|Can you recommend a book for the beginning gardener that would cover "everything you ever wanted to know" about vegetables and fruit trees?|
|"Gardening for Dummies" by Michael MacCaskey (IDG Books, 1996) is a great, all-around reference book especially helpful for new gardeners. There are numerous books on vegetable gardening. Here are a few to consider:|
"Rodale Press Garden Answers: Vegetables, Fruits and Herbs" edited by Fern Marshall Bradley (Rodale Press, Emmaus, PA, 1995). "Step by Step Organic Vegetable Gardening," Shepherd Ogden, Harper Collins Publisher 1992. "How to Grow More Vegetables," John Jeavons, Ten Speed Press revised 1996. I also like a Better Homes & Gardens book, which has a good discussion of soil characteristics. I loaned it to someone, so I don't have the exact title, but I think it's called "Organic Vegetable Gardening."
For fruit references try:
"Fruits and Berries for the Home Garden" by Lewis Hill (Storey Publications, ISBN: 0882667637).
Cornell University publication "The Home Fruit Planting", a 46 page illustrated bulletin available for only $5.95 via their website: http://www.cce.cornell.edu/pub....
Another great fruit tree guide is "The Orchard Almanac," by Stephen Page and Joe Smillie (Spraysaver Publications, Rockport, ME 04856). Good luck with your gardening!