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Books > Gardening > Specialized gardening methods
Scientist/gardener Carol Deppe combines her passion for organic gardening with newly emerging scientific information from many fields -- resilience science, climatology, climate change, ecology, anthropology, paleontology, sustainable agriculture, nutrition, health, and medicine. In the last half of The Resilient Gardener, Deppe extends and illustrates these principles with detailed information about growing and using five key crops: potatoes, corn, beans, squash, and eggs. In this book you'll learn how to: -Garden in an era of unpredictable weather and climate change -Grow, store, and use more of your own staple crops -Garden efficiently and comfortably (even if you have a bad back) -Grow, store, and cook different varieties of potatoes and save your own potato seed -Grow the right varieties of corn to make your own gourmet-quality fast-cooking polenta, cornbread, parched corn, corn cakes, pancakes and even savory corn gravy -Make whole-grain, corn-based breads and cakes using the author's original gluten-free recipes involving no other grains, artificial binders, or dairy products -Grow and use popbeans and other grain legumes -Grow, store, and use summer, winter, and drying squash -Keep a home laying flock of ducks or chickens; integrate them with your gardening, and grow most of their feed. The Resilient Gardener is both a conceptual and a hands-on organic gardening book, and is suitable for vegetable gardeners at all levels of experience. Resilience here is broadly conceived and encompasses a full range of problems, from personal hard times such as injuries, family crises, financial problems, health problems, and special dietary needs (gluten intolerance, food allergies, carbohydrate sensitivity, and a need for weight control) to serious regional and global disasters and climate change. It is a supremely optimistic as well as realistic book about how resilient gardeners and their vegetable gardens can flourish even in challenging times and help their communities to survive and thrive through everything that comes their way -- from tomorrow through the next thousand years. Organic gardening, vegetable gardening, self-sufficiency, subsistence gardening, gluten-free living.
Forest gardens are much in the news as an exemplary form of resilient, sustainable, small-scale agriculture and plenty has been written about them already. But little has been written about the role of those who 'look after' them. A forest garden is edible, fertile, abundant and beautiful because it functions as an ecosystem. The forest gardener is an integral part of this ecosystem - which raises the question of what exactly the forest gardener should be trying to do. This book answers that question. At the heart of a forest garden is the unique relationship between the garden and the gardener. The 'garden of equal delights' after which this book is named is Anni Kelsey's forest garden high on a wet and windy Welsh hillside. Rejecting control and a regimen of planned interventions in favour of a more intimate, knowing and connected relationship with her garden, Anni describes how she learned to garden as an intrinsic - and equal - part of the ecosystem. She uses her years of experience to formulate and explain in very practical terms a set of principles that other forest gardeners can follow in their own preferred way. So this is a challenging and inspiring story for experienced, new and would-be forest gardeners and for anyone with a love of nature and a longing to engage with it on a deeper level. A forest garden is a different garden which needs to be gardened differently by a different gardener.
Smart gardeners know that soil is anything but an inert substance. Healthy soil is teeming with life not just earthworms and insects, but a staggering multitude of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. When we use chemical fertilizers, we injure the microbial life that sustains healthy plants, and thus become increasingly dependent on an arsenal of artificial, often toxic, substances. But there is an alternative to this vicious cycle. We can garden in a way that strengthens the soil food web the complex world of soil-dwelling organisms whose interactions create a nurturing environment for plants. "Teaming with Microbes" extols the benefits of cultivating the soil food web. First, it clearly explains the activities and organisms that make up the web. Next, it explains how gardeners can cultivate the life of the soil through the use of compost, mulches, and compost tea. The revised edition updates the original text and includes two completely new chapters on mycorrhizae (beneficial associations fungi form with green-leaved plants) and archaea (single-celled organisms once thought to be allied to bacteria). With Jeff Lowenfels' help, everyone from devotees of organic gardening techniques to weekend gardeners who simply want to grow healthy, vigorous plants without resorting to chemicals can create rich, nurturing, living soil.
