Reviews (3)

This is one of my favorite inspiration books
This is the best of Durie's books and is an excellent companion for the California garden designer. The plans are helpful for understanding the layout of a garden, but the photos are what really make the book. The light modern style, clever detailing, and CA compatible plants give me new ideas every time I open it.

Must-read for garden design
I must admit that I wasn't expecting much from Jamie Durie, knowing him mainly for his home renovation shows in Australia. A more elegant modern
This book is an excellent sourse of inspiration for the garden designer who is tired of traditional garden design. Jamie Durie explores new materials and plant selections in a way that is comfortable and exciting. A must read for those of us who are tired of English garden design! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Garden Design    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. General    6. Landscape    7. Organic Gardening    8. Outdoor & Recreational Areas - General    9. Outdoor Structure Construction    10. Garden design & planning    11. Gardening / Garden Design    12. Greenhouses, conservatories, patios    13. Landscape art & architecture   

Subjects:  1. Agricultural pests    2. Control    3. Garden pests    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardening/Plants    6. Organic Gardening    7. Pest Control In Horticultural Crops    8. Plants, Protection of    9. Techniques   

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - Agronomy    2. Garden soils    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Organic Gardening    5. Soil management    6. Technology & Industrial Arts   

Subjects:  1. Biological control    2. Garden pests    3. Gardening    4. Gardening / Horticulture    5. Gardening/Plants    6. Organic    7. Organic gardening    8. Plant diseases    9. Plants, Protection of    10. Reference    11. Techniques    12. Gardening / Techniques   

Reviews (10)

Viva Solviva
Solviva is a fresh and brillant exploration of the complexities involved in constructing a solar home. Anna Edey is beautifully human as she describes her real life adversity in bringing such a complex project into fruition.
Lots of practical ideas, even if you have only a small yard
This book reads much like a diary, rather than a how-to book. However, if you are mechanically inclined (or have access to someone who is), you can fairly easily glean the instructions for building most of her projects from her book.The sections on her wastewater disposal system are great. The author's website is also very informative, detailing her experience with a Solviva biocarbon wastewater system installed at the Black Dog Tavern in Vinyard Haven, MA.
How to grow $5,000 on one acre
I am unable to figure out why Anna Edey came up with the title that she did for this book, but it certainly is a "hook".She may even be a bit eccentric or even quirky, with a second subtitle of "Revealing the Truth About How We Can Provide Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Transportation, Food, Solid Waste and Wastewater Management in Ways that Reduce Pollution and Depletion of Resources by 80 percent or more, and that At The Same Time Reduce Cost of Living and Improve Quality of Life".Whew!
Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - Sustainable Agriculture    2. Gardening/Plants    3. Greenhouses    4. Massachusetts    5. Organic    6. Organic farming    7. Recycling (Waste, etc.)    8. Solar greenhouses    9. Solviva Organic Farm (West Tis    10. Technology & Industrial Arts    11. West Tisbury    12. Gardening    13. Architecture    14. Home improvement    15. Self-help    16. Current affairs   

Reviews (6)

Best for a limited audience
The paperback edition of this book may differ in format from the hardback edition. In the paperback edition, the color pictures are small and of poor quality. Photos intended to illustrate particular techniques (weaving a climbing rose on a pillar, for instance) are simply too small to provide any visual information at all. Not all roses are pictured, which is a drawback in a book that leans heavily on older roses. Pragmatic with a dash of humor....
You might want to read THE ORGANIC ROSE GARDEN by Liz Druitt even if you aren't planning on growing roses. Druitt has a wonderful sense of humor. For example, she says the rugosa rose must require a great deal of nitrogen since it has thorns designed to extract human blood. Each of the entries for her list of 100 is written in a friendly, helpful, and folksy way, helpful and not hokey. Excellent Rose Guide for the South
This book is truly excellent if you live below the Mason-Dixon line and are just starting out with roses.She gives detailed coverage of a great many roses well adapted to the South, as well as growing roses without alot of chemicals.I like this book so much, I carry it with me when Itravel (which I do 3 wks/month), which tells you something.Beautifulpictures, good details on roses and great advice.I highly recommend thisesp. if you are new to roses. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Flowers - Roses    2. Gardening    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Organic Gardening    6. Ornamental Plants    7. Rose culture    8. Roses   

