The other day, Mama Pea posted about her garden and mentioned pretending to be Ruth Stout, planting her potatoes I think. And that made me think of how I hadn’t read ( or re-read) my copy of Ruth’s book, How to Have a Green Thumb Without an Aching Back in quite a while.
I used to read this book every year when I’d get the gardening itch, but it was still too early to do anything.
This soft cover book might be my favourite gardening book even though it was first published in 1955. If I’ve read it once, I’ve read it maybe 12 times. Ruth gardened in Connecticut, creating ridiculously huge vegetable beds considering she didn’t really know what she was doing. But I love reading about her disasters and her successes. Ruth, in the end, waxes poetic about zero till and to just mulch deeply and continuously. It sounds tempting but I just can’t go that route. I love my rototiller too much. Also, who can access that much rotten hay???
I have lots of gardening books.
That’s just a little portion of the bottom shelf of the bookshelf that husband built.
The Burpee book of perennials was one of my first. I poured over the pages and checked off the plants I obtained over the years. Some still grow here, others are long gone. I never could successfully grow astilbe!
Fellow Canadians may recognize this oldie but goody! I read this over and over again, too
Another Canadian go-to, this wonderful book shows the gorgeous perennial gardens up on the Bruce Penninsula called Larkwhistle that I actually visited. It is set up so you see month by month what is blooming and how the two gardeners combined plants. I don’t think Larkwhistle exists anymore but it was very inspiring.
Do you have any favourite gardening books? Thanks Mama Pea for reminding me of Ruth Stout. I’ll be reading her book in bed tonight!
I hadn't heard of Ruth Stout but googled her and see there is a copy of your book on Mighty Ape for $94.00. Not sure if that is U.S.$ or N.Z.$ but it does seem rather a lot. I may browse some local second hand book shops for it.
ReplyDeleteOh my! My little book still has the $3.99 price sticker in the front!
DeleteYou are like my kiwi sister in law. She loves her gardening books and her garden. I'm sure you could write a book yourself, Canadian gardening through the year. You have plenty of blog posts to refer to. Like A Year in Provence with anecdotes about chickens and cats. And recipes of course!
ReplyDeleteYour garden is always full of colour and vaiety
Thank you. I think three of those four seasons would be rather boring, haha!
DeleteI don't like putting my fingernails in dirt, so I do all my garden decision-making by reading books and magazines, visiting public gardens and checking out gardening blogs. Thanks for the help :)
ReplyDeleteI'm either in a set of gardening gloves, or I have dirt under my fingernails. (I do own two very good nail brushes, though!)
DeleteNow you've made me think I need to read Ruth Stout's book again! It was the first gardening book I read, too. I'm with you, Jenn, in that part of the gardening experience I truly enjoy is looking at my efforts especially when it's all lush and green and bee-yew-tiful. Although I do use grass clippings and straw for mulch (at the end of the season I actually rake up and "save" the mulch to use again next year so it's kind of "rotted" as Ruth Stout advocates), I need the tidy appearance along with producing nutritious food for us. Another gardening author I read every year and consult often is Dick Raymond. He has a simplistic, no-nonsense approach I enjoy. You have much more of a landscaping talent than I and your use of plants/flowers/bushes looks so natural and old-fashioned "homey!"
ReplyDeleteI've always been fearful of using grass clippings because I know how many dandelions are in our lawn. Is it a problem for you?
DeleteI tried to get that book from our library, but they do not have it. Do you have the ISBN number so I can search other locations? Thanks.
ReplyDeleteSure: 0-671-64061-5
DeleteThank you!
DeleteYou gave me an idea.
ReplyDeleteMaybe because my parents were farmers who planted and sold plants of all kinds, I knew about gardening and didn't think to buy a gardening book!
I have all kinds of books in my library but not one on gardening.
I will definitely buy at least one next time!!
I guess I'm just a book person. My mother always had a garden, but nothing on the scale that is sounds like your family had.
DeleteI remember watching Mark Cullen's gardening show on CBC!
ReplyDeleteYes, me too!
DeleteI certainly remember watching Mark Cullen on television. My mom had several gardening books, many written by Lois Hole of Alberta. I know I read a few of them after mom passed, but I didn't keep them. In 2019 when I was clearing out my house I got rid of all of my books, including the gardening ones. I should have kept a few.
ReplyDeleteThere are many books on our bookshelves that could be purged (not mine, of course, ha ha!). I know of Lois Hole, but I don't think I ever had any of her books.
ReplyDeleteOf all the books I have, I don't think I have one garden book. (The Victory Garden cookbook is the closest thing to it!). I'm better watching garden shows than doing one myself!
ReplyDeleteI can also recommend the magazine, "Fine Gardening." Ken Druse is a favorite author as well. He is known for his natural landscape design and gardening. His premise is: work with what you have and what generally thrives in your area.
ReplyDeleteI loved Ruth Stout and her books. I always read her articles in Organic Gardening magazine back in the early 70s especially when I was just starting to garden. We are mulching more every year and it is paying off with improved soil, but I still till too.
ReplyDeleteI own a couple garden books written by my cousin Philip Swindell, which I treasure. Also have Ruth's No-Work garden book, and a few others, but not many. The collection has dwindled over the years.
Now I have learned more about Ruth Stout! I had no idea that she has more books and articles.
DeleteI remember the garden shows on CBC, PBS and TVO. MY garden bible is Square Foot Garden by Mel Bartholomew
ReplyDeleteI have that last book!!! I also like Lois Hoyle's books on gardening here in Canada.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
I don't remember having too many books, but I did watch every gardening program I found on PBS!
ReplyDeleteI have some of Lois Hole's and Square Foot Gardening. Recently got a good used Rodale book on Perennials, as I am weak in that area. Your beautiful perennial gardens are an art in themselves...
ReplyDeleteI love that you have these lovely gardening books and that you read them over and over! I had some gardening books in the past, but I'm guilty of only looking at them on occasion, then I donate them.
ReplyDeleteThe older I get, the more I appreciate Ruth Stout! I used to have some of her books, but as it is with books, they often find new homes. It would be good to read her again. I'll have to check my library.
ReplyDeleteMostly now, if I have a gardening question or want to look something up, I visit the forums at permies.com.
Sharon Lovejoy has some wonderful gardening books. My all time favorite is "Foxglove and Hedgehog Days". It is an amazing collection of essays. Whenever I'm feeling down I read it and I always feel better.
ReplyDelete