Favorite Gardening Books

Spring has officially arrived, and it is now definitely gardening season. The very organized (and temperature optimistic) among us already have their tomatoes and peppers planted. Others of us look at the pretty seedlings for sale and dream of skipping work to get those baby veggies in the ground. I know there will be time enough, and when I get home too late to do any gardening, I curl up with a gardening book instead.

My absolute favorite gardening book is The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible, by Edward C. Smith. Ed’s Book (as it’s referred to in my home) achieves a wonderful balance of presenting information that is unintimidating and helpful to a novice gardener, while also being a tremendous resource for more experienced veggie growers.  Starting with how to decide on a location for your garden, selecting seeds, and preparing the soil, he progresses to growing specific vegetables and dealing with pests. The book is full of photos – gorgeous images of Ed’s garden and remarkably helpful images of Ed in action. The nicest thing of all may be the book’s tone, as Ed conveys his information like a kind neighbor leaning over the fence.

If you’re tight on space, Sugar Snaps and Strawberries, by Andrea Bellamy might be the gardening book for you. Subtitled “Simple Solutions for Creating Your Own Small-Space Edible Garden,” it’s not only a great guide to the basics of gardening, but also offers wonderfully creative ways to garden in whatever space you have. From containers to trellises to a tiny patch of soil two feet square, Bellamy walks you through the steps from preparing the soil to harvesting your crop. She also has an invaluable chapter on pests and organic insect control.

I’ve spent lots of time mulling over Herbal Tea Gardens, by Marietta Marshall Marcin, and daydreaming about expanding my tiny herb garden to incorporate more of her wisdom. She spends most of the first hundred pages describing various herbs, their care, and how to use them for tea. Then comes the fun part: plans for themed herb gardens like Headache Relief Garden, Sleepy Time Garden and Immunity Booster Garden. It’s an interesting way to become more familiar with herbs and their uses.

It’s hard to believe that an entire (large) book could be written about backyard composting, but here it is: The Complete Compost Gardening Guide, by Barbara Pleasant and Deborah L. Martin. I love composting, with a worm bin inside or outside with a larger bin; I’ll talk composting with anyone who’s interested. Increasingly, composting is being recognized as an integral component of home gardening as it improves the quality of your soil, acts as a mulch to retain moisture, and increases the nutritional value of the vegetables you grow. It can also significantly reduce the amount of yard waste and kitchen scraps that a household needs to send to the landfill. Many people are intimidated by the thought of composting; I appreciate that this book emphasizes how easy it can be to get started.  The Complete Compost Gardening Guide outlines numerous ways to compost and makes it fun to figure out the best system for your household.

By the way, if you’re interested in trying outdoor composting, Howard County gives away free compost bins to county residents. To get your free bin, contact the County directly or stop by a H.C. Master Gardener compost demonstration site.

Gardening, like composting, isn’t that difficult. Sure, you can do it super-scientifically and carefully to reap amazing harvests of abundance… but I’m pretty sure that you can also do it haphazardly, with whatever little pockets of time, energy and soil you can find, and still the results will delight you.