50 High-Impact, Low-Care Garden Plants by
Tracy DiSabato-Aust has taught thousands of readers how to design and maintain their gardens. Her first book--The Well-Tended Perennial Garden--is Timber's best-selling title and widely considered the bible of perennial maintenance. 50 High-Impact, Low-Care Garden Plants is packed with useful tips, practical hints, and Tracy's own gardening experience. It is sure to find a place on the shelf and in the heart of every gardener. Tracy has identified 50 show-stopping plants that anyone can grow. Each selection is a dynamic choice for nearly every garden. Even better? All 50 plants have passed Tracy's test for toughness, beauty, and durability. These are Tracy's personal favorites, chosen after years of studying how to make beautiful outdoor spaces with a minimum of maintenance.
All You Need Is Less by
Most eco-friendly books start with terror-inducing lists of the carcinogenic chemicals you are liberally slathering all over every single surface in your house, painting most people as unwitting eco-villains, happily Lysol-ing their way straight to hell. Well, readers can just relax and unpack the (plastic) bags - no guilt trips today! All You Need is Less is about realistically adopting an eco-friendly lifestyle without either losing your mind from soul-destroying guilt or becoming a preachy know-it-all whom everyone loathes. It's all gotten kind of complicated, hasn't it? This whole eco-friendly thing seems to have devolved into a horrific cycle of guilt, shaming, and one-upping, and as a result people are becoming exhausted. It doesn't have to be this way. It is possible to take baby steps towards a more Earth-friendly lifestyle without stress, guilt, or judgmental eco-shaming. Top eco-blogger Madeleine Somerville is here with really original ideas on how to save money and the plan
Annuals for Michigan by
Brilliant photographs and down-to-earth advice are packed into this guide to over 443 annuals suited to the climate of this Great Lake state. Szerlag and Beck provide information on light, water and nutrient needs, as well as recommendations on how and when to start your plants. This book also includes tips on planting, growing, recommended varieties, and problems and pests.
Basic Gardening Skills by
Gardening basics made easy--no green thumb required Designed for the complete beginner, Teach Yourself Basic Gardening Skills shows you how to turn a patch of muddy ground into an easily maintainable garden, whatever the size of your property and however busy you are. From lawn care and watering to creating patios and growing vegetables, it is packed with easy-to-follow, practical advice.
Cassell's Encyclopedia of Gardening by
More than 2,000 color illustrations, including 1,500 superb close-up photographs and hundreds of original drawings, plus a myriad of modern facts and gardening techniques, combine to create a gardener's dream reference. "More than 4,000 flowers, trees, and shrubs are described in brief informative entries."--"Booklist."
The Climate Conscious Gardener by
This technique can save the earth--while resulting in a beautiful garden, too! Climate Conscious Gardener picks up where Brooklyn Botanic Gardening's groundbreaking Environmental Gardener left off, giving homeowners, landscapers, and public park managers practical strategies for greening the planet through sustainable and organic gardening. In simple terms, an introductory section explains what happens when the balance of carbon and nitrogen in the atmosphere goes awry, and how plants, soil, and synthetic gardening aids (such as fertilizer and pesticides) affect climate change. Most important, readers will learn how to calculate their garden's carbon footprint--and what they can do to decrease it in their own backyard and beyond.
Community Gardening by
Today, more and more people are thinking green--and there's no urban activity greener, in every sense of the word, than community gardening. This all-region guide, filled with hands-on tips, offers a snapshot of today's vibrant North American community gardening movement. Whether you are already a member of a community garden, want to get involved in one, or are just curious, this guide will inform and inspire you. Models include vegetable gardens, aesthetic and art gardens, children's and youth gardens, and several others. Using real-life case studies from around North America, the expert contributors show how community gardening produces safe, eco-friendly food; brings neighbors together; offers valuable lessons for children; and gives each participant the personal satisfaction that comes with cultivating the land and making things grow. Like all Brooklyn Botanic Garden handbooks, this entry features sustainable and organic gardening practices.
The Complete Book of Vegetables by
Praise for Vegetables, Herbs and Fruit, by Matthew Biggs and others: "Solid gardening tips and tempting recipes ... enough to teach even experienced gardeners new tricks." -- American Reference Books Annual In this encyclopedic guide, master gardener Matthew Biggs shows home gardeners how to grow a broad range of vegetables, from the traditional and most popular to the unusual and rare. In addition, celebrated chef Jean-Christophe Novelli provides delicious recipes that use the abundant harvest. This all-in-one resource features: An illustrated A-to-Z directory with detailed notes on hundreds of varieties that is organized into 80 vegetable families Unusual, exotic and rare vegetables for the home garden Directory of disease-resistant vegetables Hundreds of color photographs Practical gardening tips, including information on planning, soil, fertility, watering, crop rotation, growing systems, propagation and weed and pest control Expert advice on garden cultivation and maintenance, harvesting and storing A history of vegetable growing The ornamental vegetable garden, micro-greens, mini vegetables and making vegetable dyes A comprehensive lists of suppliers and prize-winning vegetables The Complete Book of Vegetables is a comprehensive guide for home gardeners.
Complete Guide to Flower Gardening by
Encyclopedia of more than 450 perennials. Features 630 full-colour photos and 25 one-colour illustrations.
