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Kitchen Garden Revival: A modern guide to creating a stylish small-scale, low-maintenance edible garden
Elevate your backyard veggie patch into a work of sophisticated and stylish art. Kitchen Garden Revival guides you through every aspect of kitchen gardening, from design to harvesting—with expert advice from author Nicole Johnsey Burke, founder of Rooted Garden, one of the leading US culinary landscape companies, and Gardenary, an online kitchen gardening education and resource company.
Participating in the grow-your-own movement is important to both reduce your food miles and control what makes it onto your family’s table. If you’ve hesitated to take part because installing and caring for a traditional vegetable garden doesn’t seem to suit your life or your sense of style, Kitchen Garden Revival is here to show you there’s a better, more beautiful way to grow food.
Instead of row after row of cabbage and pepper plants plunked into a patch of dirt in the middle of the yard, kitchen gardens are attractive, highly tailored food gardens consisting of easy-to-maintain raised planting beds laid out in an organized geometric pattern. Offering both four seasons of ornamental interest and plenty of fresh, homegrown fruits, vegetables, and herbs, kitchen gardens are the way to grow your own food in a fashionable, modern, and practical way.
Kitchen gardens were once popular features of the European and early American landscape, but they fell out of favor when our agrarian roots were displaced by industrialization. With this accessible and inspirational guide, Nicole aims to return the kitchen garden to its rightful place just outside of every backdoor.
Learn the art of kitchen gardening as you discover:
What characteristics all kitchen gardens have in common
How to design and install gorgeous kitchen garden beds using metal, wood, or stone
Why raised beds mean reduced maintenance
What crops are best for your kitchen garden
A planting, tending, and harvesting plan developed by a pro
Season-by-season growing guides
It's time to join the Kitchen Garden Revival and start growing your own delicious, organic food.
Participating in the grow-your-own movement is important to both reduce your food miles and control what makes it onto your family’s table. If you’ve hesitated to take part because installing and caring for a traditional vegetable garden doesn’t seem to suit your life or your sense of style, Kitchen Garden Revival is here to show you there’s a better, more beautiful way to grow food.
Instead of row after row of cabbage and pepper plants plunked into a patch of dirt in the middle of the yard, kitchen gardens are attractive, highly tailored food gardens consisting of easy-to-maintain raised planting beds laid out in an organized geometric pattern. Offering both four seasons of ornamental interest and plenty of fresh, homegrown fruits, vegetables, and herbs, kitchen gardens are the way to grow your own food in a fashionable, modern, and practical way.
Kitchen gardens were once popular features of the European and early American landscape, but they fell out of favor when our agrarian roots were displaced by industrialization. With this accessible and inspirational guide, Nicole aims to return the kitchen garden to its rightful place just outside of every backdoor.
Learn the art of kitchen gardening as you discover:
What characteristics all kitchen gardens have in common
How to design and install gorgeous kitchen garden beds using metal, wood, or stone
Why raised beds mean reduced maintenance
What crops are best for your kitchen garden
A planting, tending, and harvesting plan developed by a pro
Season-by-season growing guides
It's time to join the Kitchen Garden Revival and start growing your own delicious, organic food.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published April 21, 2020
436 people are currently reading
1467 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
February 25, 2020
There are parts of this lavishly illustrated new garden book that I really liked, and parts that had me rather frustrated. The author helps homeowners set up kitchen gardens and also has maintained her own at many houses over the years. She tends towards high end, expensive gardens and the instructions reflect this. I cringed to see how much she estimated it would cost to put in your own kitchen garden, as it's just not that expensive at all if you don't care about the fancy aesthetic. My own kitchen gardens are simple raised beds that my husband and kids built with inexpensive safe lumber, homemade compost, and good Minnesota dirt. It's true that they don't offer the gorgeous architectural design of Burke's beautiful raised beds and metal arches, but at the heart of it a kitchen garden is just about growing food.
Burke does give good advice on topics like the families of produce that most gardeners plant, seed starting, dealing with pests, and planting close instead of in the wide rows that seed packets tend to recommend. She doesn't credit square foot gardening for this, but that really is the book/method that started gardeners on ignoring the seed packet spacing guides and learning to pack plants closely together in beds.
