Starter Vegetable Gardens

May 15, 2010
Pleasant ("The Complete Compost Gardening Guide") has turned her gift for language and her green thumb into an excellent recourse for the home vegetable gardener. Her No-Fail garden plans, including buying lists, suggested garden layouts, and recommendations for seasonal crop rotations, gently guide the reader. The plans progress through a three-year expansion that easily builds each year's garden off the previous one. Beyond the garden plans, Pleasant introduces necessary topics, such as mulch, watering, insects, and diseases, without intimidating the reluctant gardener. The result for gardeners, who will grow in knowledge and experience as their crops flourish, will be productive, low-maintenance, attractive vegetable gardens. The captivating pictures, detailed diagrams, and excellent appendix and glossary are all bonuses. VERDICT Highly recommended. The gentle guidance here will inspire all new gardeners to get dirty and cultivate their own green thumbs. It will be well used all growing season long.Jennifer Beach, Indiana State Lib., Richmond

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2010
Fueled by the localvore movement and a tightened economy, more people are motivated to grow their own vegetables, and yet few aspects of gardening are quite as daunting. Sowing seeds! Combating pests! Harvesting zucchini! It can all be a little overwhelming for the inexperienced gardener. With a clean, crisp, foolproof approach, Pleasant takes the fear out of food gardening in a must-have resource that will appeal to both neophytes and experienced gardeners. From simple bag gardens to bountiful food cornucopias, each garden plan is a symphony in simplicity, laid out with precise lists of materials and plants based on detailed landscape plans suitable for small city gardens as well as larger suburban backyards. Along with year-by-year overviews that allow gardeners to anticipate growth and adapt to changes, Pleasant provides essential cultivation and maintenance techniques, and offers surefire recommendations for top-producing vegetables and herbs.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)