Presents the basic principles of bio-intensive gardening in concise, easy-to-understand terms accessible even to a gardening beginner. By implementing bio-intensive techniques and working in harmony with natural garden cycles, gardeners will soon produce yields up to four times greater than those obtainable with conventional methods, in a fraction of the growing space. Sustainable gardening is an environmental solution for the new millennium and this work helps gardners contribute to that solution - in their own back garden.
With a revolutionary new "Climate Battery" design for near-net-zero heating and cooling By the turn of the nineteenth century, thousands of acres of glass houses surrounded large American cities, becoming a commonplace symbol of the market garden and nursery trades. But the possibilities of the indoor garden to transform our homes and our lives remain largely unrealized. In this groundbreaking book, Jerome Osentowski, one of North America's most accomplished permaculture designers, presents a wholly new approach to a very old horticultural subject. In The Forest Garden Greenhouse, he shows how bringing the forest garden indoors is not only possible, but doable on unlikely terrain and in cold climates, using near-net-zero technology. Different from other books on greenhouse design and management, this book advocates for an indoor agriculture using permaculture design concepts-integration, multi-functions, perennials, and polycultures-that take season extension into new and important territory. Osentowski, director and founder of Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute (CRMPI), farms at 7,200 feet on a steep, rocky hillside in Colorado, incorporating deep, holistic permaculture design with practical common sense. It is at this site, high on a mountaintop, where Osentowski (along with architect and design partner Michael Thompson) has been designing and building revolutionary greenhouses that utilize passive and active solar technology via what they call the "climate battery"-a subterranean air-circulation system that takes the hot, moist, ambient air from the greenhouse during the day, stores it in the soil, and discharges it at night-that can offer tropical and Mediterranean climates at similarly high altitudes and in cold climates (and everywhere else). Osentowski's greenhouse designs, which can range from the backyard homesteader to commercial greenhouses, are completely ecological and use a simple design that traps hot and cold air and regulates it for best possible use. The book is part case study of the amazing greenhouses at CRMPI and part how-to primer for anyone interested in a more integrated model for growing food and medicine in a greenhouse. With detailed design drawings, photos, and profiles of successful greenhouse projects on all scales, this inspirational manual will considerably change the conversation about greenhouse design.
Learn how to grow wild and exotic, medicinally important, sustainable, and deeply delicious mushrooms right at your own home, just as people throughout the world have been doing for centuries. Mushrooms are healthy, packed with vitamins and antioxidants; rich with flavor, an excellent source of the fifth flavor know as umami; and can be used medicinally in teas and tinctures. By growing your own, you can enjoy these benefits while also enriching your soil, speeding up your composting, and even suppressing weeds-though the biggest draw may be the magic of watching this unique form of life grow. Understanding how mushrooms grow is crucial to successfully cultivating them, and Mushroom Cultivation offers photo-illustrated instruction both on how mushrooms grow and how you can cultivate them yourself, with a focus on six types of mushroom-shiitake, oyster, wine cap, hericium, blewit, and agaricus. You'll learn how to: Grow mushrooms, step by step, in a variety of different mediums: logs, straw, wood chips and sawdust, and compost Troubleshoot problems, including identification, underwatering, overwatering, and insects Store, dry, and freeze your mushroom harvest Cook with mushrooms, including variety-specific cooking tips and 8 tasty recipes Find supplies and more information with the resources listed at the back of the book After reading Mushroom Cultivation, you'll discover that growing a mushroom is really no more difficult than growing a tomato. You just need a slightly different set of skills. Picking your own fresh mushrooms at the peak of their flavor and nutrition is within your reach with this comprehensive, step-by-step guide.
No matter your space, this planet-friendly introduction to gardening will get you growing your own fruit, veg and flowers in no time! Gardening expert and social media sensation Joe Clark of @joesgarden shares everything he has learned about the power of gardening to bring you joy, save you money and help the planet. You will:
With beautiful illustrations and easy-to-understand instructions and growing tips, this is the perfect book for budding or seasoned nature lovers who want to use their green-fingers to make a difference.