Complete Idiot's Guide to Vegetable Gardening by
For the first time since 2002, home and garden sales are increasing - and the trend is expected to continue. There are articles in the news every day, in papers such as The Denver Post and The Washington Post, talking about how vegetable gardening is experiencing resurgence in popularity. Perhaps it's because of the uncertainty that surrounds the safety of produce purchased in the grocery store these days. Perhaps it's because people are looking for fun, inexpensive hobbies to dive into. Or perhaps it's because there's nothing like the taste of fresh fruits and veggies grown in the backyard. But whatever the reason, readers need advice on gardening now more than ever before. And The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Vegetable Gardeningis just the place to turn. In this book, expert authors Daria Price Bowman and Carl A. Price provide information on- Expert techniques for planning and plotting a garden Understanding what's necessary for soil nourishment Planting seeds and seedlings Growing fruits, vegetables, berries, and more Cultivating medicinal and healing herbs Recognizing and preventing the most common plant diseases Identifying and eliminating weeds Pruning and trimming plants Knowing when to harvest Deciding whether to can, dry, or freeze A comprehensive, easy-to-read book, The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Vegetable Gardening is an excellent resource for anyone interested in growing fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs.
The Conscientious Gardener by
In his influential A Sand County Almanac, published at the beginning of the environmental movement in 1949, Aldo Leopold proposed a new ecological ethic to guide our stewardship of the planet. In this inspiring book, Sarah Hayden Reichard tells how we can bring Leopold's far-reaching vision to our gardens to make them more sustainable, lively, and healthy places. Today, gardening practices too often damage the environment: we deplete resources in our own soil while mining for soil amendments in far away places, or use water and pesticides in ways that can pollute lakes and rivers. Drawing from cutting edge research on urban horticulture, Reichard explores the many benefits of sustainable gardening and gives straightforward, practical advice on topics such as pest control, water conservation, living with native animals, mulching, and invasive species. The book includes a scorecard that allows readers to quickly evaluate the sustainability of their current practices, as well as an extensive list of garden plants that are invasive, what they do, and where they should be avoided.
Designer Plant Combinations by
Turn your backyard garden into a lush and colorful wonderland where every plant is presented to its fullest potential. Scott Calhoun provides more than 100 stunning garden designs that are adaptable to a range of climates, budgets, and space considerations. As you learn to use proven groupings and discover ways to make your garden glow throughout all seasons, you're sure to find the right combination of flowers, grasses, and ground coverings to transform your property into a jaw-dropping display of color, texture, and fragrance.
Digging Deeper by
The numerous garden makeover programmes on television have inspired many people to take a greater interest in their gardens. This book takes them a step further and encourages them to look beyond the hard landscaping of decking, paving and concrete and gain an intimate knowledge of the live elements in the garden.
Edible Gardening by
-- Builds on the best trends in gardening today and the growth of the gardening and cooking categories.-- Daria Bowman has written for this market and category before, knows the audience well, and will bring in top experts for technical review.-- Timing is right for holidays and winter Perfect for holiday gifts and winter garden planning.Home-based, comfort activities including gardening are booming plus there is growing popularity for cooking and growing your own veggies, herbs and even healing herbs The Complete Idiot's Guide RM to Edible Gardening includes all you need to know about selecting, plotting, planting, pruning and harvesting vegetables, fruit and herbs. Whether it's growing your own carrots or tomatoes in a back yard plot, keeping lemon trees on the patio or a windowsill herb gardening, this title will help you choose what you're going to grow, where you're going to grow it and even what you'll do with it when it's finished. The Complete Idiot's Guide RM to Edible Gardening includes selecting space and what you'll grow, organic gardening - how to choose, what to use, pros and cons, growing seasons, styles types of vegetables, fruits, herbs for cooking and medicinal/healing herbs, options from large plots to container gardening, seeds, seedlings, starters and weeding watering, feeding, pruning and trimming, harvesting and some ideas for storing your bounty, seed saving, year-round gardens, and planning for next season, troubleshooting - determining what the problem is and how to fix it
The Essential Garden Maintenance Workbook by
The Essential Garden Maintenance Workbook takes over where Rosemary Alexander's first book leaves off. With the newly designed garden in place how do you manage the work in a garden and keep it looking good year in and year out? How do you prune, look after your soil and keep spring bulb plantings looking good? Is it possible to move a plant and how do you cope with weeds, pests, and diseases? Which plants are top performers and which are best for particular functions like internal and external boundaries, focal points, disguising eyesores and providing year-round interest? With its hand-holding, workbook approach Essential Garden Maintenance Workbook is the next best thing to having a daily training session with expert gardener, Rosemary Alexander. It allows gardeners at all levels to confidently tackle garden maintenance jobs, develop new skills, and make a success of their gardens however stretched for time.
Gaia's Garden by
"Gaia's Garden will be recorded in history as a milestone for gardeners and landscapers. . . An amazing achievement."--Paul Stamets The classic book about ecological gardening--whatever size your garden--with over 250,000 copies sold! "A great book!"--Men's Journal Gaia's Garden has sparked the imagination of home gardeners the world over by introducing a simple message: working with nature, not against her, results in more beautiful, abundant, and forgiving gardens. Many people mistakenly think that "ecological gardening"--which involves growing a wide range of edible and other useful plants--can take place only on a large, multiacre scale. As Hemenway demonstrates, it's fun and easy--even for the beginner--to create a "backyard ecosystem" by assembling communities of plants that can work cooperatively and perform a variety of functions, including: Building and maintaining soil fertility and structure Catching and conserving water in the landscape Providing a rewilded and biodiverse habitat for beneficial insects, birds, and animals Growing an edible "forest" that yields seasonal fruits, nuts, and other foods This revised and updated edition also features a chapter on urban permaculture, designed especially for people in cities and suburbs who have very limited growing space. Whatever size yard or garden you have to work with, you can apply basic permaculture principles to make it more diverse, more natural, more productive, and more beautiful. Best of all, once it's established, an ecological garden will reduce or eliminate most of the backbreaking work that's needed to maintain the typical lawn and garden.
