The Science of Compost: Life Death and Decay in the Garden takes you on a journey into the underworld of composting. Doberski explains the science of what goes on but also promotes interest in the living organisms who provide the 'hard graft' of transforming waste organic matter. It can be hard to envisage the hundreds, thousands or millions of different organisms involved but The Science of Compost reveals the secrets of this hidden world. Gardeners are familiar with the magic of compost and it is easy to see what goes in - organic waste - and what comes out - wonderful, friable and fertile compost - but what magic causes that to happen? Doberski explains what kind of 'mysterious' and complex chemical, physical and biological processes contribute to make composting effective. He covers the structural nature of decaying and dead plant material, the micro-organisms and invertebrates contributing to decomposition, and the combination of chemical, physical and biological factors which determine rates of decay. Although not a practical manual of composting, by explaining the science of what goes on in composting Doberski provides pointers to gardeners for getting composting right.

There was a time when garden designer Cleve West questioned the importance of his role as a garden designer. Two things changed his mind: designing a garden for a hospital and adopting a vegan lifestyle. Cleve's transition to veganism was a profound and varied learning experience. He learned more about nutrition than when he studied it as part of a sports science degree. He learned a great deal about propaganda in the food industry and how, contrary to what he'd been led to believe, the cows and chickens in the dairy industry are far from 'happy'. He learned that animal agriculture is a leading cause of climate change and a whole range of environmental catastrophes. He found that many illnesses have their origins in the consumption of animal products. He learned that a plant-based diet can alleviate some of these illnesses and sometimes even reverse them. He learned that a drive towards a plant-based diet could offset many of the environmental aspects of animal agriculture and make a positive transition to a more sustainable future. Everything started falling into place. It was all about plants. Suddenly, his role as a garden designer didn't seem so trivial after all. The Garden of Vegan charts Cleve's journey from its tentative beginnings to an understanding of the restorative power of gardens and a realization that some of the most destructive aspects of the Anthropocene can be mitigated or even fixed by plants.