Step-By-Step Garden Basics - Softcover

Ball, Liz

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0696210304 ISBN 13: 9780696210303

Publisher: Better Homes & Gardens Books, 2000

Synopsis

A visual guide to the care and maintainence of climate-appropriate plants, flowers, and vegetables, from planting bulbs in spring to winterizing the garden.

About this title

Reviews

This smooth combination of ideas, garden creations and hardcore how-tos will inspire beginning gardeners. In the opening chapter, "Welcome to My Garden," readers will discover a personal entry point in the enticing portrayals of garden types: cutting, ornamental, formal, kitchen, island bed, border, edible flower, country garden and entryway gardens. By spotlighting only two attributes--color and height--this introduction puts accessible tools in the novice's hand. The text, by veteran garden writer Liz Ball, squeezes a vast range of practices into skillfully selected topics arranged by seasons. For example, spring themes include seed starting and crop rotation, planting strawberries and dividing perennials, constructing cold frames and fabric tunnels to extend the season and diagnosing plant diseases and pest damage. The final chapter, "Gardening Basics," rounds out the rudiments and simplifies such inscrutable matters as pH levels, fertilizer components (N-P-K), plant diseases and pests. Catalogue sources for seeds, bulbs and plants add a winter's worth of garden sport. (Jan.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This book, organized by seasons and containing 50 projects and 100 timesaving and weather-related tips, begins with a brief description of nine gardens, including cutting, ornamental, formal, kitchen, and country gardens, each with a color photograph. The chapter on spring gardening gives instructions on starting seeds indoors and out, on transplanting seedlings, dividing perennials and bulbs, and planting trees, shrubs, roses, flowers, vegetables, and strawberries. The summer chapter offers directions on container gardening, controlling pests and weeds, harvesting vegetables, and encouraging blooms by pruning and deadheading. Fall in the garden deals with drying flowers, planting fall perennials and bulbs, storing the harvest, forcing bulbs indoors, and winterizing roses. The chapter dealing with winter gardening explains how to grow amaryllis and paper-whites and to prune fruit trees, evergreens, and roses. A final chapter, on gardening basics, gives advice on garden tools, soil requirements, organic matter, fertilizers, composting, and garden ornaments. This useful book for novice gardeners contains 400 illustrations. George Cohen

Beginning with descriptions of different types of gardens, this addition to the "Step-by-Step" series provides an excellent overview of gardening. The 400 color photographs offer hours of inspiration and pleasure. Organized by seasons, lists of garden chores are given for both Northern and Southern gardens, including mulching and deadheading. A list of plant sources, a USDA hardiness zone map, and spring and fall frost date maps enhance the value of the volume. Plant information, such as mature height and spread, is scant, and common (not botanical) plant names are used. Still, coupled with a detailed plant guide, this book would be useful for any gardener. Recommended for all libraries with gardening collections.
-Nancy Lee Myers, Univ. of South Dakota Lib., Vermillion
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Better Homes & Gardens Books
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0696210304
• ISBN 13: 9780696210303
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 167
• Editor: Better Homes And Gardens Books