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Organic    5. Organic Gardening    6. Gardening / Organic   

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Lawns    5. Organic    6. GARDENING / Organic    7. Gardening / Lawns   

Reviews (4)

a fun and interesting read filled with useful & practical tips
in addition to her practical organic knowledge, ellen sandbeck writes with whimsy & a knowledge of history - taking the reader on amusing & informative tangents while passing on some simple techniques to make gardening more productive & more enjoyable.

What an excellent book!
EAT MORE DIRT is fun!More than just a gardening handbook, it's about how to get what you REALLY want out of your garden (all the time -- not just when you're resting on the lawn, avoiding the mower.)It's about how to provide the very best for all involved by using what you have to your advantage, and refusing to poison your soil, your plants, and yourself. (You might be surprised at what constitutes poison.)It's also an acerbic sort of love song for the land, one that will inspire you to "sing" organically to your own little corner of Mother Earth. (Whether or not you choose to literally sing to your plants is up to you -- and perhaps your neighbors!) EAT MORE DIRT is fun andinformative !
EAT MORE DIRT, by Ellen Sandbeck, is a fun and informative way to learn more about organic gardening. I laughed, I cried and I learned a lot! I loved the original art work by Sandbeck and all the tips that I can use right away to improve my garden's health!It was such a fun, painless read that I sat down and read the whole thing!Check out all the great illustrations, too! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Organic    5. Organic gardening    6. Techniques    7. Gardening / Organic   

Reviews (2)

A spectacular treat!
My husband and I have been customers of the Cook's Garden seed catalog for over a decade.We might be an example of your worst nightmare, or wildest dream--we're foodies who became so fanatical about using only the best, freshest, in-season, organic ingredients that we now have a 10-acre organic farm where we do market gardening.We do all this so we can and do grow vegetables you see in this beautiful publication. foody heaven
As a foody who lives part of the year in Central London with all great restaurants and who also lives in the Dordogne with all its great produce, I have really enjoyed reading and cooking from this book.It's imaginative, easy to use, beautifully illustrated and inspiring.It is quintessentially American, and I will be introducing it and the recipes to all my friends in Europe. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cookery    2. Cooking    3. Cooking / Wine    4. Courses & Dishes - General    5. Entertaining - General    6. Organic    7. Specific Ingredients - General    8. Cooking / Specific Ingredients / General   

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Organic    5. Regional - Southwest (AZ, NM, OK, TX)   

Editorial Review

Perennials are the most challenging and rewarding of all garden plants, and most gardeners need all the help they can get to grow them well. Perennials emerge from the ground in early spring, grow to full height, bloom, bear fruit, and then disappear with the first frost, only to do the same thing the following year and again the next. Add this to the fact that for the first year or two, perennials don't do much above the ground (they are growing their root structure), but after that they burst forth with amazingly vigorous growth, and you get an idea of the pleasures and tribulations of perennial gardening. The rewards, however, are rich: a wide array of flower forms and colors, structure and leaf, an ever-changing mid-level tapestry in the garden, plus a celebration of seasonal change. Few gardeners can resist perennials, but how to grow them better and more effortlessly?Read more

Reviews (10)

A Must Have For Every Gardener
This book is very informative and also well organized.It offers many useful tips and information for greenhorn and experienced gardeners alike.It covers every perennial you can think of and even some that I considered roadside weeds.Great reference guide to care for your perennials properly.Highly recommended!

