Food Grown Right, in Your Backyard: A Beginner's Guide to Growing Crops at Home

by Colin McCrate, Brad Halm, Hilary Dahl (Photographer)

* Full color with instructional photographs and garden-design illustrations

* Easy, inspiring intro for first-timers who want to grow their own food while saving money and time

* Written by the founders of the nationally recognized Seattle Urban Farm Co.



As the founders behind the Seattle Urban Farm Company, Colin McCrate and Brad Halm have heard it all: My backyard is too small; how can I make space for a garden? Do I really need to buy fertilizer? What on earth is that creature crawling on the tomatoes? My crops took off and the zucchini are in the sidewalk -- who has time to harvest this all?!



Food Grown Right, in Your Backyard is a primer for these questions and more. In response to the rising interest in homegrown foods, the Seattle Urban Farm Co. builds vegetable gardens for everyone from busy families to restaurants. Along the way, Colin and Brad teach beginner growers from all walks of life the techniques of organic food production. In this full color, beautifully photographed guide, they prove that anyone can develop a "green thumb," as they show readers how to build a garden from the ground up, explain general garden basics, discuss the best types of crops to try, and much more, including:



* Garden size and design for any setting (no matter how small!), including container gardens

* Soil types, and watering and irrigation

* Plant life 101, and profiles of recommended vegetables, herbs, edible flowers, and berries

* Garden tools and time-saving rules

* Crop planning, tips on what to do with the harvest, and a garden calendar to keep your garden growing year-round



Q&A material, profiles of other beginner gardeners, and step-by-step instructions all come together in this unique, friendly guide that was inspired by the kinds of questions Colin and Brad hear every day on the job with the Seattle Urban Farm Co.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Cookbooks

683 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 3, 2012

About the author

Colin has been growing food organically for the past 15 years. He worked on a variety of small farms in the Midwest before moving to the west coast in 2003 to teach garden-based environmental education. He founded the Seattle Urban Farm Company in January of 2007 with the goal of applying years of horticultural and agricultural expertise to help aspiring growers get projects off the ground or more accurately; in the ground: so he bought a truck, grabbed a shovel and got to work.

Over the past seven years, he has helped guide hundreds of urban farmers through the design, construction and management of their own edible landscape. He works with clients through the entire design/build process because he believes that cohesion and attention to detail are what make each project unique and successful. He prides himself on creating environmentally responsible and long-lasting garden elements. Sourcing quality materials and locally adapted plants ensures the long-term health and beauty of these landscapes. The author of two books; Food Grown Right, In Your Backyard(Mountaineers Books, 2012) and The High-Yield Garden Planner (Storey Publishing, 2015); Colin believes that there will always be more to learn and share of his experiences.

Colin thrives on pioneering new ideas and empowering city dwellers to reap the rewards of local food production. He believes that sustainable urban agriculture can promote healthy diets, environmental stewardship, stronger communities and improved quality of life. He hopes that developing economically sound, city-based farming ventures will increase public awareness of agricultural issues and foster a greater appreciation of farmers everywhere.

Reviews

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was bit with the gardening bug when I bought my house in 2009. Sure the house was impressive, but the backyard is what spoke to me. Yard for days -- receiving a perfect amount of 8+ hours of daylight in the summer. My first summer garden was a disaster as they usually are, but by summer #2 I was ready to do more. Grow more. My second summer was an amazing experience as I watched everything from lettuce to cauliflower to the biggest sunflowers I'd ever seen reach maturity. But even though I'd grown vegetables and enjoyed them, I still felt like I was doing everything blind.

I received my copy of Food Grown Right, In Your Backyard yesterday and spent the next hour devouring it. I've sense left my huge backyard in Olympia and am gearing up for my second summer gardening in Alaska (again my first blind gardening summer being a COMPLETE disaster). This book is created mostly for gardening in the Pacific Northwest so I'm unable to follow the extremely helpful month-by-month garden guide in the back of the book, but I still feel like my mind was blown open as I read through the book.

Soil maintenance and fertilizer has always baffled me as I stood looking at nursery shelves. Which one was best? Which one did I actually need, and which was simply a marketing ploy? Finally I read something that laid out my choices and options in easy to understand language! Container gardening is my only option at my house and I was THRILLED to see how many tips, tricks and ideas Food Grown Right offered me. I know with this book as my trusty guide I can do this!

Even with three years of gardening under my belt I'm still learning with this book. From helping me to conceptualize exactly how to organize a garden with short term, mid term and long term plants (why did I never think of this!?!?), to the oh-so-helpful section towards the back of the book walking me through each family of plants I finally feel like I have something to turn to when I have a question. Sure I love tomatoes, but these will not grow in Alaska without a greenhouse. Food Grown Right is helping me move on from this disappointment and realize all the amazing veggies I CAN grow successfully here in Alaska.

