Library

Over the years I have accumulated some very good books on gardening, sustainable living, wildlife, etc. Her are just a few of them. I’ll add more as I collect them.

I’m not affiliated with any booksellers so I am not pushing these to make any money on them. I truly find that they are a good sources of information.

The Vegetable Gardeners Bible - 2000

Edward C. Smith

Smith writes about organic gardening in staggered planting in raised beds. He covers his system, from soil preparation to companion planting and compost. For beginners, he takes the mystery out of such subjects as hardening off ("like a little boot camp for vegetables") and deciphering the shorthand used in seed catalogues. An abundance of photographs (most of Smith's own garden) visually bolster the techniques described, while frequent subheads, sidebars and information-packed photo captions make the layout user-friendly. The book concludes with an alphabetically arranged listing of vegetables and herbs in which Smith offers advice on every aspect of cultivation, as well as a selection of the most flavorful varieties. Smith doesn't necessarily break new ground here, but his book is thorough and infused with practical wisdom and a dry Vermont humor that should endear him to readers.

Backyard Berry Book - 1995

Stella Otto

Here’s hands-on advice from a professional horticulturist and experienced fruit grower to help gardeners create an edible landscape. "The Backyard Berry Book" provided all the information that backyard gardeners need to grow strawberries, rhubarb, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, lingonberries, currants, gooseberries, grapes, and kiwi fruit. Includes details on soil nutrition and testing; disease, pest, weed, and bird control; and trellis design. A trouble-shooting section and Seasonal Activity Calendar will help ensure success.

Complete Book of Edible Landscaping - 1982

Rosalind Creasy

She began her career in horticulture in the 1970s as a landscape designer and restaurant consultant. By 1982 she had published her first book, The Complete Book of Edible Landscaping, which won the Garden Writers Association’s Quill and Trowel award, was chosen as a Book of the Month selection, and hailed by The Wall Street Journal as the best garden book of 1982. Considered a classic, it coined the term “Edible Landscaping,” now a part of the American vocabulary.

Four-Season Harvest - 1999

Eliot Coleman

This instructional manual explains how to create an abundant garden in a cool climate throughout the year. Author and noted plant expert Eliot Coleman explains, step by step, how garden devotees can take their outdoor summer gardens through the dead of winter.

Garden Insects of North America - 2004

Whitney Cranshaw

Garden Insects of North America is the most comprehensive and user-friendly guide to the common insects and mites affecting yard and garden plants in North America. In a manner no previous book has come close to achieving, through full-color photos and concise, clear, scientifically accurate text, it describes the vast majority of species associated with shade trees and shrubs, turfgrass, flowers and ornamental plants, vegetables, and fruits--1,420 of them, including crickets, katydids, fruit flies, mealybugs, moths, maggots, borers, aphids, ants, bees, and many, many more.

How to Grow More Vegetables

John Jeavons

Now, with the recent release of the seventh edition of How To Grow More Vegetables, the best book on GROW BIOINTENSIVE® gardening just got even better. Whether you have an older edition or have never read this book before, the new improved seventh edition with a foreword by Alice Waters is the gardening book you need and will come back to time and time again.

New Victory Garden - 1987

Bob Thomson

The book is broken down by months with a long list of vegetables for planting, tending, and harvesting for each month as well as other garden tasks.

Rodale's garden insect, disease & weed identification guide - 1988

Miranda Smith

This book is a one-volume field guide to everything that could go wrong in your garden. With this book in hand, you can identify every major insect, disease & weed right in the garden. This guide brings you even more; it's also a valuable reference on the life cycles of insects, diseases & weeds, the plants they affect and the latest organic control to keep them in check.

Secret Life of Plants - 1989

Peter Tompkins & Christopher Bird

Quite possibly one of the most engrossing books pertaining to biology and symbiotic relationships between plants and humans ever written. Described as "A fascinating account of the physical, emotional, and spiritual relations between plants and man."

Worms Eat My Garbage - 1997

Mary Appelhof

A new edition of the definitive guide to vermicomposting--a process using redworms to recycle human food waste into nutrient-rich fertilizer for plants. Author Mary Appelhof provides complete illustrated instructions on setting up and maintaining small-scale worm composting systems. Internationally recognized as an authority on vermicomposting, Appelhof has worked with worms for over three decades. Topics include: bin types, worm species, reproduction, care and feeding of worms, harvesting, and how to make the finished product of potting soil.