The perfect season-led book to help you grow the best organic vegetables, fruit and herbs in a small urban space Many of us are trying to be more mindful in our approach to eating by choosing seasonal ingredients, and growing our own fruit and vegetables can benefit our health, the environment and even our wallet. Written over a year, City Veg is the candid account of an urban grower from her productive city plot - the size of two classic 1970s VW camper vans - with all the triumphs and minor woes that come with a small, suburban location. From planning and designing the garden in January to harvesting and using home-grown produce throughout the growing season, Cinead McTernan takes you on a personal journey that will entertain experienced growers and share plenty of practical information with newbie gardeners. With helpful growing advice, harvesting guides, tips and inspiration for garden projects, City Veg also includes quick and easy recipe ideas to help make the most of your bountiful yield.
Pick your container, fill it with water, and sit back and watch your plant grow! This book is the answer to anyone who has ever shied away from growing house plants because of messy dirt or fear of things dying if left for a few days without water. Ditch the hassle and learn how to grow plants indoors with nothing but water. Peter Loewer, an inveterate inventor of water gardening techniques, has written and illustrated this charming guide to teach readers the basics of hydroculture. This technique of growing plants in water has a history of almost 300 years, from experiments by an English botanist to the giant automated factory greenhouses of the twentieth century where vegetables are now grown commercially by the ton. Learn how to utilize this simple, time-tested method in your own home and never worry about over- or under-watering again! Peter Loewer, an inveterate inventor of water gardening techniques, has written and illustrated this charming guide to teach readers the basics of hydroculture. This technique of growing plants in water has a history of almost 300 years, from experiments by an English botanist to the giant automated factory greenhouses of the twentieth century where vegetables are now grown commercially by the ton. Learn how to utilize this simple, time-tested method in your own home and never worry about over- or under-watering again!
'A remarkable book from one of our greatest plant experts' DAILY TELEGRAPH With a new introduction by Monty Don In revealing what worked in her own garden, Beth Chatto passes on a wealth of advice gleaned from her personal experience. She provides detailed - and accessible - ideas on garden management, plans for every type of soil and situation, nearly twenty specially tailored lists to help with planting in various conditions, and descriptions of over a thousand suitable plants for making the most of damp ground.
A showcase of Britain's most extraordinary gardens and landscapes from the twentieth century to present day. 100 20th-Century Gardens and Landscapes highlights the evolution of gardens and landscapes over the past century, tracing how these distinctive creations complemented buildings of their period. Entries in this book are grouped in chronological periods, documenting changing styles and techniques in a visual timeline. The examples chosen take the story from the Arts and Crafts garden and the garden city, through the landscapes created for mid-century housing and the new towns, to the low-maintenance gardens of the 1980s and contemporary trends for community and wildlife gardens. Designed landscapes were often integral to the conception of twentieth-century developments; the inclusion of a handful of particularly successful landscapes for memorial gardens, offices, industry, transport and parks demonstrate a changing attitude to public green space during the century and its increasing importance as private gardens have become ever smaller. Designers and architects such as Piet Oudolf, Charles Jencks, Frederick Gibberd, Geoffrey Jellicoe, Vita Sackville-West and Gertrude Jekyll are all featured, alongside more detailed essays on the history of gardens, planting styles, the importance of modern landscapes, and the career of Geoffrey Jellicoe. The text is written by architectural, landscape and garden historians including Elain Harwood, Barbara Simms and Alan Powers. Beautifully illustrated throughout with photography, illustrations and garden plans, this book is ideal for gardeners and landscape lovers alike.