The Gardener's Weather Bible by
Your Guide to Creating an Easy-Care Garden Full of Fragrance and Color Have you always wanted to plant roses but are afraid they are too difficult to grow? Fear no more. Growing Beautiful Roses takes the intimidation (and the chemicals) out of growing the world's most legendary flower. This gorgeous and rich instructional guide offers a holistic approach to growing these perennial favorites. Author Barbara Wilde presents tips and advice for choosing healthy roses, preparing the soil, and recognizing and preventing disease; plus, she takes the mystery out of pruning. Perhaps even more valuable, Wilde includes a gallery of more than 100 remarkable roses that are the most hardy and the most disease and pest resistant, making them the best roses for organic gardening. In addition, she takes you beyond the rigidity of a formal rose garden by showing you how to combine roses with other plants, including grasses, herbs, wildflowers, vines, shrubs, perennials, and annuals.
Gardener to Gardener Seed-Starting Primer and Almanac by
Organic gardeners reveal their best tips and tricks for starting seeds, creating healthy soil, tending the garden, and stretching the growing season in Gardener to Gardener¿ Seed-Starting Primer & Almanac. Compiled for gardeners just like you by the editors and readers of Organic Gardening magazine, you'll find month-by-month activities, timesaving gadgets, and wheelbarrow loads of garden-tested advice, such as how to: * Increase yields by rounding the surface of flat garden beds * Build a compost and soil sifter to fit on top of your garden cart or wheelbarrow * Diagnose soil trouble by identifying which weeds are in your garden * Turn leaves into fabulous fertilizer using a three-pronged approach * Get your apples off to a strong start when planting rootstocks in five easy steps * Use a small fan to help your seedlings develop sturdier stems and minimize the chance of fungal diseases Gardener to Gardener Best-Ever Seed Tape It's difficult to space tiny seeds like those of carrots in the garden, so I make homemade seed tapes by prespacing the dark seeds over a white surface. Here's how to do it: 1. Unroll a strip of toilet paper on a table, mist it with a sprayer, and place the seeds along the center of the paper. (Alternate carrot seeds with radish seeds because when the radishes sprout, they help to mark the row and break the ground.) 2. Starting along the strip's long edge, fold a third of the paper over the seeds, then fold the other third over. Tamp the paper, misting it again to secure the seeds. Make as many of these strips as you need. Then fold the strips up and carefully carry them to the garden. 3. Make shallow furrows in the prepared soil, lay the strips down, and cover them. In a jiffy, your carrots will be planted and perfectly spaced. Doris Ekblad Prairie Farm, Wisconsin
Growing Herbs by
Offering expert advice on how to grow the perfect herb garden for your needs, this work covers designing, planning and laying the garden as well as choosing, propagating and harvesting the plants.
Grow to Live by
A celebration of the wonders of the natural world, this beautiful yet practical book is a simple guide for people in Southern Africa to grow their own food in whatever space is available, using methods that are tried and tested, simple, low-cost, water-wise, and resourceful. From classifying the different soils and tools that one needs in a successful garden, this guide also offers practical advice on maintaining and protecting an organic garden.
Insect Disease and Weed I. D. Guide by
What is it? Why is it in your garden? How can you make it go away? Or should you try to keep it there? Use this book to know what's what in your garden, lawn, and landscape. Uncover the identity of each garden mystery you meet, them learn exactly what-- if anything-- to do about it. From banishing pests and diseases to wiping out weeds to creating a haven for garden good guys, you'll find safe, sensible, all-organic recommendations to help you make the best choices for our garden.
Landscaping with Native Plants of Michigan by
Landscaping with Native Plants of Michigan is designed for beginning and experienced gardeners who want to learn more about Michigan's unique native-plant communities and how to successfully incorporate them into their home landscapes. It combines the practicality of a field guide with all the basic information homeowners need to create an effective landscape design. The plant profiles section includes comprehensive descriptions of more than 600 native plant species, subspecies, and varieties of flowers, trees, shrubs, vines, evergreens, grasses, and ferns that have grown in Michigan since the time before European settlement. Information on planting, maintenance, and landscape uses for each plant is also included. Readers will also gain many creative ideas from the section featuring Michigan gardeners who have successfully incorporated native plants into their home landscapes.
Newspaper, Pennies, Cardboard, and Eggs for Growing a Better Garden by 
Organic Gardening for Dummies by
Organic Gardening For Dummies, 2nd Edition shows readers the way to ensure a healthy harvest from their environmentally friendly garden. It covers information on the newest and safest natural fertilizers and pest control methods, composting, cultivation without chemicals, and how to battle plant diseases. It also has information on updated equipment and resources. It helps readers plant organically year-round, using herbs, fruits, vegetables, lawn care, trees and shrubs, and flowers. The tips and techniques included in Organic Gardening For Dummies, 2nd Edition are intended to reduce a garden's impact on both the environment and the wallet.
Plants for Small Spaces by
This handbook for gardening in small spaces is one of the lead titles in a new series of gardening books published in partnership with Horticulture, America's most respected gardening magazine.
Pots in the Garden by
No longer a technique just for apartment dwellers or novice gardeners, the use of ornamental containers on decks, patios, terraces, and in the garden itself can save time, space, and money, while offering experienced home gardeners unique creative challenges, site flexibility, and experimental fun. Author and award-winning horticulturist Ray Rogers takes you on an engaging exploration into basic design principles as well as how to create focal points, use water, exploit the potential of empty containers, and more. Stunning photographs by Richard Hartlage provide guidance and inspiration, as well as visually explaining each principle. Gardeners at every level of experience will find inspiration and instruction in this comprehensive book.
