I've had this gardening book for years, maybe since around 2005 or so, and absolutely love how this is laid out. It is such an easy reference book to find what you need to know about how to plant and care for each vegetable you choose for your garden. It is definitely a keeper. I've used this book every winter to plan out my spring gardens over the years. My copy is very used, wrinkled and dirty, probably cause I take it out to the garden with me. ( )

Updated: I bought this book years ago. I use it often as a reference. This fall I read it end to end again and made comprehensive changes to my gardening calendar. It's really great.

Old review:
This book is becoming my total GO-TO reference book. I got it out from the library but I am definitely going to buy it for myself. ( )

I found this gem at the local used bookstore the other day. Last night I started reading (skimming is more accurate) and made it all the way to the end. To me - a novice gardener at best - it was a treasure trove of great advice, a reference I plan to use regularly.

Chapter 1:
- His argument for wide, deep raised beds, reviewing size, angles, and the centrality of sunshine.
- He includes a section on what tools you'll use and how to pick good ones. (Extra good!)
- How to cut a perfect right angle.
- Extended section on how to prepare and build raised beds.

Chapter 2:
- How to plan the garden
- Picking your seeds, and what to plant
- Section on plant families and what plants are "friends" or "adversaries"
- Crop rotations and sample beds

Chapter 3:
- Starting seedlings indoors, how to
- Cold frames and greenhouses
- Sowing seedlings outdoors

Chapter 4:
- Strategies for keeping out the weeds; tools and how to maintain them.
- Mulching and ways to step up the weed-killing approaches
- How to fertilize
- The importance of watering and how to gauge the right amount for both seedlings and mature plants
- Tools for watering and irrigation strategies

Chapter 5:
- When to harvest
- How to store your harvest

Chapter 6:
- Understanding the minerals in the soil and how to know which nutrients your plants need
- Testing your soil, pH ideals, and changing the acidity of the soil.
- Worms and rototilling

Chapter 7:
- What is compost and how to make your own
- Browns and greens in your compost pile and getting started
- How to diagnose compost troubles and their solutions

Chapter 8:
- Natural pests - bugs, slugs, and animals - how to deter them
- Common diseases and some solutions

Part 3 includes a plant directory with specific details on tons of veggies and herbs.

All-in-all, a great resource for gardening. My only wish was a little more for warmer climates. Smith gardens in Vermont where snow and cold are the big weather worry. Here in central California, it's obviously different. But most of his suggestions were still helpful/applicable. ( )

This seems like a good, solid guide to vegetable gardening, but, like most books of its kind, it has some limitations. I haven't tried to apply it, but I got the impression that implementing this system would be fairly expensive. ( )

A great introduction to organic gardening techniques, especially no-dig deep raised beds. He shows how to prepare ground, lay out beds and grow individual types of fruit and vegetables. If it can work for him with deep snow in mid-winter in the States, its probably going to work OK in gardens and allotments in the UK. Well it does for me anyway! ( )