Growing
When I took my allotment nine years ago, I always intended it to include fruit, vegetables and flowers. As you will note from my photographs, flowers nearly always manage to squeeze their way in, even if they are not the main subject at the time. I also intend to include green issues in this section of my blog; the problem for me is never what to include but what to leave out!
The Complete Food Garden John Seymour
I bought this book in my first year at university, twenty five years ago, and I paid £2.50 for it in a secondhand bookshop in Caernarfon. It has had the most enormous influence on my approach to gardening leading me, as it has, along an organic (garden) path. His advice still holds up well now, though I doubt whether some of the sprays he suggests can still be obtained legally! Amazon stocks what I think may be an updated version, called The New Self-Sufficient Gardener although I haven't looked at it myself. Strongly recommended.
A selection of Sarah Raven books:-
The Bold and Brilliant Garden, Grow your own cut flowers, The Great Vegetable Plot
I own a copy of each of these as not only does she give sound and straightforward advice but Jonathan Buckley's photographs really bring her subject to life. Be warned, though, you could do serious damage to your bank balance if left unsupervised in a plant nursery/garden centre/plant or seed site on the Internet immediately after reading them! Both the up and the downside is that they are very inspiring.
Compost: The Natural Way to Make Food for Your Garden Kenneth Thompson
This book explains the science of composting in a simple and straightforward way, compares the effectiveness of different bins and the alternative methods for constructing your heap. Even the cover looks like corrugated cardboard!
A Slice of Organic Life Sheherazade Goldsmith (Editor-in-Chief)
What I like about this book is that it suggests that you don't even have to have a garden to make efforts to live more organically. The book is divided into three with lots of ideas to try whether you have a windowbox, a small garden or several acres to play with. The ideas are comprehensive and it is well illustrated throughout. The list price is £16.99 but I got it from The Book People for £5.99 plus p&p.
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