4 comments about Jerry Baker's Terrific Tomatoes, Sensational Spuds, and Mouth-Watering Melons: 1,274 Super Secrets for Growing Prize-Winning Vegetables (Jerry Baker's Good Gardening series).

1. Very informative and entertaining. I liked the "down home" stories and practical advise. Growing my own fruits and vegetables is very important in my attempt to establish a more self sufficient lifestyle. This book is a very enjoyable read from start to finish. Finding answers is also quick and easy. I'm looking forward to trying some of the tonics and also buying more of Mr. Bakers books.



2. Great book with a lot of sound advice. The tonics work really well on the new seedlings we planted.



3. This is a great book with tons of tips to help you grow the best possible garden!!



4. Jerry would like you to use "natural" things like ammonia to fertilize your garden. Is he KIDDING??? I can't even begin to imagine why he would think this is okay -- does "water table" not mean anything? Sure, you'll get giant tomatoes, but at what price to your local environment? I'll stick to all-natural fish-based fertilizers, thank you very much. Recommend staying away from this guy's ideas.

5 comments about The New Victory Garden.

1. In my opinion, this book needs to be actively published again! I used this book as a guide to grow my first vegetable garden in Richmond, VT. It thoroughly explained EACH step in the process with text and illustrations/photos. My neighbor, whom I hadn't met yet, left a letter in my mailbox around August of that year. It contained a photo of my garden and a note saying that mine was the most beautiful vegetable garden she'd ever seen and thought I would appreciate the picture of it! I have checked this book out of the library each spring since and this year it was listed as "lost!" That's why I'm here on-line: buying an "acceptable" condition copy used rather than do without! BUY THIS BOOK IF YOU CAN!



2. In my periodic attempts to grow vegetables, this book -- and its predecessor, "Crockett's Victory Garden," have been my constant and favorite companions. It's past time for this 1987 book to be updated and republished.
   
   This is Cadillac gardening as Crockett and his successor Bob Thomson apparently had a large budget, a full toolshed, and endless time to produce a perfect garden. My pitiful efforts never yield much in the way of edible products, but I enjoy reading about how I would grow vegetables if I were not such a lazy and shiftless person.
   
   The book is broken down by months with a long list of vegetables for planting, tending, and harvesting for each month as well as other garden tasks. The monthly labors are for Boston. Being further south, I tend to do things a month earlier in the spring and a month later in the fall than Thomson prescribes. "The New Victory Garden" is full of solid gardening advice for an establishmentarian gardener. If you're into organics or (like me) inclined to low-impact, no inputs type cultivation, you might not like Thomson's reliance on chemical fertilizers -- but he makes up for it with good advice on compost, natural fertilizers, and lots of touchy feely stuff. The pictures are beautiful. Someday, in some future world I'll have a garden like this. Yeah, sure. Dream on! But I like reading the book and I occasionally try to follow the advice.
   
   Smallchief



3. This was one of my first gardening books and is still my favorite one. Perfect for the beginning gardener. Why aren't more gardening books organized like this one?



4. Even though I'm an organic gardener, I've fallen in love with this book. In fact, now that I've bought my own copy, I've actually paid less than I've paid to the library in overdue fines for this book. It's just a visually stunning masterpiece in the sense that it inspires me to get out into my own garden and to imagine what it could potentially look like. Of course, the author seems to have unlimited time to garden and an almost unlimited budget. I'll never achieve his masterpiece, but it's nice to dream. I especially love to curl up with this book in January when the seed catalogs are just coming out.
   
   It lost a star for me because it is decidedly NOT an organic gardening book. The author relies heavily on chemical fertilizers and black plastic mulch. Although he does mention compost and soil improvement, I don't recall him even mentioning earthworms, which are a definite indicator of soil health. He does, however, try to use less harsh methods of pest and weed control.
   
   Chapters are arranged by month, detailing the author's gardening chores and schedule during that month, from starting seeds to transplanting out, to weeding, watering, fertilizing, caring for tools, and constructing gardening architecture. Since he gardens in the north, I can't go by his schedule, nor can I grow the same veggies or varieties thereof that he does. If you're looking for a how-to book, this probably isn't it, unless you happen to live just where he does and are willing to use chemicals. But if you're looking for inspiration, this book is well worth it.