Bare, stark swimming pools - those rectangular concrete holes in the ground surrounded by a chain link fence - are going the way of the dinosaurs. Pool owners have begun to see the pool and the area around it as an outdoor living space, a place for entertaining a crowd or relaxing alone. In response to this hot, new trend, gardener and landscape designer Catriona Tudor Erler has written POOLSCAPING, a one-of-a-kind handbook overflowing with inspiring ideas and practical advice on how to make your swimming pool the lovely, welcoming centrepiece of your property Illustrated with beautiful full-colour photographs of outstanding poolscapes, this unique guide demonstrates how any pool owner can transform the pool area into the showpiece of the neighbourhood
'Garden Book of the Year' - Garden Media Guild Awards 2022 The perfect gift for National Trust members this Christmas. Discover Britain's most beautiful and inspiring wild gardens, and how you can make your own. Winner 'Best Garden Book of the Year' Garden Media Guild Awards 2022 Despite our best efforts, and no matter how much we prune, tidy and shape our gardens, they are inherently wild. In fact, it is often the most unrestrained and untamed areas that add drama and romance. In this glorious celebration of exuberant, naturalistic planting, we take a walk on the wild side. Be transported to lush valleys and tropical jungles with exotic gardens shaped by Victorian plant hunters. Wander through beautiful bluebell woods, blossoming orchards and magical wildflower meadows, and explore prairie-style gardens inspired by North American grasslands. Discover special places influenced by natural landscapes, and sustainably managed spaces designed with wildlife in mind. You'll find out how wild play areas can help children to connect with nature and how immersing yourself in quiet woodland can immediately benefit your sense of well-being. A helpful guide also offers advice and tips on how to create and manage your own wildlife-friendly garden so that you can attract birds, bees, bats, bugs and many other wild and wonderful creatures.
Plan Your Landscape or Garden to Help Beloved Backyard Visitors The presence of birds, bees, and butterflies suggests a healthy, earth-friendly place. These most welcome guests also bring joy to those who appreciate watching them. Now, you can turn your yard into a perfect habitat that attracts them and, more importantly, helps them thrive. Professional nature photographer and botanist George Oxford Miller provides all the information you need in this must-have guide for Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, west Texas, and Utah. Learn how to landscape and create pollinator gardens with native plants, including succulents. The book begins with an in-depth introduction to native pollinators and to birds. It's followed by a "field guide" section to more than 100 native plants that are widely available to utilize, are easy to care for, and provide great benefit to birds, bees, and butterflies. The species are organized by level of sunlight needed and then by plant types. Each species includes full-color photographs and information about hardiness zones, what they are most likely to attract, soil requirements, light levels, and George's notes. As an added bonus, you'll make use of blooming charts, tips on attracting specific species, and more! Plus, the invaluable garden plans and projects show you just what to do and can be customized to suit your own specific interests. Plan, plant, and grow your beautiful garden, with native plants that benefit your favorite creatures to watch and enjoy.
Mediterranean garrigue landscapes are extraordinarily beautiful: alternating mounds of silver and green, textured leaves, flashes of colour and intoxicating scents combine to delight the senses and rival any cultivated garden with half the work. This book offers inspiration and expert advice on growing the plants and adopting a new more natural way of gardening. Mediterranean plants are diverse and adapted to a wide range of environments and weather conditions. They are of course ideally suited to regions which experience long periods of seasonal drought but many will also withstand periods of high rainfall and extreme cold making this book essential reading for temperate-zone gardeners seeking the Mediterranean look. Some understanding of plant ecology is essential for success and Filippi shares his expert knowledge acquired from decades of research. How a plant interacts with its environment, other plants, and other living things indicates what it needs to flourish in a garden setting. Filippi's pioneering approach makes for a much closer relationship between gardener and nature that puts few demands on natural resources. Over 400 fascinating photographs capture the effortless beauty of natural plant communities and show gardeners how different gardens can be.
Our grandparents did it. And their grandparents before them. In fact, saving seeds is as old as gardening itself. Why then is it such a neglected component of gardening today? Many say that because seeds from catologs are so cheap we don't need to save our own. Have you figured out lately what you spend on seeds each year to grow the same plant? (And doesn't it seem to be a little more each year?) Now multiply that figure by the number of years you expect to have a garden. Adds up, doesn't it? But even if it still doesn't seem like a lot, the bottom line is that it's money you just don't have to spend! Let Marc Rogers introduce you to the world of seed saving, where you will save money, strengthen your plant strains, and find a new appreciation and understanding of your garden.