There are beautiful photos, helpful charts, and great advice (though not detailed advice on the garden plants). Burke is quite a cheerleader, which new gardeners may find encouraging. I would have liked to see more examples of simple kitchen gardens like those of our grandmothers (okay, my grandma ran a university, but other grandmothers had inspirational kitchen gardens). Readers who are looking for modern, beautiful kitchen gardens will be especially happy with Burke's ideas, but all gardeners are likely to find something useful or inspirational.
I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.
Burke does give good advice on topics like the families of produce that most gardeners plant, seed starting, dealing with pests, and planting close instead of in the wide rows that seed packets tend to recommend. She doesn't credit square foot gardening for this, but that really is the book/method that started gardeners on ignoring the seed packet spacing guides and learning to pack plants closely together in beds.
There are beautiful photos, helpful charts, and great advice (though not detailed advice on the garden plants). Burke is quite a cheerleader, which new gardeners may find encouraging. I would have liked to see more examples of simple kitchen gardens like those of our grandmothers (okay, my grandma ran a university, but other grandmothers had inspirational kitchen gardens). Readers who are looking for modern, beautiful kitchen gardens will be especially happy with Burke's ideas, but all gardeners are likely to find something useful or inspirational.
I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.
April 25, 2020
Thanks to Quarto Publishing Group -Cool Springs Press and #NetGalley for a temporary digital ARC of #KitchenGardenRevival :A modern guide to creating a stylish small-scale, low-maintenance edible garden by Nicole Johnsey Burke.
When I was a child I thought that everyone ate fresh vegetables from their own garden. When we visited, Grandad would let us pick peas and pull baby carrots and eat them in his garden. Grammy's immaculate garden next to their house was off limits, but she lovingly shared her bounty at mealtime. Mother has always had a kitchen garden, even when she was 85!
KITCHEN GARDEN REVIVAL has gorgeous photos and illustrations, and helpful charts and advice. Nicole Johnsey Burke is experienced with kitchen gardens and tells how to install highly tailored food gardens containing easy-to-maintain raised planting beds laid out in an organized geometric pattern.
3.5 stars
April 25, 2020 posted to NetGalley, Goodreads, Savvy Reader
When I was a child I thought that everyone ate fresh vegetables from their own garden. When we visited, Grandad would let us pick peas and pull baby carrots and eat them in his garden. Grammy's immaculate garden next to their house was off limits, but she lovingly shared her bounty at mealtime. Mother has always had a kitchen garden, even when she was 85!
KITCHEN GARDEN REVIVAL has gorgeous photos and illustrations, and helpful charts and advice. Nicole Johnsey Burke is experienced with kitchen gardens and tells how to install highly tailored food gardens containing easy-to-maintain raised planting beds laid out in an organized geometric pattern.
3.5 stars
April 25, 2020 posted to NetGalley, Goodreads, Savvy Reader
July 17, 2022
This book was great for a first time gardener in my opinion. I liked how it was very simple and basic. I wish that she had given examples of what companion food works well together. But other than that it was great!
September 10, 2022
Generous with information, inspiring in so many ways. We can’t wait to get started building and tending our own raised beds & kitchen garden.
October 6, 2020
The photos of the gardens are gorgeous! In many ways the author over complicates the gardening process. I prefer the CaliKim Organic Gardening for Everyone guide. But I loved the author’s excitement over the kitchen garden.
March 8, 2024
Read back in 2020 and now again for more garden inspiration. This book helped me so much as a beginning gardener. Now I feel confident buying plants and not worrying if they will die. This book has lots of inspiration and guiding on picking the best spot for your kitchen garden and mixing the soil.
April 18, 2024
All the people in the pictures in this book are wearing nice clothes and cute shoes and their hair is perfect. All the gardens are completely overflowing with lush plants, and the beds are architectural masterpieces that perfectly match the nearby house.
The bulk of the book is spent giving you instructions on how to make very expensive raised beds with expensive trellises and arches. A little bit of time is spent on soil and water. A little more with pictures laid out like a DK book on the edible plant families.
This book is mostly just a hardcover Pinterest post.
Not a ton of gardening knowledge imparted.
The bulk of the book is spent giving you instructions on how to make very expensive raised beds with expensive trellises and arches. A little bit of time is spent on soil and water. A little more with pictures laid out like a DK book on the edible plant families.
This book is mostly just a hardcover Pinterest post.
