No Waste Organic Gardening: Eco-friendly Solutions to Improve Any Garden

Great Book For Beginners

No-Waste Organic Gardening: Eco friendly Solutions to Improve Any Garden by Shawna Coronade

I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book as a full time Eco farmer. Silly silly me. I guess the word "garden" should have clued me in. If you are an experienced Eco gardener you'll probably want to give this a pass (or see if your library has it first before buying). I learned nothing from this book that I didn't already know, have tried, or am already doing. For those of you new to gardening, you will likely find this a wealth of information, as it is full of excellent low cost advice.

Pick a spot in your back yard, front yard, or both (if zoning allows), decide what type of soil you'd like to work with (till or no till - hint: you want no till), or use pots & planters if you have no space to work with. You will learn about different types of compost; how to create & use said compost. There are also tips on dealing with bugs. The author is a big fan of Castile soap which she seems to believe is an oil free soap (page 31). Castile soap is typically made with either olive, coconut, palm or some other vegetable oil; it is not oil free.  

She covers a lot of topics besides the ones I just mentioned & they are all worth trying out to see what works for you. Growing food & flowers is a learning experience (as is raising critters). You will never know everything. Mother Nature has a way of showing us growers just how little we know each & every year. I tell people that the more I learn, the more I realize that I know nothing. Not really, of course, I've learned a lot, but it really does feel that way.

Orchard produce, like berry bushes, grapes, & fruit trees are not covered.

Note: Eco gardening is a lot of work. I repeat, Eco gardening is a lot of work. Most of it is hand weeding. Don't say I didn't warn you. In the end, I hope you decide to stick with it. All that hard work has it's rewards, esp. in the middle of winter when you have all that glorious bounty put up. By January you'll be pursuing the seed catalogues, hard work forgotten in anticipation for the next growing season, which is full of endless possibilities.

Conclusion, this is a fantastic book for aspiring gardeners, wanting to organically produce their own veggies & flowers with a smaller footprint on our Mother Earth.