5. Excellent book for the beginning gardener. It goes into a detailed and extensive garden plan from breaking ground to harvesting crops. Because it is so in-depth, the reader can pick and choose what he needs.

5 comments about Citrus.

1. This book has informatiom for the professional as well as the village farmer in Africa , its teachings are simple and clear for all those interested in the subject to follow , the illustrations and instructions are simple even for those with a basic knowledge of subtropical fruit growing. Africa is not covered in the distribution map never the less the fruits are for example the mango tree is synonymous with Africa , it gives food, and shelter from the elements and fuel what more can you want from a tree. Every African school would benefit from a book like this , and i know one that will.



2. The book is attractive and does contain a lot of information about different citrus varieties. My main criticism is that the Planting and Care section could have been much more substantial. Specifically, since the descriptions of various citrus ailments (poor nutrition, inappropriate watering, infection with pests) are not accompanied by photos of the symptoms, it makes it harder for the reader to figure out what these problems might actually look like. The black-and-white pen-and-ink drawings of pests are somewhat informative, but they're very limited compared to what might be conveyed by a photo.

   Also, a few diagrams to help illustrate "good pruning" would have been great.

   I'm not suggesting that this book should have been a definitive technical treatise on citrus, but I think it would have been more useful if more attention had been paid to what goes wrong when you're trying to grow citrus.




3. The nursery where I bought my citrus tress recommended this book. I think it provides a very comprehensive coverage of growing citrus in AZ. This is a must for your reference library.



4. a very useful and short guide for citrus amateurs growers. Very imortant and good information about citrus USDA zones and many citrus varietes carefully described. I think there is a essentail book for amateur citrus growers in temperate zones (atlantic europe coast)



5. It is a good book just not as in depth as I would have preferred.

3 comments about Designing And Maintaining Your Edible Landscape Naturally.

1. One of my most-used books; I'm buying this copy for a wedding. Two negatives -- The cost is high, and even as I wish for more color photographs, I ponder how much the price would rise with them. Also, as a new gardener, I struggled with five-syllable foreign terms and phrases. But he compensates well. After "an inoculant called rhizobium that colonizes the roots of leguminous plants", he says, "Pull up some bean plants. If you can see small pinkish white nodules on the roots" then it's okay. (p. 125)
   
   The range of material is wide yet thorough. Can I grow peaches where I live? He compares 10 varieties, with limitations and virtues. He suggests alternate reading for each subject, and offers a capsule review (e.g., "A good one to browse in the library; only serious tree crops enthusiasts need own it." p. 219). The appendix seems all-encompassing to me, with an expansive index, recommended magazines and supportive organizations, mail order suppliers, & real recipes like "Chayote Parmigiana", with text on everything you'd EVER want to know about growing chayote for the dish, including Effort. (p. 300, 301)
   
   Rosalind Creasy broke ground (ha!) promoting edibles in the landscape, and Kourik credits her. Her book has not been updated, however; this book remains timely.



2. I'm sure this book is interesting to some, but it left me disappointed. The style was too dry and technical to inspire me.



3. I just got the book a week back and I am still reading it. I had to write this review because of the number of stars this book got. It is unfair since only 2 persons have reviewed it. Yes, this book is a little technical, but nothing that a lay person cannot understand. Actually, that is the reason I got this book for. I wanted facts and not stories. I have been reading about permaculture for a while now. I had so many unanswered questions. The minute I read preview pages on Google books, I bought it without the usual second thoughts I get. I am still learning a lot. I liked the section on companion planting and decided not to buy a book on it. Instead I just ordered his book on drip irrigation. I didn't get any color photos in my book. I found I had to download it from his web site. But I don't care much for somebody's landscape photos because I will design my own :) This book has a section on roots too. I also bought his other book on roots as I found it hard to design without knowing what happens underneath. If you are in doubt about buying this book, read the preview to see if this is for you.

5 comments about Vegetables, Herbs and Fruit: An Illustrated Encyclopedia.

1. This book is wonderful! Every section gives you a in-depth overview of the vegetable, herb or fruit; detailing different varieties and how they rank in terms of taste and/or hardiness, how to propagate, grow, maintain, harvest and store. Plus gives tips of typical pests/diseases and how to avoid them. Very helpful are the "companion planting" paragraphs, explaining which plants do best next to each other. And to top it all off, each section includes a "culinary" and "medicinal" section, informing you of the best ways to use your crops once harvested. The pictures are beautiful and the wording is easy to understand and to the point. This is a great book for any gardener's reference shelf. Fun to read cover-to-cover, but set up so that you can dip in and out as you choose.



