Making your own-system plans and bokashi bran recipes using common materials and locally sourced ingredients Growing-improving your soil with fermented compost and bokashi juice. This essential guide is a must-read for gardeners, homeowners, apartment dwellers, traditional composters, and anyone who wants a safe, simple, and convenient way to keep kitchen waste out of the landfill.
Compost Teas for the Organic Grower by
Everything you need to know about feeding your garden, orchard, or smallholding with homemade and chemical-free "teas"--packed with recipes for creating nutrient-rich, healthy soil, to give you healthy plants and ecosystems Permaculture orchardist Eric Fisher provides an in depth history of organic agriculture and the rise in chemical inputs. He then goes on to explore the importance of nutrients, their cycles and the structure of soil. This enables the reader to truly understand their soil and own ecosystem, so they can manage it properly. Once we understand how soil and nutrients work, it is easier to diagnose problems and find a natural remedy. Eric provides recipes for a wide range of compost teas that can remedy many different deficits, as well as for natural pesticides and insecticides. Eric shows the reader how to use the plants growing around them to create these "teas," using aerobic and anaerobic processes, as well as how to grow specific plants to encourage beneficial insects for healthy ecosystems. Eric's aim is for growers to feel confident in diagnosing plant disease and pest problems, and then be able to create the right remedy for the problem. If we can care for the health of our plants and soil without using chemicals, we can save money, encourage others to do the same, and demonstrate that conventional chemical inputs are not necessary.
Compost, vermicompost and compost tea : feeding the soil on the organic farm by 
The Rodale Book of Composting: Simple methods to improve your soil, recycle waste, grow healthier plants, and create an earth-friendly garden, 2nd rev. ed. by
An essential guide to composting for all gardeners and environmentally conscious people This revised edition of The Rodale Book of Composting includes all the latest in new techniques, technology, and equipment. Gardeners know composting is the best way to feed the soil and turn food scraps into fresh produce, but even urbanites can get on board thanks to programs like compost pickup and citywide food waste initiatives-there's no better way to reduce landfill waste (and subsequent emissions) and dependence on fossil fuels while nourishing the earth. The Rodale Book of Composting offers easy-to-follow instructions for making and using compost; helpful tips for apartment dwellers, suburbanites, farmers, and community leaders; and ecologically sound solutions to growing waste-disposal problems.
The Pet Poo Pocket Guide: how to safely compost and recycle pet waste by
Get the scoop on reducing the environmental footprint of your furry friends Eighty-three million dogs and ninety-six million cats call the United States home. Dogs alone produce enough waste to fill more than 1,091 football fields 1 foot deep in a single year. Add billions of plastic pick-up bags to the mix and season well with tons of litter box waste. Scoop a hefty portion into local landfills and seal it tightly to ensure optimal methane production. Clearly, this is a recipe for disaster. Dog and cat owners who trash their pets' offerings daily are in denial about how much waste is produced and what happens to it. Those who want to make the responsible choice often turn to the internet, only to find misleading, confusing, and contradictory information. The Pet Poo Pocket Guidewill help you reduce your pet's environmental paw print with: Best practices for cycling pet waste back to nature Suggestions on how to tailor your approach based on location, situation, weather, needs, or available time Instructions for using your composted pet waste safely to enrich your soil and nourish ornamental plants With recycling tactics clearly indicated as "easy," "moderate," or "demanding," The Pet Poo Pocket Guideoffers something for everyone. This no-nonsense guide is a must-read for any pet owner who is concerned about the environmental impact of their best friend, and is seeking a safe and practical solution. Rose Seemannis the owner and operator of EnviroWagg, a company dedicated to collecting and composting canine waste into safe, nutrient-rich garden soil.
Composting: turn food waste into rich soil by
Composting is a way to speed up the natural process of decomposition and return organic materials to the soil. Instead of throwing away organic waste, items such as fruit and vegetable scraps, eggshells, coffee grounds, and yard trimmings can be composted. The result is a dark, crumbly material that can be used to improve the soil and beautify gardens, parks, and lawns. This interesting and practical guide explains how composting works and how to start composting, including setting up a bin, adding the right mix of ingredients, aerating the pile, and more. Successful school and municipal programs across the country are highlighted as well.
Easy Compost / Brooklyn Botanic Garden guides for a greener planet ; handbook no. 199. by
Composting is green gardening at its best: it helps protect plants from diseases and pests, creates especially rich soil, and releases its nutrients slowly as plants need them. Now completely updated and redesigned, Brooklyn Botanic Gardens essential, bestselling guide contains the latest information on modern composting techniques, from what to put in the pile to how best to use your compost in the garden. An expanded resource section features special advice for urban gardeners.
Let It Rot! : The gardener's guide to composting by 
The Woodchip Handbook : a complete guide for farmers, gardeners and landscapers by
The first and only complete guide to sourcing and using woodchip--an abundant, inexpensive, and ecologically sustainable material--for savvy growers and landscapers at any scale, from farm to garden to greenhouse. The Woodchip Handbook is the essential guide to the many uses of woodchip both in regenerative agriculture and horticulture. Author Ben Raskin, Head of Horticulture and Agroforestry at the Soil Association, draws on his extensive practical experience using woodchip, provides the latest research from around the world, and presents inspiring case studies from innovative farmers. The book explores and unlocks the tremendous potential of woodchip to enhance soil health and plant growth: As a natural mulch for weed suppression, temperature buffering, and water conservation As a growing medium for propagating plants As a decomposing source of warmth for hotbeds in the greenhouse or hoop house As a carbon-rich compost ingredient that supports beneficial fungi and microorganisms As a powerful soil health booster, when applied as small-sized ramial chipped wood As an ideal substrate for growing many kinds of edible or medicinal mushrooms As a sustainable, versatile, and durable material for foot paths and ornamental landscaping Some of these techniques, like mulching--or the renewable harvest potential from coppicing and pollarding trees--have been around forever. Yet there is always new science to be discovered, such as the role that salicylic acid from willow woodchip can play in preventing tree diseases or promoting livestock health when used as a bedding material. Whether you are a commercial grower or farmer, a permaculture practitioner, or a serious home gardener producing your own fruit and vegetables, The Woodchip Handbook will show you how to get the most out of this readily available and renewable material.
The Mulch Book: a guide for the family food gardener, Revised and updated by 
Mulches for your garden by 
How to have a green thumb without an aching back ; a new method of mulch gardening. by 