Not a ton of gardening knowledge imparted.
May 4, 2021
I brought home a stack of new gardening books from the library and this is the first one I’ve read. I thought that it was pretty average and not particularly inspiring. Unlike other reviewers, I thought that the featured gardens seemed static and lifeless. A kitchen garden can be tucked in to any space of your yard including amongst existing landscaping and fruits and veggies can be planted directly in the soil rather than into expensive raised beds.
October 14, 2020
It's important (in my opinion) to grow your own food, but that can be intimidating and not everyone wants to homestead or have a mini-farm at home. Nicole Burke's solution is the Kitchen Garden Revival. Most homes up until post-WWII had a kitchen garden to provide some, if not most of their daily produce. Burke argues that we can bring that back today and not only save money on produce, but enjoy the other benefits of growing your own food. This book walks you through step-by-step to create your own kitchen garden. I really liked that she gives very detailed tips like making sure the pathways are wide enough, measuring out and marking before building, etc. But, based on the illustrations I don't think the average homeowner has the HUGE yard space for the projects shown. I have 3 separate garden areas at my house, two of them fenced in and I would LOVE to have pea gravel pathways, but that is VERY expensive. So, while the illustrations are beautiful, I don't think they are what the average person could afford - either financially or space-wise in their yard/property. But, there are good tips and I like the overall point of the book that you CAN grow your own food without living on a farm, but I would give it a 50/50 rating as far as recommending it.
March 18, 2025
This lost me when it showed a woman taking measurements for building garden beds in 2 inch espadrilles. There's another picture where she is lifting a bag of what looks like soil while wearing a pristine white T-shirt, jeans, and opened toed sandals. Gardening makes me happy but it's dirty work. This gives the unrealistic idea that you can just sashay out and build some raised beds. If you really want to encourage people to bring back Kitchen Gardens be realistic. Put some wellies or work boots on. Also while the gardens are picture perfect, they are a bit soulles. Clearly this book is aimed at those who aren't worried about expense.
Then there is the marketing aspect. Go to our website and pay for garden courses. Join our 'coaching team! You've already completed Step One in the application process by reading this book.
I'm really glad I borrowed this from Library rather than pay money for it.
Then there is the marketing aspect. Go to our website and pay for garden courses. Join our 'coaching team! You've already completed Step One in the application process by reading this book.
I'm really glad I borrowed this from Library rather than pay money for it.
June 24, 2025
This gardening book was great for inspiration! The photographs taken in film format were gorgeous and it got my wheels of creativity spinning. I grew up with farm style gardening, so when I learned from this book that having a super full and lush raised bed was a possibility, I was delighted and couldn’t wait to try out the kitchen garden style of gardening!
What I believe this book was seriously lacking was information on economically friendly options for building raised beds/gathering supplies needed for a garden and also illustrated examples of possible layout plans. Starting a garden from scratch absolutely can be very low-cost (we built our raised bed and bought all the starts/seeds we needed for well under $100).
Overall, I would recommend this gardening book to all my diy people who love being inspired to say, “I can do that, but for much cheaper.”
What I believe this book was seriously lacking was information on economically friendly options for building raised beds/gathering supplies needed for a garden and also illustrated examples of possible layout plans. Starting a garden from scratch absolutely can be very low-cost (we built our raised bed and bought all the starts/seeds we needed for well under $100).
Overall, I would recommend this gardening book to all my diy people who love being inspired to say, “I can do that, but for much cheaper.”
July 9, 2021
This is absolutely a great gardening book for the new gardener that wants to do a kitchen garden (herbs, veg, etc.) and hasn't already done a lot of research, yet. I'd probably recommend it to somebody that wants to make their first garden. It's got key advice for the beginner, and is a really pretty and inspiring book overall, too.
April 6, 2021
This book is beautifully written, beautifully photographed, and beautifully inspiring. I'm getting busy on my current garden (at the beginning of April which is much earlier than I thought I could) and planning the garden for my new house. Great resources and simple explanations.
March 27, 2024
I've followed the author on instagram for about a year, and I enjoy her approach to gardening. Some of the material in the book felt repetitive, but if you're like me and need things explained again and again for them to sink in, it's worth the read!
August 4, 2025
Super helpful book for all the ins and outs of learning out to set up a professional looking raised bed. Much to be desired in the regenerative ag space and on the vegetable care. I would recommend it for those needing direction on how to plan, design, and install their own garden.
