Living with Herbs: A Treasury of Useful Plants for the Home and Garden (Second Edition)
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
With vivid stories and an infectious delight in the garden, Jo Ann Gardner shares her wisdom and useful tips on planting, growing, and harvesting more than 90 different kinds of herbs.
Every gardener will benefit from the author’s intimate knowledge of herbs and their histories, growing needs, and uses in the kitchen and home. The wisdom she shares—with vivid stories, a self-deprecating wit, and an infectious delight in the garden—will be useful to herb growers living anywhere in the United States or Canada. Included in this practical guide is instruction on: • Planting, caring for, and propagating herbs indoors, outdoors, and in containers • Harvesting, drying, and preserving herbs, flowers, and seeds • Two dozen ways to use herbs in the home, from aromatherapy and infusions to vinegars and wreaths • Landscaping with herbs, with plans for a harvest bed, rose garden, and other themed gardens • The growing needs and unique uses of more than 90 herbs, along with favorite recipes “Readers from all regions will benefit from these simple strategies for dealing with common problems.” —Booklist
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Part manual, part memoir, this volume blends Gardner's broad knowledge of common herbs with the intimacies of her spartan gardening life amidst the poor soil and harsh climate of Nova Scotia's Cape Breton, where she's lived for 25 years. Guided by principles of "economy, simplicity, and conservation," Gardner (The Heirloom Garden) has compiled a bounty of tips (from drying herbs to building cold frames) to go with a houseful of graces (from swags and sachets to candied flowers). While pragmatic gardeners will be struck by the low-tech tools and equipment designed by Jigs (Gardner's husband), others will be romanced by the sensual pleasure of making potpourri and sachets and the poetic language of flowers (yes, rosemary for remembrance; but also lamb's ears for surprise and lady's mantle for comfort). Two-thirds of the book is devoted to plant "portraits" that include the growing requirements and unique uses of 75 herbs, wildflowers and shrubs. In this section, unexpected topics (violas versus violets) and intriguing recipes (white clover room fresheners and rose petal sandwiches) invite casual perusals. American and Canadian plant sources cited. Line drawings by Elayne Sears.