2. This book has the most readable practicle information on every vegetable, herb or fruit I would ever grow plus many others. It covers some history of origin, varieties, cultivation, propagation, container and garden growing, harvesting & storage as well as uses both medicinal and culinary and also some recipies. I have not come across a more extensive book. My son & daughter both in their early 20's and just starting vege gardening use this as their bible. Well worth owning.



3. I didn't really know what shape I expected, even though the description said good condition. 3 days later! Yes, literally 3 days later I got it in the mail and the condition was PERFECT! I was so happy!



4. PRO
   
   - Extensive coverage of fruit, vegetable and herbs.
   The book says it covers 100 fruits, 70 vegetables and 100 herbs.
   Each subject has Cultivation, Companion planting, and Culinary sections. If it's a herb, it also has Medicinal section.
   
   One day I bought a bag of Macadamias nuts from my local grocery store. The label said they were grown in Australia, Hawaii and Africa. I wanted to know more about them. I opened this book to page 555 and voila! I found all the interesting information about them. There were 3 beautiful photos of the nuts, the tree and the dish made from the nuts. It's informative and mouth watering.
   
   - Very well illustrated.
   Each fruit, tree, or vegetable has at least 3 pictures. They're beautiful. The Culianry section always has a picture of the dish made with the fruit, herb or vegetable. It's so colorful and lively that it makes me hungry!
   
   - It's hard covered. So, it will last a long time.
   
   CONS
   
   - It uses the term "Long", "Short", "Medium" to describe the life span of the trees without giving a range in years. This is frustrating because I am not sure approximate how long they live. But I can easily find this information from somewhere else. No book is perfect.
   
   In short, it's definitely worth buying. I use it almost daily for cooking recipes and for general information. Together with Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/, it makes a complete reference. You can find any information on these subject with these 2 resources.



5. I gave this to my brother who is a chef as a gift and he absolutely loves it. It has a ton of interesting facts including recipes for the foods.

No comments about Guide to North Carolina Vegetable Gardening.

2 comments about Grafting Fruit Trees: Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin A-35.

1. This book is a 32-page flimsy pamphlet of the kind that your local Agricultural Extension Service often gives away for free.
   There is a paucity of information, no pictures, poor hand-drawn graphics, no mention of anything of value to southern farmers. NO mention of air-layering, and NO compatibility tables for different types of fruit. Egad.



2. We recently bought a small farm and orchard and were simply overwhelmed about what to do with the fruit trees. Fortunately for us, the local feed store was selling this great little book. It covers the essentials for successful grafting and budding, includes the info needed so that the proper tools are acquired and/or used, when to do the different types of grafting and budding, as well as the definitions of the various types of grafting.

5 comments about Citrus: A History.

1. Living where we do in California we do indeed have a cornucopia of citrus to enjoy. And this book is so wonderful and informative. And we love learning the rich long history of citrus like Minneolas which are a crossing between a tangerine and a grapefruit.
   
   Or the Satsuma which originated in Japan and has a skin bit firmer. Uglis whose name makes me laugh and in some odd way does describe the look of the fruit. And red grapefruits, sweeter then white grapefruits which I eat often as a snack. And how many citrus lovers know that a Pummelo, is the father of the grapefruit? Or the difference between a key lime and a regular lime sold in most grocery stores?
   
   My favorite citrus are clementine, grapefruit, kumquat which are small and delicious, lemon whose juice I use in all kinds of dishes as well as a slice in a glass of water. Green limes which I love in exotic dishes and the green skin I candy. Cannot think of a variety of orange I don't love.
   
   And starting at a young age our kids have loved tangelo's and tangerines. No wonder I love this book.