Turn your outdoor space into a sanctuary for nature and join the rewilding movement today! Introducing Wild Your Garden, a practical guide to rewilding your outdoor space, with advice, inspiration and step-by-step projects brought to you by Gardeners' World and Springwatch guests The Butterfly Brothers. We all have the potential to make the world a little greener, and Wild Your Garden shows you how to create a garden that can help boost local biodiversity. You don't need specialist knowledge or acres of land. If you have any outdoor space, you can make a difference to local wildlife, and reduce your carbon footprint, too! So what are you waiting for? Dive straight in to discover: -Practical illustrated step-by-step projects for all level of gardeners -Tips and advice to adjust to the principles of wild gardening -Inspiration for rewilding your garden space and encourage local biodiversity to thrive Whether you wish to transform a paved-over yard into a lush oasis, create refuges to welcome and support native species, or turn a high-maintenance lawn into a nectar-rich mini-meadow to attract bees and butterflies, this great gardening book has something for everyone to discover. The Butterfly Brothers are expert landscape gardeners specializing in wildlife-attracting projects of all sizes across the UK. Having worked closely with Chris Packham, Alan Titchmarsh and even Sir David Attenborough, they will show you how to easily support wildlife and reap all the benefits Mother Nature has to offer, no matter the shape and size of your garden. In fact, Alan Titchmark once said: "It's up to every single one of us to do our bit for wildlife, however small our gardens, and The Butterfly Brothers know just how that can be achieved." Did you know that the concept of rewilding is being increasingly seen as a viable tool in the fight against rising C02 emissions? So let's all work together to do our part for the planet! Whether it's plummeting pollinator numbers, building bird boxes or crafting a woodland wonderland, this gardening guide is jam-packed with top tips and tricks for wilding your garden and becoming one with nature! The ideal gardening gift for the nature lover in your life, those looking to take steps to reconnect with nature, or those who wish to protect local wildlife from the comfort of home!
A step-by-step guide that gives any gardener all the information needed to make garden furnishings that are both simple and beautiful. This book includes 50 complete plans for trellises, raised beds, planters, window boxes, and just about any imaginable project you can make to train and display plants in your garden and around your home. Featured projects are created using a host of easily found materials, including wood, metal, hypertufa, upcycled barrels, clay pots, sticks, latticework, copper tubing, re-rod, wire, landscape timbers, retaining wall block, and natural stone. Each plan includes photographs, a scaled plan drawing, cutting and shopping lists, and thorough step-by-step instructions.
Plant, soil, moss, twine--that's all you need to create the exciting form of bonsai known as koke (moss) dama (ball). Moss Ball Bonsai provides all the information you need to make these self-contained gardens, using different types of plants--from flowering trees and ferns to grasses and cacti. A sampling of 100 different kokedama shows how even the most common of house plants can shine in this appealing no-pot environment, while a section on mosses acquaints you with the many tones and textures of this versatile plant family. With this bonsai guide, you will learn how to: Create and maintain a healthy home for your miniature garden's root system Use inexpensive house plants and cuttings as the basis of your kokedama Make beautiful (and quirky) group plantings within a single project Find, collect and propagate moss And more! Whether resting on a pottery dish or suspended in the air, these little indoor gardens are a wonderful way to add a touch of artistry and greenery to your home or work space.
Discover how to keep your garden in the best of health. Ideal for first-time gardeners, Grow Pests & Diseases contains everything you need to know to prevent and treat a wide range of plant pests, diseases, disorders, and more. Far more than a simple list of treatments, this book shows you how to keep plants in top condition, recognise the signs of ill-health, and decide whether or not intervention is needed, while the fully illustrated ailment directory is organised by symptom and plant type for quick and easy identification. Packed with practical, jargon-free know-how, this easy-to-use guide has everything you need to know to help your garden Grow. |
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