Makes Getting "Serious Gardener" Results Much Easier
This is the one book about perennials to own if you can only own one -- part growing manual, part plant reference encyclopedia, and part garden design guide.I stumbled into gardening by accident, having avoided it throughout my youth, but once I caught "the bug," I wanted to learn in a hurry how to do it correctly.This book was (and is) the perfect choice.
helpful:
Have not had a lot of luck with perrenials.I have gone thru from cover to cover and know where and how to plant now.A great book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening/Plants    2. Gardening: plants    3. Organic gardening   

Reviews (1)

Herbs for the Garden, Kitchen, Home and Health
"Once you start growing and using herbs, I defy anyone not to become hooked." ~Jekka McVicarRead more

Subjects:  1. Cooking / Wine    2. Gardening    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Herb gardening    5. Herbs    6. Organic    7. Specific Ingredients - Herbs, Spices, Condiments    8. Utilization    9. Gardening / Herbs   

Reviews (1)

Sparse Information
This is the third Steiner book I have tried to read and I had the same experience as the first two books (Egyptian Myths and Mysteries and The Fourth Dimension). I have come to the conclusion that the information published from Stieners lectures has too much wandering around and not getting to the point to be very useful.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture - General    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Organic    4. Reference    5. Science/Mathematics    6. Technology    7. Agriculture & Farming    8. Spirituality    9. The Environment   

Reviews (6)

Good basic information
Sadly, composting has a bit of a bad reputation some places.Many people imagine that you have to wear Birkenstocks and take part in anti-globalization marches, grow your facial hair and bathe infrequently to compost.Nothing could be farther from the truth!
Total novice, but the pile is coming along
This book is my first on composting, and while it didn't give me the desire to do it, it certainly gave me a great start in figuring it out.It seems to be well worth the read so far.

I'll be a pro at composting by the end of the season
This is a great, clear cut, interesting and fun-to-read book! Stu Campbell is able to take what, to newcomers, can be a daunting task and not only present us with the basics to feel comfortable but he also translates some of the scientific "mumbo-jumbo" of how and why compost works into layman's terms. He includes real "recipes" and approaches to try as well as suppling a list (though not nearly complete) of good materials to compost as well as what NOT to use. A short "troubleshooting" chapter called "Things You Might Worry About a Little" is a bit over the top for beginners but is part of what makes this book valuable for the seasoned composter. Let It Rot! is a not-to-technical, well-written, easy-to-read guide that takes the "yuck" out of your composting ideas! Perfect for beginners and a great refresher for near professional composters. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Compost    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Soil Fertilization    5. Techniques   

Reviews (5)

Inspiring but not Practical
Robert Hart's book on Forest Gardening is very inspiring, but more research is needed to start your garden.The list of suppliers in the Appendix is very helpful for those in North America, and the list of cultivars includes little known but very useful varieties.Overall, the book helps one understand the why of forest gardening but not the how to.

Everyone can profit from this book
If you have not yet read 'Forest Farming' by Douglas and Hart, then you may lack the background to fully appreciate this book. In 'Forest Farming' we are told that civilized man has marched across the face of the earth and left a desert in his footprints primarily because he has ploughed the hills with the loss of top soil. Crop-yielding trees offer the best medium for extending agriculture to hills, steep places, rocky places, and to the lands where rainfall is deficient. Every good Buddhist plants and sees the establishment of one tree at least every five years and this simple act multiplied six billion times would have a greater economic benefit for humankind than traditional development plans. The 'tool' with the greatest potentials for feeding men and animals, for regenerating the soil, for restoring water-systems, for controlling floods and droughts, for creating more benevolent micro-climates and more comfortable and stimulating living conditions for humanity, is the tree. Douglas and Hart point out that the deeper problem is ignorance as many crop-yielding trees and shrubs are currently ignored by farmers because agriculture in most parts of the world is geared to cereal growing and livestock rearing by conventional means, despite the fact that trees offer higher yields per acre. If the tree growing potentialities of city private gardens was fully recognized, suburban areas would not only have purer air and a more benevolent microclimate but a greater degree of self-sufficiency. A forest for every home!
Since reading Robert Hart's classic book I have seen forest gardens sustaining life in Mexico, Fiji, Australia, South Africa and Britain. Around the world perennial 'home gardens' have been grown for millennia.Yet in temporate climates we seem to have forgotten how. This book hasinspired me to increase the diversity and productivity of my own smallgarden in England, so far with good results. It is inspirational,but itis also practical. The Appendices offer suggestions for a variety of usesand climates. I would recommend as a companion volume, Patrick Whitefield's'How to Grow a Forest Garden' for further details of the practicalities.But Hart's desciption of his own forest garden at Wenlock Edge stands aloneand is an invaluable guide to practical sustainability. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Agriculture    2. Agroforestry    3. Edible forest gardens    4. Forestry (Specific Aspects)    5. Forests and forestry    6. Gardening / Horticulture    7. Gardening/Plants    8. Landscape    9. Organic Gardening    10. Permaculture    11. Techniques    12. Fruit-culture    13. Gardening / Landscape    14. Gardening-Techniques   

