HomeKitchen

Vegetable Gardening for Beginners: A guide to start growing your own indoor or outdoor food garden including container, raised bed & kitchen gardening, … (Gardening with Elizabeth Martens Book 2)

Vegetable Gardening for Beginners: A Book Review

If you are looking for a comprehensive and practical guide to start your own vegetable garden, you might want to check out Vegetable Gardening for Beginners by Elizabeth Martens. This book covers everything you need to know about growing your own food, from choosing the best location and method, to planting, harvesting, and storing your produce. Whether you have a small balcony, a backyard, or a large plot of land, you will find useful tips and tricks to make your gardening journey easier and more enjoyable.

In this review, I will give you an overview of the book’s content, its strengths and weaknesses, and my personal opinion on its value and quality. I hope this will help you decide if this book is right for you and your gardening goals.

What’s Inside the Book?

The book is divided into 10 chapters, each focusing on a different aspect of vegetable gardening. Here is a brief summary of each chapter:

  • Chapter 1: Introduction – This chapter introduces the author and her gardening experience, as well as the benefits and challenges of growing your own food. It also explains the basic concepts and terms used in the book, such as container gardening, raised bed gardening, row planting, kitchen gardening, microgreens, and more.
  • Chapter 2: Choosing What and Where to Grow – This chapter helps you decide what vegetables to grow based on your preferences, climate, space, and budget. It also gives you some suggestions on where to grow your vegetables, whether indoors or outdoors, and how to prepare your soil and containers for planting.
  • Chapter 3: Container Gardening – This chapter covers the advantages and disadvantages of container gardening, as well as the best types and sizes of containers to use for different vegetables. It also gives you some tips on how to water, fertilize, and maintain your container plants.
  • Chapter 4: Raised Bed Gardening and Row Planting – This chapter covers the advantages and disadvantages of raised bed gardening and row planting, as well as how to build, fill, and plant your raised beds or rows. It also gives you some tips on how to water, fertilize, and maintain your raised bed or row plants.
  • Chapter 5: Kitchen Gardening – This chapter covers the advantages and disadvantages of kitchen gardening, which is growing vegetables in your kitchen or near a window. It also gives you some examples of vegetables that can be grown in your kitchen, such as herbs, lettuce, spinach, and more.
  • Chapter 6: Seed Collecting for Next Year – This chapter covers the advantages and disadvantages of saving your own seeds from your vegetable plants, as well as how to select, harvest, dry, store, and germinate your seeds for next year.
  • Chapter 7: Introduction to Microgreen Growing – This chapter covers the advantages and disadvantages of microgreen growing, which is growing young vegetable plants for their edible shoots and leaves. It also gives you some examples of microgreens that can be grown, such as radish, broccoli, kale, and more.
  • Chapter 8: The Easiest Cold-weather Vegetables to Grow – This chapter gives you a list of vegetables that can tolerate cold temperatures and frost, such as carrots, cabbage, garlic, and more. It also gives you some tips on how to protect your plants from the cold and extend your growing season.
  • Chapter 9: The Easiest Warm-weather Vegetables to Grow – This chapter gives you a list of vegetables that can thrive in warm temperatures and sun, such as tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and more. It also gives you some tips on how to prevent your plants from wilting and bolting in the heat.
  • Chapter 10: Harvesting and Caring for Your Garden – This chapter gives you some general guidelines on when and how to harvest your vegetables, as well as how to store and preserve them for later use. It also gives you some tips on how to deal with common pests and diseases that might affect your plants.

The book also includes a bonus chapter on terrarium gardening, which is growing plants in a sealed glass container. You can access this chapter by downloading it from the link provided in the book.

What are the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Book?

As with any book, Vegetable Gardening for Beginners has its strengths and weaknesses. Here are some of the pros and cons that I noticed while reading it:

  • Pros
    • The book is well-written, easy to read, and organized. The author uses a friendly and conversational tone, and explains the concepts and terms clearly and concisely. The chapters are structured logically, and each one has a summary and a checklist at the end.
    • The book is informative, practical, and comprehensive. The author covers a lot of topics and details about vegetable gardening, and provides useful advice and examples based on her own experience. The book also contains over 50 color photos that illustrate the concepts and techniques.
    • The book is suitable for beginners and experienced gardeners alike. The author assumes that the reader has little or no prior knowledge of vegetable gardening, and guides them step by step through the process. However, the book also offers some advanced tips and tricks that might be helpful for more seasoned gardeners.
    • The book is inspiring and motivating. The author shares her passion and enthusiasm for gardening, and encourages the reader to start their own vegetable garden. She also highlights the benefits and rewards of growing your own food, such as saving money, improving health, reducing waste, and having fun.
  • Cons
    • The book is not very interactive or engaging. The author does not ask the reader any questions, or provide any exercises or quizzes to test their understanding or application of the concepts. The book also does not have any links or references to other resources or websites that might be useful for further learning or exploration.
    • The book is not very customizable or adaptable. The author does not offer any alternatives or variations for different situations or preferences. For example, she does not mention any other methods of gardening besides container, raised bed, row, kitchen, and terrarium. She also does not suggest any other vegetables that might be suitable for different climates, seasons, or tastes.
    • The book is not very updated or relevant. The book was published in 2022, but some of the information and examples might be outdated or inaccurate by now. For example, the author mentions the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on food supply and prices, but does not address the current situation or developments. She also does not mention any new trends or innovations in vegetable gardening, such as vertical gardening, hydroponics, or aquaponics.

What is My Opinion on the Book?

Overall, I think Vegetable Gardening for Beginners is a good book for anyone who wants to learn the basics of growing their own food. The book is well-written, informative, practical, and comprehensive. It covers a lot of topics and details about vegetable gardening, and provides useful advice and examples based on the author’s experience. The book is also suitable for beginners and experienced gardeners alike, and is inspiring and motivating for anyone who wants to start their own vegetable garden.

However, the book is not perfect, and it has some room for improvement. The book is not very interactive or engaging, and it does not offer any alternatives or variations for different situations or preferences. The book is also not very updated or relevant, and it might not reflect the current situation or developments in vegetable gardening. Therefore, the book might not be the best choice for someone who wants a more interactive, customizable, or updated guide to vegetable gardening.

In conclusion, I would recommend Vegetable Gardening for Beginners to anyone who wants to learn the basics of growing their own food, and who does not mind a more passive, standard, or outdated approach to vegetable gardening. However, I would also suggest supplementing the book with other resources or websites that might provide more interactivity, customization, or relevance to vegetable gardening.

Trending:

Related Articles

Back to top button