annieb123
Written on Nov 23, 2018
Countertop Gardens is a new niche gardening book by Shelley Levis. Released 19th June 2018 by Quarto's Cool Springs imprint, it's 160 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.
Humans benefit from contact with natural spaces and growing things. One of the real dangers of living in smaller spaces without any green access is the detrimental effect on our mental health. Horticultural therapy is a long recognized effective and enjoyable method for engaging with our natural environment and improving mental health. This author presents a compelling case for no-excuses access to gardening indoors year round and with limited (or nonexistent) outdoor spaces.
The book is full color and includes a number of recipes. The author's style is breezy, confident, and encouraging. The writing is easy to read and accessible. This is mostly a general introduction to various methods of indoor container growing and how to adapt the reader's efforts into getting the best possible results. The chapters are arranged logically and introduce concepts along with expanded information as chapters progress. This book had value for me personally as a resource guide with good online information web resources.
I think as long as readers have realistic expectations about yields and look at indoor growing as a fun experiment rather than a method of providing a significant amount of food (in virtually all cases), this book will provide a fun and useful introduction to the alternatives out there for the would-be indoor gardener.
Four stars, appealingly written and well photographed.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.