The Practical Guide to Using Herbs by
More than 300 delicious recipes shown step-by-step. A comprehensive botanical directory of 250 herbs, with details of their medicinal and culinary uses, and a practical guide to cultivation. How to enjoy the fresh flavour and fragrance of herbs in you.
Teach Yourself - Growing Your Own Fruits and Vegetables by
About the Book Teach Yourself Growing Your Own Fruits and Vegetables is your guide to growing fresh produce in any patch of earth, be it a garden, a backyard, or series of containers. It gives specific instructions on when, where and how to grow and maintain various fruit and vegetables, from the more basic to the exotic, without the use of chemicals. It includes an A-Z list of plants together with ease of growth ratings and an approach that welcomes involvement from your whole family.
Teaming with Microbes by
"A breakthrough book. No comprehensive horticultural library should be without it." --American Gardener When we use chemical fertilizers, we injure the microbial life that sustains plants, and then become increasingly dependent on an arsenal of toxic substances. Teaming with Microbes offers an alternative to this vicious circle, and details how to garden in a way that strengthens, rather than destroys, the soil food web. You'll discover that healthy soil is teeming with life--not just earthworms and insects, but a staggering multitude of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. This must-have guide is for everyone, from those devoted to organic gardening techniques to weekend gardeners who simply want to grow healthy plants without resorting to chemicals.
Time-Saving Gardener by
Gardening techniques for the best possible results in the shortest possible time. Time-saving Gardener is a practical how-to reference designed for busy gardeners who can venture into their gardens for only a few hours a week. It shows how to make the best possible use of gardening time and identifies the truly essential tasks that need to be done. Entries are organized by season and then by task, making routine jobs and special projects easy to find. Symbols indicate the priority of a task, how long it will take and whether it can be undertaken in another season. These time-saving features include: Step-by-step work sequences Detailed how-to illustrations Concise easy-to-follow instructions Informative sidebars and valuable tips Season-by-season projects A directory of easy-care plants. Time-saving Gardener is easy to follow and suitable for all gardens large or small, urban or rural. This superb guide may indeed become the most frequently used reference on a gardener's bookshelf.
Tree and Shrub Gardening for Michigan by
With this beautiful book at your fingertips, you can select, plant and care for the trees and shrubs that suit the conditions present in your garden: * Detailed listings for 89 different species of trees and shrubs, along with information on more than 650 recommended varieties and cultivars best suited for Michigan gardens * Size, shape and growing zone * Seasonal color * Notes on the best features of each species or variety * What tree or shrub to select for a specific location * How to plant, prune and propagate * Soil, moisture and sunlight requirements * Year-round maintenance * Tips for solving pest and disease problems.
The Wildlife Gardener's Guide by
If you can own only one book on attracting wildlife to your garden, this is it. Unlike other volumes, which offer only generalities like "reduce the size of your lawn,” this concise manual provides ten specific projects and countless tips for transforming your garden into a refuge. Inside you’ll find helpful information on the best natural bird foods and feeders, lists of plants with proven wildlife appeal in your region, easy-to-read garden plans, and more. Best of all, these sustainable, organic ideas can work in many types of outdoor spaces--window boxes, terraces, small city backyards, and large suburban yards. In short, there’s everything necessary for creating a garden that wows birds, butterflies, appealing critters...and humans too.
101 Organic Gardening Hacks by
Shawna Coronado, one of America's most creative gardeners, gives you her library of clever gardening tricks in 101 Organic Gardening Hacks. If you ask garden author Shawna Coronado what a hack is, she might just wave her hand toward her own back yard. She could be pointing at the garden bench she created from leftover wood posts and a few cinder blocks, or the rows of wine bottles buried soldier-style along a winding pathway, or even the garden soil itself, which is blended by hand from an organic soil recipe she devised. In 101 Organic Garden Hacks you'll find the top tips, tricks, and solutions Shawna has dreamed up in her career as one of America's most creative gardeners. Some are practical timesavers; others offer clever ways to upcycle everyday items in your garden. One characteristic every hack shares is that they are completely organic and unfailingly environmentally friendly. Divided into a dozen different categories for easy reference, each hack is accompanied by a clear photo that shows you exactly how to complete it. If you are looking for resourceful ways to improve your garden and promote green living values right at home, you'll love paging through this fascinating, eye-catching book.
All New Square Foot Gardening, 3rd Edition, Fully Updated by
This updated third edition of the best-selling gardening book in North America continues to inspire with planting charts, growing tips, and the know-how you need to grow more veggies than ever before. Since Square Foot Gardening was first introduced by Mel Bartholomew in 1981, this revolutionary way to grow vegetables has helped millions of home gardeners enjoy their own organic, fresh produce in less space and with less work than traditional row gardens. New and experienced gardeners will love the charts, photos, illustrations, and how-to tips in All New Square Foot Gardening, 3rd Edition--including 42 veggie-specific planting, growing, and harvesting guides--that make growing your own food fun, easy, and productive. Perfect for experienced gardeners or beginners, you'll learn the three simple steps to Square Foot Gardening: build a box; fill it with Mel's Mix(tm); add a grid. No digging, no tilling, no fertilizing, no guesswork--less watering, waste, and weeding! There's so much more packed in this 272-page instructional book--boost your organic vegetable harvest with inspiring how-tos such as: Adding trellises and archways to grow up and maximize your space Installing automatic watering systems Growing vegetables in dense urban areas with little or no yard Feeding your veggies the organic way with Mel's Mix(tm) Teaching STEM to kids with Square Foot Gardening--perfect for little hands Protecting your plants with shade and frost covers Managing pests in the garden with natural methods Join the millions of gardeners around the world who grow their own organic, fresh produce with Square Foot Gardening, and make next season your best veggie harvest ever.