Subjects:  1. Gardening / Horticulture    2. Gardening / Organic    3. Gardening / Techniques    4. Organic    5. Science / Horticulture    6. Business & Economics    7. Compost    8. Compost industry    9. Gardening    10. Horticulture    11. Marketing    12. Marketing - General    13. Sales & Selling    14. Science    15. Soil Fertilization    16. Techniques   

Reviews (2)

Think:Neighbor-Envy...
You Bet Your Tomatoes! by Mike McGrath is the only how-to grow-tons-of-quality-tomatoes one will ever need.It is the only 'mater book I have and my 'maters are the envy of the neighborhood -- Not bad, since I've only been gardening for a couple of years, as a hobby.
Who knew growing tomatoes could be funny?
If you want to read a funny book on how to grow beautiful tomatoes, then You Bet Your Tomatoes is right up your alley. MikeRead more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Humor    5. Organic    6. Tomatoes    7. Vegetables    8. Gardening / Vegetables   

Reviews (1)

Behind the pretty pictures, a manifesto
HRH The Prince of Wales' position in life presents him with opportunities to speak and be listened to. Similarly, his name on the cover of this book, and the beautiful color photos that illustrate it, may get many readers to give it an initial browse. But what they'll find inside is much different than the guided tour of a garden they may be expecting (for that, they should check out HRH's "The Garden at Highgrove," 2000). Instead, it's a manifesto of sorts -- a defiant defense of an organic approach to agriculture that is a polite but unmistakable challenge to agribusiness orthodoxy.Read more

Subjects:  1. England    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. General    5. Gloucestershire    6. Highgrove (England)    7. Organic Gardening    8. Organic farming    9. Organiculture   

Reviews (6)

Deserves 10 stars!
At last! An instruction journal for us 'Organic Nerds'! And in plain, understandable terminology. When it is advertised as covering 50 years of gardening (the right way) experience, you can take that to the bank! It was a revelation to read that some of the concepts I had been using for years, actually have merit. I knew they had worked for me, but it is always nice to be validated. If you can only purchase one gardening manual, this is the one to buy. It covers everything and because the methods are tried and true, you can feel confident following Ogdens' suggestions. I can remember when, years ago, neighbors thought me barmy for directly composting kitchen waste(sans meat products). I am vindicated!

gardening in a less-than-perfect world
Shepherd Ogden's Step-by-step guide to growing vegetables is a great companion to the Ogden's other book--The Cook's Garden-- and their catalog by the same name.The Ogden's practice what they preach and it shows in the solid recommendations for planting and preparing freshly harvested greens and veggies.Any gardener understands that the challenges we all face are precisely because we are living and gardening in a less-than-perfect and highly unpredictable world.Shep's suggestions and guidance will definately help even those of us who have been gardening for a lifetime to find greater success.

The world is less than perfect....
In a world of pesticides and GM foods, Mr. Odgen is trying to help us all out. He has wonderful ideas, and is able to convey his message to all readers. Nothing beats the taste of fresh, organically grown food. You will find this book every summer, dog eared and smeared with dirt, just where you left it with your garden tools last fall. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Organic    5. Organic Gardening    6. Vegetable gardening    7. Vegetables