February 7, 2023
Loved it so much that I may need to buy a copy for reference. Even though I don't plan on doing raised beds, this was such a helpful, easy guide to gardening for a beginner. 👌
April 1, 2021
As others have mentioned, it’s a lovely picture book. The gardens she creates are very attractive, but they are really only achievable by those with money to burn (plant?). I loved the information on the plant families, but I felt a huge part of gardening was missing - pests and pest control. Overall, an appealing book with very little new/useful information if you’ve previously read any other gardening book. I gave mine to the library.
May 12, 2021
Stylish, and with plenty of solid garden information. A little twee.
May 9, 2020
I was excited when this book, Kitchen Garden Revival: A modern guide to creating a stylish small-scale, low-maintenance edible garden, arrived to see how well it was outlined and arranged for easy reading and future reference. The author, Nicole Johnsey Burke, shares her knowledge in a way that is fun and easy to learn from and offers a dose of optimism as a bonus. The pictures make you want to leave the book on your coffee table for everyone to enjoy.
You will learn important things to consider when planning your garden, tips on growing all the good stuff, and how to enjoy having a bounty of fresh goodies just steps from your kitchen.
It all starts with the creation of your Kitchen Garden and there are many options to choose from. You will learn how to choose the best place to place your Kitchen Garden, the essential elements you will need for your Kitchen Garden, how to structure your Kitchen Garden for your needs, and how to blend the perfect soil to grow your plants. Then you will learn how to Grow Your Garden by making a personalized Kitchen Garden calendar, choosing the plants for your Kitchen Garden and how to care for them, and different ways you can enjoy your Kitchen Garden as you harvest.
Look for Gardenaryco on social media and check out the Grow Yourself podcast to enhance your learning and joy of Kitchen Gardening.
You will learn important things to consider when planning your garden, tips on growing all the good stuff, and how to enjoy having a bounty of fresh goodies just steps from your kitchen.
It all starts with the creation of your Kitchen Garden and there are many options to choose from. You will learn how to choose the best place to place your Kitchen Garden, the essential elements you will need for your Kitchen Garden, how to structure your Kitchen Garden for your needs, and how to blend the perfect soil to grow your plants. Then you will learn how to Grow Your Garden by making a personalized Kitchen Garden calendar, choosing the plants for your Kitchen Garden and how to care for them, and different ways you can enjoy your Kitchen Garden as you harvest.
Look for Gardenaryco on social media and check out the Grow Yourself podcast to enhance your learning and joy of Kitchen Gardening.
June 10, 2025
.
Kitchen Garden Revival by Nicole Johnsey Burke
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
What I liked:
•this book was suggested to my daughter when she had a vegetable garden consultation (I gave her as a Christmas gift!). I became interested, so I started on a small scale with an elevated bed, a raised bed and a couple containers.
•I started my project in May, prepared the ground (with help), set up the beds myself and began planting by seeds & seedlings on June 1.
•I realized I had so many questions I needed an easy reference so I finally bought this book (y’all I don’t buy books!!) I dove into it immediately and read every word cover to cover!!!
•beautiful pictures, easy to follow, simple directions and guidance, written for beginners!!
•written for people to have an easily accessible source of organic vegetables that can be grown in small spaces for multiple seasons!
•I am already enjoying lettuce, basil, chives, onions, and parsley!
•more excitedly watching tiny little seedlings popping up out of the beautiful soil from a self-proclaimed plant murderer! I can call myself a gardener now!
What I didn’t like:
•I wish I bought the book over winter and read it then. I would have done a few things differently!! We’ll call this year an experiment!
•veggie gardening can be an expensive hobby! 😂 I hope I stick with it, because I am having so much fun now and completely obsessed with my garden!
I am officially in my garden era.
Book 26 of 2025
Read June 1-9
Poll: are you a vegetable gardener?
Kitchen Garden Revival by Nicole Johnsey Burke
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
What I liked:
•this book was suggested to my daughter when she had a vegetable garden consultation (I gave her as a Christmas gift!). I became interested, so I started on a small scale with an elevated bed, a raised bed and a couple containers.
•I started my project in May, prepared the ground (with help), set up the beds myself and began planting by seeds & seedlings on June 1.
