
Reserve it at BN.com & pick it up in 60 minutes at your local store.
Enter a zip code
(Paperback - Reissue)
One of the bestselling garden books ever is fresher than ever! Ready to inspire a whole new generation of gardeners.
When he created the "square foot gardening" method, Mel Bartholomew, a retired engineer and efficiency expert, found the solution to the frustrations of most gardeners. His revolutionary system is simple: it's an ingenious planting method based on using square foot blocks of garden space instead of rows. Gardeners build up, not down, so there's no digging and no tilling after the first year. And the method requires less thinning, less weeding, and less watering.
"I found a better way to garden, one that's more efficient, more manageable, and requires less work," Bartholomew explains. Not surprisingly, his method quickly received worldwide recognition and has been written up in every major newspaper and gardening magazine. His book, which served as the companion to the nationally acclaimed television series, has sold over 800,000 copies. Now freshened with new illustrations, the book Ingram calls "the largest selling garden book in America" is reissued for the delight of a whole new generation of gardeners.
Square Foot Gardening presents a new way to garden in less space with less work. The book has been overwhelmingly accepted by gardeners across America. Bartholomew also hosts the popular PBS series of the same name. 37 photos. 63 illustrations and charts.
More Reviews and RecommendationsMEL BARTHOLOMEW, a retired businessman and engineer, found the answer to the frustrations of most gardeners with his square foot gardening method, which has received worldwide acclaim. He also created the non-profit Square Foot Gardening Foundation to promote easy gardening methods for people around the world. He lives in Utah.
Reader Rating:
See Detailed Ratings
March 31, 2009: I have been using this book since the early 90s. It's my basic reference for planning the garden each year. His techniques work and make gardening much simpler and more productive. Yes, if I still had the back yard from the house I grew up in, I'd probably still make rows with string and the edge of a hoe and just drop seeds in, but I don't have that kind of space and time. This allows high productivity from a small plot of ground and the maximum return for time and energy. If you buy it, you will use it every year and it will end up annotated with your adaptations for your particular climate and location.
Reader Rating:
See Detailed Ratings
April 11, 2005: ***********I love this book!************** Every Spring I pull this one out! It tells me what I can start planting when, and gives an excellent plan to organize my garden into square foot spaces grouped together in a 16 square foot block. Two blocks is all I need to provide me with plenty of vegetables and herbs for my family of 6; that is a considerably smaller space than I have used in the past. Not only is the space needed smaller, but the way the garden is organized in one block with the perimeter used for walking around, instead of between the rows, makes it easy to weed and keeps the soil from getting compacted. Mel also emphasizes planning a garden based on what you think you will actually eat and the size each plant gets, not on how many seeds are in the packet. Therefore, if you think you'll eat 16 carrots, then plant 16 seeds which, because carrots are small, will fit in one square foot space. After harvesting those, you can replant another batch, or plant 8 carrots every week for a continual harvest of fresh carrots throughout the season. And did you ever think of growing your cucumbers, tomatoes, green beans, zucchini vertical? Mel, gives space saving techniques for this option as well. INCREDIBLE! is all I can say. Check it out at your local library, but I assure you, you will fall in love with it.