The Complete Guide to No-Dig Gardening by
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!
Container Gardening Complete by
Container Gardening Complete has everything you need to know to successfully garden in a small space, including step-by-step directions, photographs, and information on more than 125 plants. The ideal book for urban gardeners, indoor gardeners, and vegetable gardeners, Container Gardening Complete is a thorough visual guide that will get you growing quickly! Whether you are growing vegetables, fruits, or flowers on an apartment balcony; creating a small vegetable garden for personal use; or decorating steps and walkways, this hard working book is your go-to resource. The methods described in this book are foolproof and easy to follow, with step-by-step directions and photographs, scalable projects for differing needs, and many great ideas for upscaled containers from things you have around your home. You'll get to know the ins and outs of gardening in a small space, from the importance of drainage, irrigation, and other watering concerns to ornamental combinations of plants, and the very best vegetables, fruits, and non-edibles for container gardening.
Field Guide to Urban Gardening by
In Field Guide to Urban Gardening, author Kevin Espiritu of Epic Gardening shares the basics of growing plants, offers tips on how to choose the right urban gardening method, and troubleshoots the most common problems you'll encounter. If you think it's impossible to grow your own food because you don't have a large yard or you live in the city...think again. There is a plethora of urban gardening options to create beautiful, productive edible gardens no matter where you live. The key to succeeding as an urban gardener is to choose the method(s) that make sense for your unique living situation and then give your plants what they need to thrive. Kevin helps you do just that. But he doesn't stop there. He also provides in-depth garden plans, from upcycled DIY projects and intensive hydroponic systems to beautiful and functional raised beds. Urban gardening is a real, growing, and important movement in today's world. This fact-packed book is your roadmap to get growing today. Urban gardening techniques featured include: Container Gardening Raised Beds Indoor Edibles Balconies and Rooftops Hydroponics
Garden Alchemy by
Garden Alchemy is a hands-on guide for do-it-yourself gardeners who want to turn their garden into gold using natural recipes and herbal concoctions (while saving both time and money!). This gardening recipe and project book is packed with over 80 ideas to naturally beautify your garden, using organic methods that regenerate your soil and revitalize your plants. By following the processes that are closest to nature, it brings the gardener in sync with the garden, allowing plants to thrive with less effort and less cost. Recipes for mixing your own potting soils and homemadeorganic fertilizers give you the freedom to choose what ingredients make their way into your garden. Step-by-step instructions for building a compost pile, concocting soil tests, and constructing inexpensive DIY seed-starting equipment are accompanied by gorgeous, full-color, step-by-step photography. You'll also find recipes for natural pest deterrents and traps, garden teas, and growth-boosting foliar sprays to help your garden grow strong all season long. Garden Alchemy starts with home experiments to help you get to know your soil and customize recipes for your individual needs. The rest of the chapters share how to decipher and combine natural ingredients to make the best quality amendments and elixirs. Detailed descriptions of earth-based materials demystify common ingredients, such as mycorrhizae, biochar, and greensand, and help you learn how to fix common garden problems with minimal effort. The simple method of making use of what you have available supports plants better than brand-name products. Dozens of recipes and projects include: Homemade seed bombs, disks, and tapes Granular and liquid natural fertilizer recipes DIY rooting hormone Herbal anti-fungal spray Plant propagation instructions Soil care recipes to adjust the pH and manage fertility 13 specialty potting mixes 7 clever traps for common garden pests Written by Stephanie Rose, the creative gardener, permaculturist, and herbalist behind the popular website Garden Therapy, this fun and beautifully illustrated book is packed with great ideas and inspiration for DIY gardeners who want to embrace their creativity and have more control of the garden's care.
Gardener's Guide to Compact Plants by
Covering a broad array of landscape plants, including edibles, flowering and fruiting trees and shrubs, evergreens, and perennials, horticulturist Jessica Walliser takes a deep dive into the emerging category of compact plants. Whether short, narrow, columnar, or dwarf, this new and exciting group of plants provides the same decorative function as full-sized ornamental plants, but in a fraction of the space. Plus, edible compact plants offer comparable productivity, without having to add more square footage to the garden. In this comprehensive guide, Jessica uses her numerous contacts in the seed and plant production world to give space-challenged gardeners a heads up on what's new, as well as re-introducing a few traditional small-footprint favorites. In both urban and suburban neighborhoods, yards are shrinking, and big plants and gardens require too much maintenance for today's time-starved homeowners. If you're searching for plants that require less space and reduced day-to-day maintenance, dwarf shrubs and other compact plants to the rescue! With little to no pruning required, columnar trees, dwarf shrubs, mini veggies, short-statured perennials, and other compact plants fill a much-needed niche. In the Gardener's Guide to Compact Plants, you'll discover fantastic, brand new dwarf and compact plant varieties you didn't even know existed. And, you'll learn how to grow more flowers, fruits, and veggies than ever before, no matter how much--or how little--space you have. It's the perfect book for homeowners with small yards, urban gardeners, container growers, or anyone looking to grow a beautiful and productive small-scale garden.
