Organic Methods for Vegetable Gardening in Florida

by Ginny Stibolt, Melissa Contreras

“A wonderful and well-researched book that describes all aspects of organic gardening, from seed to harvest, as well as how to gather seeds from your labors for subsequent years. This book will help you create a garden that will produce food for yourself and your family, whether you live in Florida or not.”--Nell Newman, president of Newman’s Own Organics


“With demand and desire exploding for fresh, healthful, locally grown produce, Ginny and Melissa are right on time. Hold a copy close, dig a plot, and grow your own!”--Michel Nischan, president of Wholesome Wave

“If you want to grow your own vegetables organically but are unsure how to get started—this is the book for you.”—Steve Christman, Floridata.com


“An excellent addition for any Floridian interested in raising food, either on a small-scale commercial basis or simply for the pleasure of seeing a garden grow.”—Marilyn E. Swisher, coeditor of  Managed The Mesoamerican Experience


With food costs on the rise, people are turning to their own yards for affordable and delicious produce. In  Organic Methods for Vegetable Gardening in Florida,  expert botanist Ginny Stibolt and Master Gardener Melissa Contreras provide  simple and accessible advice for successful, pesticide-free vegetable gardening in Florida, where soil types vary and mild winters do not clear out all pests. They offer suggestions for opportunities beyond the home garden, advice on what to do with over-abundant harvests, and tips for developing a community garden. They also address pest management, appropriate bed types, irrigation, seed saving, proper harvesting, and food safety.

By providing information that helps people get closer to their food sources, Stibolt and Contreras have created an invaluable guide for everyday gardeners as well as small farmers who wish to expand their operations in order to participate in farmers markets or CSAs.
           

 

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction

392 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2013

About the author

Ginny, a life-long gardener with MS degree in Botany, moved to northeast Florida in 2004. Her previous experience and education did not help one bit when she tried her hand at Florida gardening. She started writing her popular Adventures of a Transplanted Gardener columns and she's also been writing the gardening articles for Vero Beach Magazine. And now she's written a book, "Sustainable Gardening for Florida" published by University Press of Florida: www.sustainablegardening4florida.com"

Reviews

[Brianna Knutson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ignoring the very few references to Climate Change and Evolution...

This was an incredibly helpful book. If ever you are in a gardening rut, this is a great book to pick up. The Floridian gardener can barely find other non-Florida specific gardening books helpful. This was just the mixture of tips and tricks plus actual science I was looking for.

I got it from the library, but would consider buying it to have as a reference.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Florida offers gardeners unique challenges and benefits that are not generally addressed in most gardening publications. I find myself always doing a little mental math when I read about when and how to start seeds. I live in North Florida (zone 9B), and I pretty much have to plant spring crops (like English Peas) in the winter. It’s April right now, and our high temp today is 91 degrees Fahrenheit. All of my greens began bolting in February, and my window for growing cool/cold weather crops is almost too small to get anything grown to maturity. And this is in North Florida! My friends in South Florida can forget about growing a lot of common crops entirely!

I’ve been gardening for about 4 years now, and I really wish that I had discovered this book when I first started. It would have given me a great start; instead I had to learn things the hard way. Four years into it, I’ve figured a lot of the info in this book out already. It has some great information on different organic gardening methods, composting, and bed building. However, I’ve read more detailed information on these topics in other books dedicated to them.

What “Organic Methods for Vegetable Gardening in Florida” gets right is its focus on Florida specific gardening challenges. The book recognizes that Florida is unique in that there are many different growing zones in the state, and what works in North Florida will not necessarily work in Central or South Florida. It also addresses Florida’s poor soils and what can be done to amend them.

There is a large section of the book that describes Florida tolerant crops and where they grow best in the state. This section is worth the total price of the book. It is a fantastic reference for anyone gardening in the state. I can look up parsnips or peas and find out how well they grow in each section of the state, when to plant them, and how to care for them.

Though I had already read or experienced a lot of the information provided in this book, the vegetable references have earned it a place in my personal library. If you garden in Florida, this book will have valuable information for you, even if you are a skilled and experienced gardener.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skimmed sections but useful info for Florida. I especially liked the big vegetable section (listed some veggies I'd never heard of) and the month-by-month section for central Florida.

[Helena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm getting a copy of this for myself (had checked it out of the library to see if it was worth owning). It's a great reference, and so useful for Florida gardeners. If you live down here, you know that gardening guidelines meant for the rest of the country don't work here--summer is not tomato season, but we can grow them for the holidays, for example.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous! Finally, a book that addresses Florida's unique growing climate. I will be purchasing a copy of this book.