Garden of words:
Guides connect us to local cycles through urban farms, wooing natives and wildlife
Roundup of spring garden books to make fertile reading.
Publishers try their best to follow trends, and based on the fresh crop of gardening titles, edibles still rule. According to a 2013 Winter Gardening Trends Research Report conducted by the Garden Writers Association Foundation the number of U.S. households growing edible plants is expected to increase by 11.3 percent this year. Yet, it wouldn’t be a proper roundup of new titles if we didn’t cover other trends too. Urban farming is still strong, natives are thriving in our yards, and we’re continuing to coax wildlife into our private spaces. Our picks cover the gamut from gardening in straw bales to creating habitats for dragonfly viewing — all perfectly timed for spring gardening.
The Beautiful Edible Garden: Design a Stylish Outdoor Space Using Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs
(Ten Speed; $19.99): Integrating edibles into an existing landscape, or designing a new landscape with edibles that can double as anchors, hedges and border plants will appeal to anyone looking to grow food without making it look like they do. Homeowners will be drawn to the small-scale projects throughout this lovely book. The authors, Leslie Bennett and Stefani Bittner, are co-founders of the San Francisco Bay Area landscape design firm Star Apple Edible + Fine Gardening. Their Northern California point of view is evident in the plant choices and styling. An added treat is the inclusion of San Francisco-based Studio Choo’s floral and edible do-it-yourself projects that are interspersed within the chapters.
Touch a Butterfly: Wildlife Gardening With Kids — Simple Ways to Attract Birds, Butterflies, Toads, and More to Your Garden
(Roost; $19.95) Every toddler-toting parent should pick up a copy of April Pulley Sayre’s newest book, head outdoors and encourage some close encounters with nature. The book is broken into five sections and covers exploring your existing garden for wildlife, creating a new wildlife garden, and setting the stage for butterfly, dragonfly, bird and toad encounters. The connection between plant, animal and a natural resource like water is also covered in this accessible parent guide. Lessons in observation, quiet listening and patience will last long after you head back indoors.
The 20-Minute Gardener: Projects, Plants and Designs for Quick and Easy Gardening
(Oxmoor; $24.95): Keeping your garden space looking good in as little as 20 minutes a day is a lofty premise. If you buy into the idea (and want to actually maintain your garden space every day), then you’ll appreciate this new entry from the editors of Sunset Western Garden Series. Looking past the gimmicky approach, there’s a lot of good stuff here. The book starts with some doable designs, introduces essential tools, and demonstrates how some paint, accessories, and new borders and pathways can enhance an existing space and cut back on maintenance. Pots and planters play a big role in the book as do the large selection of plants that were specifically selected for low-maintenance gardens. Inspiring? Yes. Practical? You decide.
Slow Flowers: Four Seasons of Locally Grown Bouquets From the Garden, Meadow and Farm
(St. Lynn’s; $16.95): Outdoor living expert Debra Prinzing challenges herself to 52 weeks’ worth of locally foraged and sourced flowers and foliage in this follow-up title to her first book, “The 50-Mile Bouquet: Seasonal, Local, and Sustainable Flowers” (St. Lynn’s; 2012). Separated by the seasons, the book’s weekly arrangements are as simple as tulips and twigs or as intricate as an autumnal multi-floral and multi-foliage display. Prinzing reminds readers to look at the foliage and flowers available in their own backyards and from nearby growers, and instructs them on the basic principles of floral design using existing vessels and vases for a year’s worth of bouquets without breaking the bank.
Straw Bale Gardens: The Breakthrough Method for Growing Vegetables Anywhere, Earlier and With No Weeding
(Cool Springs; $19.99): There’s a reason why this book is flying off the shelves and author Joel Karsten has thousands of Facebook “Likes.” Not only is it a great idea, but it’s also put together and written so well that even doubters will consider this resurging form of gardening. How many times have you wished that you had a raised bed, but didn’t want to invest in the time of installing one or spending a fortune on pre-fab ones? The idea behind the straw bale is that it works as a planter without the need for soil or soil amenders. The book does a great job of laying out all the steps for creating the perfect growing environment for edibles and ornamentals and includes several different planting schematics. It’s a smart solution for those with poor soil or space constraints because the bales can be placed on any surface.
The California Native Landscape: The Homeowner’s Design Guide to Restoring Its Beauty and Balance
(Timber; $34.95): Until now, most books on California native plants have merely been plant guides, so this book by landscape designer Greg Rubin and garden writer Lucy Warren is truly special since it covers design and the creation of an overall sustainable native garden that is functional and beautiful. Even though the book has a Southern California outlook (both authors are active members of the San Diego Horticulture Society), most of the book can be applied to our Bay Area gardens. Besides several sample landscape illustrations and plant selections, there’s a section on installation including information on irrigation. While the irrigation topic is debatable for natives, Rubin and Warren support the idea and recommend that a native garden receive about 20 percent of the moisture of a conventional landscape.