Gardening Complete by
Gardening Complete is the most up-to-date and complete guide to gardening for homeowners. Inside, eight of North America's top gardening experts--and Cool Springs Press authors--present 19 subjects of critical interest to anyone who wants to learn or broaden gardening skills. Whether your main interest is in designing landscapes and gardens, ornamental gardening to make your yard more attractive, or gardening to provide nutritious edibles for the family table, this book will become your definitive source of information. It is intended for serious beginning to intermediate gardeners, but even veteran gardeners will be intrigued by what these experts have to say about core gardening skills and common horticultural subjects. Gardening Complete is a practical book that demonstrates how to accomplish the routine activities of gardening and beyond, including: Planning and planting your garden Essential care for the garden during the growing season Dealing with pests and diseases Harvesting fruits and vegetables Attracting pollinators Container, vertical, and raised bed gardening techniques While many gardening books focus on regional plant species or devote large sections to some form of plant catalog, this book is different. Gardening Complete serves not only as a self-contained manual for gardening skills and information in all regions, but also as a sampler that may help you determine where to focus your gardening hobby in the future or even help you identify authors you'd like to explore further. Each of the eight authors has an impressively broad background in publishing and lecturing on gardening, and you may discover a new favorite writer in these pages. We haven't just allowed these authorities to express their individual views--we've encouraged them to do so. As is true in a healthy garden, we've aimed at diversity for this book. This book is not an organic gardening book per se, but if you have any previous familiarity with Cool Springs Press or any of these authors, you will know that we tend to take a low-impact approach to gardening. Thus, our authors generally offer advice that is gentle to the soil, to the environment, and to beneficial insects and animals. Success in your yard and garden awaits you with the help of Gardening Complete. Our authors are among the most passionate gardeners you will ever meet, and they have helped thousands of home gardeners just like you.
Gardening with Chickens by
Welcome to a world where chickens and gardens coexist! Join Lisa Steele, chicken-keeper extraordinaire and founder of Fresh Eggs Daily, on a unique journey through the garden. Start by planning your garden and learning strategies and tips for keeping your plants safe while they grow. Plant with purpose, choosing from a dozen plans for theme gardens such as Orange Egg Yolks or Nesting Box Herbs. Or choose a design that's filled with edibles - sharing the bounty with your family and your feathered friends. Then comes the fun part: enjoy the harvest, even let the chickens graze! Lisa's friendly writing, together with inspirational photos and illustrations, will have you rolling up your sleeves and reaching for your gardening tools. Lisa also covers a range of topics just for chicken-keepers, including: - Chickens and composting - Using chickens to aerate and till - Coop window boxes - Plants to avoid when you have chickens - Lists of the most valuable crops and herbs - Advice on how to harvest and use many of the plants - And much more! Whether you're an experienced chicken keeper, master gardener, or just getting into these two wonderful hobbies, Gardening with Chickens is an indispensable guide for a harmonious homestead.
Gardening Your Front Yard by
Gardening Your Front Yard is an active, inspiring resource that shows you how to treat your front yard like a backyard without sacrificing beauty, from choosing the right plants to building walkways and setting up a front yard patio.​ With her unique combination of DIY/building savvy and gardening expertise, author Tara Nolan (Raised Bed Revolution) of SavvyGardening.com weaves you past the main pitfalls you may encounter when trying to fit a garden or gardens between your home and the street. This beautiful and comprehensive hardcover book shows how to accomplish several hardscaping projects, such as laying a mowing border and building a walkway; provides inspiration to create a rain garden; and gives DIY instructions for making your own raised beds, a bench, a privacy screen, and more--all custom-designed for the rigors of front-yard gardening. Gardening Your Front Yard is a gardening book in every sense of the word, however. Choosing the right plants is even more important when you are dealing with a small, highly visible area sometimes with less than ideal growing conditions. You will find advice on planting around foundation walls, and dealing with road salt, as well as planting boulevards/hell strips. Shade gardens, privacy screening, and security dos and don'ts are covered, plus how to intermingle edibles and landscape plants, dry creek beds, picket fences, and much, much more. With the sage advice and step-by-step projects of this comprehensive guide, convert your front yard from a bland grasscape to a vital living space.
Guerrilla Gardening by
A guide to greening cities -- with or without permission The term "guerrilla" may bring to mind a small band of armed soldiers, moving in the dead of night on a stealth mission. In the case of guerilla gardening, the soldiers are planters, the weapons are shovels, and the mission is to transform an abandoned lot into a thing of beauty. Once an environmentalist's nonviolent direct action for inner-city renewal, this approach to urban beautification is spreading to all types of people in cities around the world. These modern-day Johnny Appleseeds perform random acts of gardening, often without the property owner's prior knowledge or permission. Typical targets are vacant lots, railway land, underused public squares, and back alleys. The concept is simple, whimsical and has the cheeky appeal of being a not-quite-legal call to action. Dig in some soil, plant a few seeds, or mend a sagging fence -- one good deed inspiring another, with win-win results all around. Guerrilla Gardening outlines the power-to-the-people campaign for greening our cities. Tips for effective involvement include: finding plants and seeds cheap (or free) handling city officials getting the dirt on soil planting to bring back the birds knowing when to ask permission and when to seek forgiveness Social activists, city dwellers and long-time gardeners will delight in this fast-paced and funny call to arms. David Tracey is a journalist and environmental designer who operates EcoUrbanist in Vancouver. He is Executive Director of Tree City Canada, a non-profit ecological engagement group.
Heirloom Vegetable Gardening by
With nearly 300 plant profiles, and including both growing information and historical context, this is the masterwork on heirloom gardening.