•I realized I had so many questions I needed an easy reference so I finally bought this book (y’all I don’t buy books!!) I dove into it immediately and read every word cover to cover!!!
•beautiful pictures, easy to follow, simple directions and guidance, written for beginners!!
•written for people to have an easily accessible source of organic vegetables that can be grown in small spaces for multiple seasons!
•I am already enjoying lettuce, basil, chives, onions, and parsley!
•more excitedly watching tiny little seedlings popping up out of the beautiful soil from a self-proclaimed plant murderer! I can call myself a gardener now!
What I didn’t like:
•I wish I bought the book over winter and read it then. I would have done a few things differently!! We’ll call this year an experiment!
•veggie gardening can be an expensive hobby! 😂 I hope I stick with it, because I am having so much fun now and completely obsessed with my garden!
I am officially in my garden era.
Book 26 of 2025
Read June 1-9
Poll: are you a vegetable gardener?
May 8, 2020
Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Kitchen Garden Revival is a new tutorial and resource guide for gardeners written by Nicole Johnsey Burke. Due out 21st April 2020 from Quarto on their Cool Springs imprint, it's 208 pages and available in hardcover and ebook formats.
This is a multi-resource guide with general chapters for planning, creating, and succeeding at making an edible garden: siting, building, gathering materials, soil building, tending, planting, and harvesting. Each of the chapters include multiple mini-tutorials for garden tasks and supplies. The tools and necessary ingredients are pictured and explained. All of them include step by step instructions in clear and accessible language.
The writing is upbeat and accessible. This would make a super resource for a community garden lending library, school library, or gardener's home library. Many of the tutorials would be appealing and appropriate for children with a teacher/facilitator. Everything is so vibrant and beautiful. It made my fingers itch to get digging, really.
Four stars. Well written and informative.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Kitchen Garden Revival is a new tutorial and resource guide for gardeners written by Nicole Johnsey Burke. Due out 21st April 2020 from Quarto on their Cool Springs imprint, it's 208 pages and available in hardcover and ebook formats.
This is a multi-resource guide with general chapters for planning, creating, and succeeding at making an edible garden: siting, building, gathering materials, soil building, tending, planting, and harvesting. Each of the chapters include multiple mini-tutorials for garden tasks and supplies. The tools and necessary ingredients are pictured and explained. All of them include step by step instructions in clear and accessible language.
The writing is upbeat and accessible. This would make a super resource for a community garden lending library, school library, or gardener's home library. Many of the tutorials would be appealing and appropriate for children with a teacher/facilitator. Everything is so vibrant and beautiful. It made my fingers itch to get digging, really.
Four stars. Well written and informative.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
May 2, 2020
As I expected, when I first looked into the book, it is a complete guide for anyone who is gardening for the first time. Before I got deep into the book, I have to admit; I enjoyed the beautiful photography and intricate gardens created by the authors. That being said, the reader does need to realize that the author isn’t making an inexpensive garden, but something that is aesthetically pleasing, especially for those of us who live in a subdivision or may be dealing with a homeowners association. While this may not seem like a huge deal, a good bit of time, we spent focusing on making raised bed garden and techniques for making it said garden appealing. While there are some areas talking about having a ground garden, it isn’t the book if you want to be as low cost as absolutely possible.
With that out of the way, though, I do have to say that the book itself is filled with so much valuable information. Such as remembering spacing, tools you may need for gardening, and how you need to consider the entire growing season when it comes to seasonal gardening. As well, it goes into quite a bit of care detail, ranging from fertilizers to how to protect your garden from sudden frosts or dangerous weather. Overall, I do think it is a very good book for beginners!
With that out of the way, though, I do have to say that the book itself is filled with so much valuable information. Such as remembering spacing, tools you may need for gardening, and how you need to consider the entire growing season when it comes to seasonal gardening. As well, it goes into quite a bit of care detail, ranging from fertilizers to how to protect your garden from sudden frosts or dangerous weather. Overall, I do think it is a very good book for beginners!
May 26, 2020
When I was a little girl my grandfather grew vegetables and and I could swear that his tomatoes (my favorite) tasted better than any tomatoes we ever got from a grocer. This "homegrown tastes better" attitude continued in my own children after we had a successful garden in our former state.
That garden cost next to nothing. It was a gorgeous, thriving garden but it certainly wasn't social media perfect like these curated examples are.
