You Grow Girl

March 1, 2005
Reaching a new audience, this gardening book is as fresh and funky as the web site that inspired it. A professional print designer before turning to web design, Trail couldn't find gardening information geared toward young, hip, frugal, urban gardeners like herself, so she used her skills to create YouGrowGirl.com in early 2000. Like the acclaimed site, the book is artsy but informative. Highly appropriate for beginners, it covers the basics of planning, planting, growing, harvesting, and reflecting on your garden successes. Trail's organic and inexpensive methods for growing flowers, food, and herbs are practical for postage stamp -sized yards or even city fire escapes. Interspersed are offbeat projects like pest prophylactics, home-sewn tea bags, and a garden memory journal made of recycled materials. The creative design uses a nice combination of drawings and photos, while the author's edgy attitude and language are reminiscent of clever, suburban garden writer Cassandra Danz. Though other organic gardening books are prevalent, this introduction is recommended to public libraries catering particularly to twentysomethings and small-space gardeners. -Bonnie Poquette, Milwaukee

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