Mastering the Art of Flower Gardening by
A comprehensive and highly practical study of the art of growing flowers, Mastering the Art of Flower Gardening presents expert tips on growing both annuals and biennials (including native and heirloom species) alongside hundreds of lush photographs. This gorgeously illustrated book by Matt Mattus is based on decades of first-hand experience in his own garden and greenhouse made popular on his blog Growing with Plants. Every variety or species presented is one that he has personally trialed and grown. Mattus sets you up for success by providing everything you need to know about starting seeds, soil, sowing, hardening off, to transplanting, and growing on. Then, in the following chapters, you'll find tips for growing over 100 different annuals from seed and many summer bulbs, vines like wisteria and even blooming shrubs like lilacs. Every flower includes detailed information based on his hands-on experience, going beyond the information typically available on the seed packet or a nursery tag. Learn details and cultural facts that will help you grow better flowers while introducing you to many more. You'll find tips for topics like how to grow challenging annual poppies and biennials from seedand forcing flowers for winter blooms. Just a small selection of the flowers covered: heirloom and exhibition chrysanthemums, larkspurs and annual poppies, delphiniums, peonies, lilacs and wisteria. Bulbs include spring and summer bulbs such as anemone, ranunculus, tulips, lilies, gladiolus, and cut flower dahlias, while winter indoor bulbs cover every aspect of forcing bulbs indoors like narcissus, amaryllis, South African bulbs--and even how to force Lily of the Valley. In short, there is nothing ordinary about this book--it is unlike any other cut flower book you will find.
Modern Container Gardening by
Whether you have a roof terrace, a tiny balcony or just a window sill, there's no excuse not to do some gardening. In Modern Container Gardening, Isabelle Palmer shows just how easy it is to get started in the garden - and how to make the most of every little space. Modern Container Gardening is the perfect book for novice gardeners who are looking to make the most of the space that that they have. The chapters include the basics, how to make a garden in a day, one-pot wonders, window boxes and finishing touches. It contains a mix of small gardens, singular containers and window boxes, all of which are stylish and easy to manage. This is an accessible book for anyone looking to start gardening.
No-Waste Kitchen Gardening by
The debut book in the internationally successful No-Waste Gardening series, No-Waste Kitchen Gardening is a fun and colorful exploration of the amazing results you can get by re-growing vegetable cutoffs and scraps into harvestable, edible plants. Stop tossing your carrot stumps, loose cilantro sprigs, lettuce and cabbage stalks, and apple cores in the trash! The expert advice in No-Waste Kitchen Gardening, gives you all the instruction and tricks you'll need to grow and re-propagate produce from food waste. You'll be astonished at how much food waste you can re-grow. You'll also find some helpful general information about growing indoors and maintaining your re-grown plants. Two-part photo instructions show first what the root, chunk seed, or leaf should look like when you re-plant it, and second, when to harvest or re-plant it in soil to continue growing. Edibles big and small, quick to grow and those that take a big longer, are included, so you can pick and choose which projects to take on. A few of the many plants profiled include: Green onions Tomatoes Melons Avocadoes Potatoes Carrots Cut back on your food waste, cultivate your own food easily, and maybe even share gardening with a new generation, all with the advice from No-Waste Kitchen Gardening. For more no-waste gardening advice, explore the second book in the No-Waste Gardening series, No-Waste Organic Gardening.
No-Waste Organic Gardening by
In this second book in the internationally successful No-Waste Gardening series, learn how to recycle and repurpose your way to a successful, productive, and eco-friendly organic garden! In No-Waste Organic Gardening, author Shawna Coronado guides you toward a more sustainable landscape with dozens of tips, tricks, and solutions that save you time and money--all while saving the planet, too! A revision of Shawna's previous title,101 Organic Gardening Hacks, this new book tackles waste-reducing gardening in a clever, accessible way. Learn how to: Upcycle household discards to grow seedlings Turn yard debris into "black gold" in a DIY compost bin Control pests with traps made from household discards Build a rain barrel from an old trash can Mix up your own potting soil to reduce plastic bag waste Protect spring plantings with repurposed jugs, jars, and containers Build a new raised bed with everyday items--no power tools required! Plus, you'll find solutions to common garden problems and plenty of innovative and resourceful ways to reduce your outgoing waste. Conquering the increasingly important art of responsible gardening is a whole lot easier than you might think, with help from No-Waste Organic Gardening. For more advice on living waste-free, explore the first book in the No-Waste Gardening series, No-Waste Kitchen Gardening.
Organic gardening for everyone : homegrown vegetables made easy (no experience required) by 
The Pollinator Victory Garden : Win the War on Pollinator Decline with Ecological Gardening; Attract and Support Bees, Beetles, Butterflies, Bats, and Other Pollinators by
The passion and urgency that inspired WWI and WWII Victory Gardens is needed today to meet another threat to our food supply and our environment--the steep decline of pollinators. The Pollinator Victory Garden offers practical solutions for winning the war against the demise of these essential animals. Pollinators are critical to our food supply and responsible for the pollination of the vast majority of all flowering plants on our planet. Pollinators include not just bees, but many different types of animals, including insects and mammals. Beetles, bats, birds, butterflies, moths, flies, and wasps can be pollinators. But, many pollinators are in trouble, and the reality is that most of our landscapes have little to offer them. Our residential and commercial landscapes are filled with vast green pollinator deserts, better known as lawns. These monotonous green expanses are ecological wastelands for bees and other pollinators. With The Pollinator Victory Garden, you can give pollinators a fighting chance. Learn how to transition your landscape into a pollinator haven by creating a habitat that includes pollinator nutrition, larval host plants for butterflies and moths, and areas for egg laying, nesting, sheltering, overwintering, resting, and warming. Find a wealth of information to support pollinators while improving the environment around you: * The importance of pollinators and the specific threats to their survival * How to provide food for pollinators using native perennials, trees, and shrubs that bloom in succession * Detailed profiles of the major pollinator types and how to attract and support each one * Tips for creating and growing a Pollinator Victory Garden, including site assessment, planning, and planting goals * Project ideas like pollinator islands, enriched landscape edges, revamped foundation plantings, meadowscapes, and other pollinator-friendly lawn alternatives The time is right for a new gardening movement. Every yard, community garden, rooftop, porch, patio, commercial, and municipal landscape can help to win the war against pollinator decline with The Pollinator Victory Garden.
