What makes a garden good? For Chris McLaughlin, it's about growing the healthiest, most scrumptious fruits and veggies possible, but it's also about giving back. How can your little patch of Earth become a sanctuary for threatened wildlife, sequester carbon, and nurture native plants? McLaughlin gives you all the tricks and tips you need to grow the sustainable garden of your dreams. Drawing from established traditions, such as permaculture and French intensive gardening, and McLaughlin's hard-earned experience, The Good Garden is a joyful guide for newbies and experienced gardeners alike. It will teach you the fundamentals, including how to choose the right plant varieties for your microclimate, and proven methods to fight pests without chemicals. You will also discover the nuances of developing a green thumb, from picking species to attract specific types of pollinators to composting techniques based on time available. Lovely four-colour photography will show you good gardening in action. Most importantly, The Good Garden will help you foster a sense of meaning in your garden. Maybe the goal is to reduce food miles and plastic waste by growing delicious berries. Maybe it's to meet neighbours who also care about the planet through a seed-swap. Maybe it's a quiet moment patting the bunny whose manure will replace toxic fertilisers in the soil. A good garden offers endless possibilities, and The Good Garden offers a wealth of knowledge and inspiration.
Chris McLaughlin has been gardening and studying plants for over thirty-five years. She's the author of eight previous books: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Composting, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Heirloom Vegetables, Hobby Farms: Small-Space Rabbit Keeping, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Small-Space Gardening, Vertical Vegetable Gardening, A Garden to Dye For, Growing Heirloom Flowers, and Raising Animals for Fiber.
Table of Contents Introduction: What Makes a Good Garden? Chapter 1. Choose and Combine Sustainable Gardening Styles Chapter 2. Know Your Ecosystem Chapter 3. Welcome Pollinators and Wildlife Chapter 4. Control Weeds Naturally Chapter 5. Keep the Bad Bugs at Bay Chapter 6. Nourish Healthy Soil Chapter 7. Cultivate Healthy Food Chapter 8. Enlist Domestic Critters Chapter 9. Build Community Resources: Down the Sustainable Rabbit Hole Acknowledgements About the Author Index
"Chris McLaughlin understands that your garden is more than just a plot of land - it's an ecosystem. In this positive, upbeat guide, she shows you how to nurture a thriving garden that includes native plants that support wildlife and how, in doing so, your own garden will reconnect to the greater ecosystem." --David Mizejewski, Naturalist, National Wildlife Federation "From rain barrels to planting choices, this book guides you to endless gardening possibilities and doing it in an all-natural way. Chris has made gardening simple and easy for all." --Lisa Mason Ziegler, author of Cool Flowers and Vegetables Love Flowers "This is the perfect guide to get you started in understanding how your garden functions as a part of the ecosystem. It can help you create a space for all to enjoy--from the tiniest insects to the domestic animal helpers--and for yourself!" --Jessi Bloom, ecological designer and author of Creating Sanctuary and Practical Permaculture
