Gardening for Everyone

February 7, 2022
Simply Living Well blogger Watkins delivers a dandy primer on “planning, building, planting, tending, and harvesting an organic kitchen garden.” Organizing her advice into those steps, Watkins begins with “planning,” in which she recommends observing one’s space as well as the climate and access to sunlight in order to choose the best plot, and offers suggestions for small spaces, such as growing vertically. “Building” provides plans for raised bed gardens, no-dig raised gardens, and an indoor kitchen garden; “planting” covers methods of sowing; “tending” digs into watering, weeding, pruning, and pest-control (“Try to start with the simplest and least harmful methods and then work your way to more complicated treatments”); and “harvesting” is a guide to preserving and storing produce. A final section, “playing,” is a collection of projects and recipes, such as an upcycled chair planter and savory herbal biscuits. Though the endeavor is encyclopedic in its level of information—down to an alphabetical list of plant profiles—readers will appreciate Watkins’s ability to keep things light and straightforward: “Grow what you like to eat,” she advises, and “keep it simple.” Jam-packed with beautiful colorful photographs and helpful tips, this is just right for aspiring eco-friendly gardeners.

March 1, 2022
There are many factors to consider when starting or updating a garden, and even experienced gardeners appreciate a guide that covers a wide range of possibilities and options as Watkins (Simply Living Well, 2020) offers here. Designed for home growers in North America, this manual draws on the author's personal knowledge and conventional wisdom (sadly, a list of references is not provided) and covers the basics of gardening from a Western-culture perspective. Using pros and cons to compare various options, concise information is provided while leaving decisions about what's best to each individual gardener. Instagram-worthy color photographs illustrate the broad concepts covered in each section. In addition to details related to space planning, selecting plants, building garden beds, planting, attending to one's plants, and harvesting, 24 craft projects and recipes are followed by more than three dozen short profiles of plants the author recommends. Though prone to waxing nostalgic for the past, Watkins clearly conveys her passion for growing things and sharing what she knows with others.

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