Practical Organic Gardening by
Get your hands dirty in the garden! Practical Organic Gardening is a comprehensive guide to organic gardening practices that focuses on hands-on, up-to-date information and high-quality visual information. Practical Organic Gardening sprouts homegrown, healthy edibles and other safe plants that are nourishing and tasty for your family, pets, and beneficial wildlife. Organic gardening isn't just for environmentalists anymore. Over the last several years it has been a popular gardening method. Believe it or not, it organic gardening has actually been around for most of the last century, but interest in organic gardening has soared in recent years as gardeners have become more aware of the quality of their food. Now is your chance to learn with this comprehensive book. Written by Mark Highland, founder of The Organic Mechanic, this is far from a hippie manifesto; it is a scientifically driven, modern-day dive into the organic methods, products, and practices that will appeal to any home gardener looking to make the transition from conventional to organic.
Square Foot Gardening: Growing Perfect Vegetables by
Square Foot Gardening: Growing Perfect Vegetables is a practical guide that answers the age-old question for gardeners: How do you know when a fruit or vegetable is ripe? Square Foot Gardening is the most popular alternate gardening method in the world, and this new title is a terrific addition to the SFG family. Growing Perfect Vegetables gets to the root of what every gardener wants: perfect produce, and lots of it. Whether you grow in a Square Foot Garden, a straw bale garden, containers, or a traditional garden plot, you'll be happy to have this helpful garden book so you can approach harvest time with confidence, not apprehension. Because even the most experienced homegrowers get a little nervous when harvest time comes around. In Square Foot Gardening: Growing Perfect Vegetables, you'll find hundreds of beautiful photos that show you exactly how produce should look when perfectly ripe, and ready for picking and buying. It even includes some tips and clues to help you interpret what your plants are trying to tell you about the fruit they are bearing. Written under the direction of The Mel Bartholomew Foundation, named for the inventor of Square Foot Gardening, this handy book provides crucial information, including optimal planting and harvesting times for more than 60 fruits and vegetables, along with the many high resolution photos of perfectly ripe produce.
Urban Gardening and the Struggle for Social and Spatial Justice by
The book presents an in-depth and theoretically-grounded analysis of urban gardening practices (re)emerging worldwide as new forms of bottom-up socio-political participation. By complementing the scholarly perspectives through posing real cases, it focuses on how these practices are able to address - together with environmental and planning questions - the most fundamental issues of spatial justice, social cohesion, inclusiveness, social innovations and equity in cities. Through a critical exploration of international case studies, this collection investigates whether, and how, gardeners are willing and able to contrast urban spatial arrangements that produce peculiar forms of social organisation and structures for inclusion and exclusion, by considering pervasive inequalities in the access to space, natural resources and services, as well as considerable disparities in living conditions.
Urban Gardening for Dummies by
The easy way to succeed at urban gardening A townhouse yard, a balcony, a fire escape, a south-facing window--even a basement apartment can all be suitable locations to grow enough food to save a considerable amount of money and enjoy the freshest, healthiest produce possible. Urban Gardening For Dummies helps you make the most of limited space through the use of proven small-space gardening techniques that allow gardeners to maximize yield while minimizing space. Covers square-foot gardening and vertical and layered gardening Includes guidance on working with container gardening, succession gardening, and companion gardening Offers guidance on pest management, irrigation and rain barrels, and small-space composting If you're interested in starting an urban garden that makes maximum use of minimal space, Urban Gardening For Dummies has you covered.
Back to Basics - Gardening from the Beginning Playlist
Patio Gardening and Container Growing Guides Playlist
Raised Beds Playlist
Epic Gardening YouTube Channel
Gardening Resources in Lansing Michigan
Find free/affordable access to everything you need including garden plots, tools, seeds, plant starters, workshops, and more.
Community Gardens in Mid-Michigan
Seed Libraries
Seed Library Map
Food Not Lawns e-book
Gardening can be a political act. Creativity, fulfillment, connection, revolution--it all begins when we get our hands in the dirt. Food Not Lawns combines practical wisdom on ecological design and community-building with a fresh, green perspective on an age-old subject. Activist and urban gardener Heather Flores shares her nine-step permaculture design to help farmsteaders and city dwellers alike build fertile soil, promote biodiversity, and increase natural habitat in their own "paradise gardens." But Food Not Lawns doesn't begin and end in the seed bed. This joyful permaculture lifestyle manual inspires readers to apply the principles of the paradise garden--simplicity, resourcefulness, creativity, mindfulness, and community--to all aspects of life. Plant "guerilla gardens" in barren intersections and medians; organize community meals; start a street theater troupe or host a local art swap; free your kitchen from refrigeration and enjoy truly fresh, nourishing foods from your own plot of land; work with children to create garden play spaces. Flores cares passionately about the damaged state of our environment and the ills of our throwaway society. In Food Not Lawns, she shows us how to reclaim the earth one garden at a time.
Support Pollinators
Bumble Bee Watch is a collaborative effort to track and conserve North America’s bumble bees. This community science project allows for individuals to:
We need your help! Because these animals are widely distributed the best way to keep track of them is with a group of volunteers across the country equipped with cameras. With any luck, you might help us to find remnant populations of rare species before they go extinct. Participating in Bumble Bee Watch is simple and you can get started now by creating an account via the “sign in” tab at the top of the page. Once you have an account, go out and check your garden, in parks, or any other natural areas you frequent for bumble bees. Be sure to snap a photo (learn more about how to photograph bees here) and then sign in and submit your data via our Bumble Bee Sightings form. Have fun while learning more about bumble bees and the vital role they play in our environment!
Other ways you can help:
