Vegetable Gardening Wisdom: Daily Advice and Inspiration for Getting the Most from Your Garden

by Kelly Smith Trimble

Sometimes the best gardening advice comes in tidbits shared over the backyard fence from a sage neighbor. In Vegetable Gardening Wisdom, Master Gardener Kelly Smith Trimble shares her tried-and-true ideas and guidance for finding success and enjoyment in every aspect of vegetable gardening. Trimble invites readers to dip in regularly for bite-sized pieces of information on topics ranging from herb and vegetable gardening to cooking, preserving, and creative ways to use the harvest along with ideas for reducing garden and kitchen waste, all presented in a lively, beautifully designed package that makes a perfect gift and source for daily inspiration. She suggests the best herbs to grow indoors, the best way to start peas, how to use lettuce as a living mulch in the garden, how to make compost tea, how to identify beneficial bugs, how to blanch cauliflower, and much more. Woven in among her tips are helpful and inspiring quotes from other plant-loving folks, ranging from novelist Jamaica Kincaid to vegetable gardening guru Ed Smith and renowned chef Sean Brock.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

Published April 2, 2019

Reviews

[Camille Maio · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book for a total garden novice such as myself. The pages were simple, beautiful, and inspirational. With this as a starting point, I feel like I am ready to start dabbling in the art of it!

[Marija · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will use some of the advices in my garden for sure.
This is a book for everyone who have garden.
I plan to give this book as a gift to my friends and family that love to spend time in their own gardens.

[Alicia Bayer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet gardening book that is a cross between a helpful hints book and an inspirational quotes book, with lots of colorful illustrations to up the eye appeal. Each page has a simple tip or a gardening quote, surrounded by a colorful pattern or with a hand drawn illustration. Tips and quotes are broken up into seasons -- spring, summer and fall. There were a few tips that were new to me and a few simple recipes I made a mental note to try. Some of the book quotes resonated enough with me that I ordered the books from my library to read more from those authors.

This would make a nice coffee table book or gift for a gardener. It's not really a must-have but it would be especially nice to read on a cold winter day away from the garden.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this little book up on a whim because I thought that I would get some use out of the gardening tips - I'm definitely a beginner when it comes to gardening and can use any help I can get. I didn't expect to also get a bunch of lovely little inspirational quotes and interesting recipes too! What a nice surprise!

Separated according to seasons, the book is beautifully illustrated and is almost as nice to look at as it is to read. It's a really quick read too - most pages contain only a few lines of text - and that makes it a perfect "coffee table" book, or a book you can pick up when you have a few moments to spare. I learned so many new things about vegetable gardening and vegetables in general, and it made me anxious to get outside and start growing things! It's also a perfect book to just keep around for when you have questions about the best way to freeze tomatoes or to roast garlic.

If you are a beginner when it comes to gardening (like me!), I think you'll really enjoy the handy tips about planning a garden, planting and caring for your plants, and using/storing/transforming your produce. If you are a more experienced gardener, the tips likely won't be as interesting to you (you'll probably know a lot of them already) but I think you will enjoy the quotes about gardening. If nothing else, reading this will remind you of the feeling of getting your hands dirty and the joy of collecting the produce you've grown and, really, who doesn't like that?

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This small book is packed full of helpful gardening tips, tricks, and ideas with a few recipes thrown in as well. It's divided by season - late winter, spring, summer, and fall and each section's tips are relevant to that season. There were a lot of good tips and inspiration, but I also liked that it's a book you could easily pick up and read a few pages and pick up again later. I read through each section at a time, but you could easily read it any number of ways. This is one that would be good to have on hand and flip through once a year or so just to refresh. Good for the beginning gardener or someone more seasoned. A great book overall.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nonfiction-- gardening. This book was meant to be flipped through and savored bit by bit, but being as it was a library book I read it in a shorter time frame. The book is organized by season so it starts with winter and makes its way through to fall. It has useful advice on various crops throughout the year, some recipes to use seasonal garden bounty, and lots of quotes from gardening memoirs. While I did find some useful tips on some crops I am going to be planting for the first time, this book mainly served to grow my list of gardening books to read. A fun book to dabble in or to find great quotes about gardening.

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how this book is laid out. It contains four sections, (one for each season).

Throughout the pages, there is quite a bit of growing advice. Additionally, there are tested soil remedies, garden quotes, and simple recipes.

I found the illustrations exceptionally appealing. Instead of boring stock photos, there are artistic sketches of garden plants. Nice touch!

Thanks to #NetGalley, I had an advanced PDF to read and review.

*All opinions are my own and I was not required to post a positive review. *

[Tesha Ham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of short and to the point information, facts, and tips you may not know. It does include recipes and information on a wide range of plants, however if you are looking for a super in-depth book, this isn't it. It is still a good book however.

I voluntarily read and received a free ARC copy of this title through NetGalley in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book, for free, in exchange for an honest review.

This book is both inspirational and beautiful. It is sure to please a newbie gardener looking for inspiration. That being said, there isn't much information here for a seasoned gardener. All information sits on one page which is good for breadth but the depth here is a bit lacking.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Rather than big walls of text or complicated, detailed information, this book presents usable advice in small bites, augmented with inspiring quotes from various gardeners and books, a few easy recipes, and lovely illustrations. If you're looking for something to spark your garden excitement again, this will do it!

[Aidan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Not only was it full of wisdom you can use year-round and accompanied by beautiful illustrations, but I found much of what I read reminded me of times in the garden with my parents and grandparents. I also loved the addition of the quotes and recipes throughout the book. Nothing makes me happier than a little 'dirt therapy'. So excited to make use of these tips.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely little reference book filled with excellent nuggets of wisdom for each season. I could read it ten times over and not get all of the wisdom out of it! I plan to refer to this book for a long time.

[Michael Dunn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good for novices.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found some tips that will provide useful in the future--however, my favorite part of the book was the lovely artwork throughout.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learned a few things from this short book. Made me hate that it is autumn and I can't get in my garden as much as I want to.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vegetable Gardening Wisdom

Easy read and easily searchable for topic as needed. A lot of information for the newer farmer/gardener but very useful.

[Amanda Boehm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice collection of little bits of information. I would have like a deeper dive into some topics but overall it was a pleasant read with fun, colorful illustrations and design.

[Alicia Offutt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Numerous tips for beginners with fun light-hearted quotes.

[jeanmarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely. More of a coffee table book as others have said but very fun to leaf through. Definitely worth checking out from the library and helpful for introducing me to other authors!

[Janeen Pizzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my gosh Ralphie and I loved reading through this one together. So many little tips and wonderful quotes sprinkle throughout. Reading this will be one of my favorite memories from this summer.

[Anita Corsini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would give this book 10 stars if I could!! An awesome gift for a gardener at any stage of the game!

[Sue Bottino · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a sweet little book with lovely illustrations. A lot of bits I already knew but there were some nice surprises and lovely quotes.

[Ferna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and easy read, sharing little nuggets of gardening wisdom and quotes on every page. The illustrations are fun- it’s kind of like a picture book for adults.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect little reader when you feel overwhelmed by your garden.

[Alexandria Cozzi]

Advice to inspire your gardening.

[Rachel Hellman · Rating 4 out of 5]

a sweet book to flip through and ponder the art of growing vegetables. Some very practical tips as well!!

[Therese · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a step-by-step how-to book, it's more of a source of inspiration for anyone new to vegetable gardening, exactly as the cover suggests. The illustrations and design of the book are lovely and it's the type of book to dip in and out of as it does contain a lot of useful bite-size tips however if you are a beginner looking for specifics as to how to plant and tend to a vegetable garden you will need to look elsewhere. This book would make a lovely present for anyone who has an interest in gardening and growing their own veggies.

Thanks to Storey Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this sweet little book of gardening wisdom. Perfect for a new or seasoned gardener. Bite sized information you can devour in one sitting or pick up at will from your coffee table. Thoughtful quotes sprinkled throughout that made me want to read more.

[Carmen Ledford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book format to be interesting and unique. It is a collection of snippets of advice and quotes regarding all aspects of vegetable gardening. The book is divided into sections that mirror the seasons. While I think it is best suited to beginning gardeners, but it can definitely be enjoyed by people with a moderate level of gardening experience as well. The uncomplicated and uncrowded text makes this book a breeze to read. The pleasing sketches and color schemes make it fun to read as well. I'd recommend this to beginning gardeners or to those just looking for a quick refresher or source of inspiration.

I received an advance reading copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was not obligated to write a positive review.

[Leyla Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fabulous book - even the only one you need to have a productive, healthy veggie garden.
Although there are plenty of wonderful photographs in the book, the information is the stuff that makes this book so good.
I too have been gardening for many years, and I remember at 4yrs old helping my grandfather, an Italian migrant, grow all the vegetables needed for our table. He continued to do so well into his 90s. Over the years I have read many book on growing vegetables, but none actually have been as good as this, answering sensible questions and explaining the "why and hows" as this book does.
The photos are truly amazing and consolidates the information on each variety. They also not only make me jealous, but offer inspiration that my next years crop will hopefully look as good (or half that good)
It all makes sense and it is quite simple when one understands.
Love this book