Reviewed by annieb123 on
The First-time Gardener is a beginner+ guide to vegetable gardening by Jessica Sowards. Due out 2nd March 2021 from Quarto on their Cool Springs Press imprint, it's 176 pages (print edition) and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.
This is an information dense but also upbeat and accessible guide for readers planning and creating their first vegetable gardens. There's a lot of general garden siting/building/planning information, so this is also a valuable resource for readers looking for info on growing flowers, herbs, and other non-veggie crops. There's also a sister volume with the same layout from the same publisher releasing roughly the same time which is flower specific in focus.
The book has a logical layout: a short (easily understandable, not too technical) intro on botany and some good advice about the willingness to learn and keeping notes is followed by step-by-step chapters on siting and planning, soil building, seeds and plant material, implementation, seasons, garden management, harvesting and planning for next year. The author is very upbeat and encouraging and I found myself smiling and nodding along at places reading the text.
The photography is simply gorgeous. Nearly every page has full color photographs and illustrations.
This was a useful resource. It would make a superlative choice for public or school library acquisition, community garden groups, home library, and for homesteaders and home gardeners. Five stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 3 February, 2021: Finished reading
- 3 February, 2021: Reviewed