2. Reportedly, the author, a retired chemistry professor, has written more than 200 scientific articles. Such publications are characterized by sharp focus, tight organization and succinctness. Regrettably, all of those qualities are lacking from this book. What purports to be a history is, instead, a kaleidiscopic array of commentaries centering about citrus fruits. At time the relevant subject all but disappears in digressions. Having introduced the orangerie, Laszlo proceeds to describe Versailles at the time of the Sun King, the modern tourists that flock there, and the classical sculptures in the gardens. Only after two pages does he return to the Orangerie itself.
   Clemantines, he asserts, "are named for Father Clement Rodier who invented (sic!)them. We are then given an account of the monk's life , then learning that "we do not know the part Rodier played in this discovery" [of the clemantine].
   Perhaps Laszlo can be forgiven for dwelling on the chemical properties of the citrus although I doubt that the reader needs to know that there are both left-limone and right-limone.
   For those interested in an overview of these fruits, The Great Citrus Book is a much better choice. It offers a concise history, photos and brief descriptions of a wide variety of citrus, and some interesting recipes that are much more imaginative than those in the Laszlo book.



3. I must admit I only made it to page 42 of this book. Citrus is written in the type of light but informative style that I like in "science for the educated layman" genre ("Cod" by Kurlansky being a great example thereof). The author's enthusiasm is infectious, even if he does wander to and fro among his topics bit more than I'd like.
   
   My real complaint: errors. Olives were not brought to Spain by the Arabs nor Cocoa to the New World by the Spaniards/Portuguese. These are not obscure facts. If he's made these glaring mistakes, how can I trust those lesser known (but potentially fascinating facts) he puts forth about citrus? I can't. So I stopped reading. Alas.
   
   Steven Mlodinow



4. Professor Laszlo certainly infuses his work with a great deal of enthusiasm. It is an engaging read. There are some places where you might chuckle and others where you might cringe and still others where he does wander off topic a bit (this is why I knocked off a star).
   
   Though not the focus of the book, he does refer to struggles of indigenous people, people of color, displaced groups etc. with respect to citriculture in passing. In doing so he tries to be as objective as possible.
   
   In short, this is an exciting and engaging book for the scientifically inclined. Even if your just curious about these delicious fruits, you'll take away a wealth of knowledge and fun facts.



5. As soon as I had read a few chapters of Citrus, by Pierre Laszlo, I regretted wasting my money on this superficial excuse for history. It gives the impression of having been hastily cut and pasted from the results of a Google search on "citrus".
   
   There is no real connecting narrative. The book is just a disjointed compilation of snippets of information, linked by an irritating, chatty style of writing, and interspersed with self-serving anecdotes from Laszlo's life. It is as much about providing a forum for Laszlo to strut and preen as it is about citrus.
   
   In one place he says "good writing, in like manner to inhaling a fragrance from citrus, extracts from simple words a whiff of an aroma with which to flavour sentences". This is simply under-graduate silliness.
   
   In another place, Laszlo says that Ivrea is "best known as the location of Olivetti's headquarters", then goes on to describe the famous Ivrea "battle of the oranges" for which it is probably far better known.
   
   Laszlo claims that "there is no basic difference in technical sophistication between the manufacture of gasoline . . . and the production of orange juice". This is just a glib one liner that happens to be wrong. I have worked as a chemical engineer in oil refineries and know a little about what is involved.
   
   Much material is marginally relevant to the history of citrus fruits and seems to have been included to bulk out a thin story.
   
   Information is repeated over and over. I got sick of reading variants of the phrase "Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid." No wonder the bored reader suspects that the book is a cut-and-paste job.
   
   Numerous recipes are also included, but they have no historical relevance, nor do they advance any argument in the book, which could easliy be catalogued under Cookery. They are simply there to reinforce some personal anecdote about Laszlo's life and to serve as padding to bulk out the book.
   
   Platitudes and opinions are freely given: "American English and British English differ slightly in vocabulary and spelling". The dominating statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio is "downright ugly".
   
   There are no footnotes, nor any bibliography, which is unusual in a work claiming to be a history of citrus. There is a 36-page grab-bag of fairly random notes at the end of the book, with a reference to Laszlo's website.
   
   Laszlo's earlier book, "Salt: Grain of Life", was quite readable, so I was disappointed to find "Citrus" to be so poorly written and edited.
   
   The book is trivial and seems to have been cobbled together quickly and at minimal cost. I felt cheated and misled by much of the publicity blurb written about it.
   
   Don't waste your money. Do as Laszlo seems to have done and Google "citrus" instead.
   
   Perhaps I have been a bit unfair on this particular book. Many others in the same genre (the history of familiar things) also suffer from padding and sloppy editing.
   
