Easy Growing -by Gayla Trail (Gardening book review)

Gayla Trail's newest book "Easy Growing: Organic Herbs and Edible Flowers from Small Spaces" is a pleasurable read, especially in the throes of Winter. I'll admit to being drawn to any good gardening book, but this one has a couple points in its favor to push it to the top of your "wish list." 

First off, if you love edible flowers like I do, or just want to plant flowers that aren't poisonous to your children or pets, this book has great recommendations. It includes information on what to plant, how the different flowers (& herbs) taste and some recipes for how to use them. Besides all of this- I love that it's written from an American perspective since most books on edible flowers these days seem to come from Britain. Nothing against the Brits, but I want to know what grows well here (and I don't want to have to convert things from Metric.)

The second point in the books' favor relates to her rating system for projects. Approximately the first half of the book covers gardening basics. Chapters 4-7 include a variety of projects which are rated for difficulty. This is a boon to both beginner gardeners and experienced gardeners alike. Start with something simple.

Pictures throughout the book show what the plants should look like at maturity, and I am impressed that each recipe has an accompanying picture as well. Over all, the book is a good investment of your $20. This is not just another gardening book to fill your shelf, it's a beautiful handbook to use again and again.

You can learn more about Gayla Trail, and gardening, at her website: www.easy-growing.com


p.s. this one I borrowed from our library!