Read This!

I stumbled upon this great book while looking through the "new book" section of my local library yesterday and was not able to put it down last night.  The author, Derek Fell, was a former seed catalogue manager for Burpee and another top selling seed catalogue in both Europe and the United States. This would seem to make him uniquely qualified to explain what to grow and what not to waste your time and effort on.

If you are anything like me, you find it easy to become mesmerized by the glossy, colorful seed catalogue photos of perfect vegetables and their glowing descriptions when you are planning your garden.  Derek Fell cuts through all of the hype and narrows down the absolute best varieties to grow for hardiness, flavor, and a prolific harvest. I really appreciate his no-nonsense, cut-to-the-chase style.  

Take Swiss Chard, for example.  Fell says "'Bright Lights' has made all other chard varieties obsolete including 'Ruby', 'Rhubarb', 'Fordhook Giant', 'Lucullus', 'Rainbow', and 'Five Color'".  He gives you clear, specific reasons why this is true and tells you not to bother planting anything else.  While he does not get this specific about every vegetable, he narrows most down to just a few of the best options.  This is a truly useful reference that will save me a lot of time when I begin to plan next year's garden this winter and, hopefully, it will save me from disappointment during harvest as well.

A large part of the book is also devoted to selecting the best flowers for your landscaping and flower garden in the same no-nonsense style.  I know I will be adding this book to my library and thought some of you might be interested as well.