   The genre has become very popular since Dava Sobel's excellent "Longitude". Authors and publishers now rush books into print on subjects that don't really justify a book, so padding becomes a necessity if readers are not to feel cheated.
   
   I guess that is what really irks me - being taken for a mug who can be exploited by being promised caviar but actually fed pap in the hope that it will not be noticed.

1 comments about 75 Remarkable Fruits For Your Garden.

1. This is a must book for the serious as well as the non-serious gardener. You will find out some fascinating facts about fruits that you know plus ones you never knew existed. The author presents each fruit's history, health benefits,recipes,recommended plants, all interjected with the author's wit.
   The illustrations by Ellen Buchert are beautiful. Each one is a feast to the eye.

5 comments about Florida's Best Fruiting Plants.

1. I have been using an older, standard book on tropical and sub-tropical fruit for reference when writing my weekly garden article. This book has only black-white photographs, and only covers a small number of tropical fruits. I was so pleased to find a new, up-to-date book, with color photography, and descriptions of many more varieties of fruit. Charles Boning's new book will be a classic, tropical and sub-tropical fruit reference book for many years to come. I liked it so much that I purchased an extra copy for my Master Gardener Reference Library!



2. He puesto la máxima calificación a este libro por su relación calidad-precio, aparte de ser muy barato es bastante interesante puesto que tiene mas de 80 tipos de frutas tanto para climas templados, subtropicales o tropicales. Puede que no venga mucha información sobre cada tipo de fruta pero lo suficiente sobre su adaptabilidad al clima y suelo, características de la planta y del fruto en cuestión y requerimientos para su cultivo. Además hace mención a variedades y a muchas otras frutas. El libro esta pensado para los habitantes de Florida pero se puede extrapolar a otras zonas puesto que esta región tiene una gran diversidad climática. Quizás lo mejor del libro sea todas esas especies exóticas de las que realmente son muy poco conocidas y de las que hace mención. Otro dato importante es que el autor ha escrito el libro por sus experiencias y no por menciones a otros libros. También tiene como ventaja que es fácilmente leído por personas que no tienen mucho conocimiento del ingles y esta bellamente fotografiado e ilustrado.
   En definitiva, un libro interesante por muchos motivos que os lo recomiendo.



3. This is a visually stunning and imminently usable reference book. The author presents some eighty varieties of fruit that grow well in Florida. Most varieties are presented in two-page spreads which include all the basic information one would need (other than an actual taste test) to decide what fruit to include in plans for dooryard gardens, including but not limited to: a full-color illustration of the fruit and how it grows on the plant (most grow on trees); a calendar bar depicting when the fruit is ready to harvest, a map showing where in Florida the fruit will grow (dark green for where it should grow well, light green for where it may grow although conditions are not optimal, and yellow in borderline areas); a silhouette depicting the tree or plant with a scale to indicate the mature size; known hazards (e.g. spines, thorns, pollen, toxic seeds, and so on); soil types and conditions, and much more. There are also many photographs and illustrations showing the fruit cut open.
   
   Of the varieties of fruit presented, I found a total of forty possibilities for growing on my property (central west coast of Florida, on the Nature Coast): thirteen in the dark green area, thirteen in the light green area, and fourteen in the yellow area.
   
   Those totally committed to growing only Florida native plants may be bothered to find fruit like loquat (Japanese plum) presented in this book as it is sometimes considered invasive or a threat to become invasive. Any time a non-native species is planted, there is a risk of its seeds being carried into the wild, including by birds and wildlife. There are advantages to growing plants, including fruit, native to an area; in Florida, the list of native fruit that grows well might be a short list.
   
   In many cases, the author presents representative varieties of the fruit, when in fact there may be hundreds of varieties. The book includes a disappointingly short list of nurseries and could be improved by including more information about where to purchase fruit trees and plants.
   
   Nevertheless, I find no trouble in highly recommending this book. I was considering buying a copy and found it at my local library and decided to check it out and review it first. Now that I have done so, I believe this book would be a bargain at full price.



4. This book reads like a guide put out by the Agricultural Extension Service. It has enough information on culture and new varieties for you to make an intelligent choice for planting in your yard. Covers the common to the exotic. I would definitely read it before I went to a nursery to buy a tree so you can sort the facts from the sales pitches.



5. This book is a must for Florida residents who wish to raise or already are growing plants that bear fruit. I know of nothing better. A great resource.