Every year you learn something new from gardening and most of the time it's through trial and error. But this is the first summer I'm heading towards where I don't feel like I'm heading in blind. I have the tools I need with Food Grown Right to make this the most successful garden ever, and I can't wait to get started.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are so many vegetable gardening books out there right now. Gardening is hot! As someone who teaches gardening to people of all ages I am quick to dismiss books when they don't fit my idea of what a gardening book should be about. I agreed with most of what these two authors are teaching folks about urban vegetable gardening. I even learned a few tricks from reading it. Definitely recommended for gardeners of all skill levels.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is seriously the best book I have read on planting an urban garden. I have ordered all kinds of urban gardening and urban homesteading books from the library and none of them compare to this book. I have a bit more than basic knowledge about gardening, but I want to expand my planting seasons from early spring through fall. This books gives detailed information on popular veggies grown in small gardens. This book is worth the money, period.

[Ivette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great on the basics. Covers all the major topics a beginning gardener needs to know, but doesn't overwhelm with tons of science. Especially liked the plant profiles--each profile had a section "what this plant can teach you" and touched on topics such as knowing when to harvest, saving seeds, learning how to prune, etc. Each plant has something to teach us. Also included sections on plant problems and bugs. Appreciated the color photographs throughout and the resources section.

[David Westerveld · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great introduction for those early on in a gardening journey in their suburban backyard. They stuff on irrigation was really helpful, and there was a lot of reference stuff in here that I will probably come back to

[Michael McMoran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this reference book, was able to reference it for specific garden types that we would be growing, how to build our raised beds, what pests to look out for (and how to prevent), soil health, the list goes on..

[Lindsey Stromberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book for a gardener who's been at it less than say 5 years. Super helpful tips and guides in all areas. I loved this book and will be buying a copy to have on hand!

[David H · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good plant-specific information, but it generalized growing seasons a bit too much, which limits its usefulness to Florida gardeners such as myself.

[Pat Loughery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic! The best book about organic home vegetable/herb/etc gardening that I’ve read.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel ready to go put up some raised garden beds and start vegetable gardening! What a great resource.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a go to book now for me. They truly were very thorough in their explanations and a very easy and at times fun, read!

[Marsha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, I've updated my review to 5 stars rather than 4. The more I delve further into this book, the more I find how very informative that it is. Although, there are a few things that I would do a little differently (and have), their advice is still very thorough, described well, and well organized. Back to my original review:
I've read through many parts of this book and have found it very insightful and informative. The book contained information on general gardening from basic information to more in depth as well as information regarding specific fruits and vegetables. I also found the sections on preparing your garden and problem solving most helpful. We have 10 acres and are beginning our garden and trying to grow much of what we eat (hoping we can do this). I also found the pictures helpful - rather than simple sketches. You could actually see what the authors were talking about. Thanks so much!!!

[Elise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book free through a Goodreads First Reads giveaway and was very happy that it arrived sooner than I expected.

This book has great illustrations and is rich with information. It tells you everything you need to know to start a backyard garden. It even includes instructions for making your own raised beds (something that is a must living in Georgia where the dirt is hard packed clay). I am very pleased with the book I received and would recommend it to everyone.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This isn't a book you read and pass on-it will be a book I refer to on a constant basis for all my gardening questions. It's packed full of information on growing the best garden. The where's, when's, what it should look like, how long it should take. This should come in very handy thru-out the year as you plan-plant and reap the benefits of your garden.

[LinBee · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a beginning gardener, any and all advice is definitely accepted. This book was well laid out, easy to understand, and fun to read. The authors tell you how they got to where they are.

There are lots of recommendations for starting a garden in any kind of area, plus advice on plant choices. There is good advice on pest control and a whole wealth of information.

[Emily Mellow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. An enjoyable read, written with humor, and very educational. Would make a great reference book. I'm really not a beginner gardener, but I still found this book very useful. It's clear and well put-together.

[Irwin]

I just won this book free as a goodreads giveaway! I am waiting to read it. Thanks.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book had a lot of great information. I felt they did a good job writing for a beginner. Now all I need is a garden so I can put some of this information into action!

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

A modern classic!

[Bill Thorness · Rating 5 out of 5]

A comprehensive book that will help beginning gardeners get off on the right foot. Lots of photos show what the authors are talking about, so it's easy to follow.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

More pictures than concrete info. Gardening guide for the pacific northwest (Seattle). Doesn't apply to me as much because I'm essentially in California (climate-wise) but still interesting.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome resource.