Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction

The coming hard times

Getting land

Becoming a vegetableatarian

Chapter 2: Basics

What is a vegetable?

Helping plants grow

Increasing soil fertility

Summary

Chapter 3: Tools and tasks

The basic three and a file

How to start a new garden

Raised beds and raised rows

The bow rake

Restoring a raised bed for planting again

The hoe

Miscellaneous tools

Care of tools

Chapter 4: Garden centers

Transplants: Buyer beware

Growing your own seedlings the easy way

The garden center seedrack

Chapter 5: Seeds

The mail-order seed business

Who to buy from

Making seeds come up

Saving on seed purchases

Growing your own

Chapter 6:Watering ... and not

Four spacing systems

Not suffering drought

A gardener’s textbook of sprinkler irrigation

Chapter 7: Compost

Why compost?

Making low-grade compost

Medium-quality compost: The once-a-year heap

Humanure

Green manure and cover crops

Chapter 8: Insects and diseases

Avoiding trouble

Insects and their remedies

Diseases and their remedies

Chapter 9:What to grow ... and how to grow it

Some general tips

Crops that are easiest to grow

Crops that are harder to grow

Difficult vegetables

Chapter 10: Bibliography

Books

Online resources

About the Author