Garden Wisdom

Step into the garden with writer and rural historian Jerry Apps. In this treasure trove of tips, recollections, and recipes, Jerry combines his hard-earned advice for garden success with a discussion of how tending a garden leads to a deeper understanding of nature and the land. From planning and planting to fending off critters and weeds, he walks us through the gardening year, imbuing his story with humor and passion and once again reminding us that working even a small piece of land provides many rewards.

Gardening has always been a group endeavor for the Apps family. In Garden Wisdom, readers will learn gardening basics along with Jerry’s grandchildren as they become a new generation of gardeners. They’ll devour Ruth’s recipes for preparing and preserving fresh garden veggies—from refrigerator pickles to rutabaga pudding. And they’ll savor son Steve’s beautiful color photographs, capturing the bounty of the family garden throughout the growing season.

Jerry Apps has been a rural historian and environmental writer for more than forty years. He has published books on many rural topics, including Every Farm Tells a Story, Living a Country Year, Horse-Drawn Days,Barns of Wisconsin, and Old Farm. He is a former county extension agent and professor at the University of Wisconsin College of Agricultural and Life Sciences and a lifelong vegetable gardener.

As chief photographer for the Wisconsin State Journal, Steve Apps has covered a wide range of assignments, including the Green Bay Packers and University of Wisconsin–Madison sports. In 2008 he received the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Dave Boss Award of Excellence; his photo “First Down” was selected Photograph of the Year for 2007. In his time off Steve loves to travel the state documenting Wisconsin and all its beauty.

Ruth Apps has a degree in home economics education from the University of Wisconsin–Stout. She has worked for the University of Wisconsin as a county home economics agent and for Madison Area Technical College. Ruth has canned, frozen, and otherwise prepared garden produce since she and Jerry were married. She makes pumpkin pie from real pumpkins.