This book has potential, it does have useful information and beautiful photographs but it just sat the wrong way with me. This is rich people gardening and all gardening needs some good soil, seeds, and a willingness to get your hands dirty. You can do it in your yard, on your fire escape, on your apartment balcony, etc., etc. It doesn't have to be flawless.
Please repeat after me - I really don't need x-amount of money to have the ideal garden for my needs. It can be done for far less with the same results - having a garden that you grew yourself to help sustain your family.
My thanks to Nicole Johnson Burke, Quarto Publishing Group - Cool Springs Press, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
That garden cost next to nothing. It was a gorgeous, thriving garden but it certainly wasn't social media perfect like these curated examples are.
This book has potential, it does have useful information and beautiful photographs but it just sat the wrong way with me. This is rich people gardening and all gardening needs some good soil, seeds, and a willingness to get your hands dirty. You can do it in your yard, on your fire escape, on your apartment balcony, etc., etc. It doesn't have to be flawless.
Please repeat after me - I really don't need x-amount of money to have the ideal garden for my needs. It can be done for far less with the same results - having a garden that you grew yourself to help sustain your family.
My thanks to Nicole Johnson Burke, Quarto Publishing Group - Cool Springs Press, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
March 1, 2023
In The Authors Own Words I found Myself
Ever since I was young, reading my first medieval romance, I've dreamed of my own kitchen garden (and believed with every spec of my being that everyone else should have a kitchen garden too; so of course, the title of this book resonated with my soul.
But not to take chances... I downloaded a Kindle sample.
It was Nicole's words that sold the book:
"When you learn to grow yourself you literally grow your self. The biggest reason to have a kitchen garden is for your happiness. Stepping outside into the garden each day has been proven to help do just that. And there’s no more practical way to push you outside than if the tastiest parts of dinner are growing inside that garden. You have to eat anyway, so why not pursue a mindful activity that not only feeds your mind and soul but also fills your stomach?"
Wow, right?
So I downloaded the book and read cover to cover and then ordered the hard cover for my bookshelves because I knew I would want to return to it again and again... and there's nothing quite like turning the pages of a well loved book on a cold winter's night, is there?
Ever since I was young, reading my first medieval romance, I've dreamed of my own kitchen garden (and believed with every spec of my being that everyone else should have a kitchen garden too; so of course, the title of this book resonated with my soul.
But not to take chances... I downloaded a Kindle sample.
It was Nicole's words that sold the book:
"When you learn to grow yourself you literally grow your self. The biggest reason to have a kitchen garden is for your happiness. Stepping outside into the garden each day has been proven to help do just that. And there’s no more practical way to push you outside than if the tastiest parts of dinner are growing inside that garden. You have to eat anyway, so why not pursue a mindful activity that not only feeds your mind and soul but also fills your stomach?"
Wow, right?
So I downloaded the book and read cover to cover and then ordered the hard cover for my bookshelves because I knew I would want to return to it again and again... and there's nothing quite like turning the pages of a well loved book on a cold winter's night, is there?
April 30, 2024
Every new gardener should start with this
Nicole has an incredible way of explaining the fundamentals of gardening, like no other. I have her other book “Leaves, Roots & Fruit” which I’m yet to read thoroughly but I’ll be going straight into that. I have been gardening for a few years now with pretty dismal outcomes but now I understand more in depth, the relationship between people and plants, I’m confident I’m going to have a different experience this year thanks to Nicole.
Aside from the content, Nicole expresses her knowledge through frank, but fun measures, gifting her know-how, but humbly sharing her past experimental mistakes. It is well written. I have read some gardening books that would put your flowers to sleep.
If you haven’t had much to do with Nicole, find her on YouTube as well (but read this book!!); she is an absolute garden Goddess, full of wisdom. I’m so grateful to have come across her content and literature.
Happy Gardening!
Nicole has an incredible way of explaining the fundamentals of gardening, like no other. I have her other book “Leaves, Roots & Fruit” which I’m yet to read thoroughly but I’ll be going straight into that. I have been gardening for a few years now with pretty dismal outcomes but now I understand more in depth, the relationship between people and plants, I’m confident I’m going to have a different experience this year thanks to Nicole.
Aside from the content, Nicole expresses her knowledge through frank, but fun measures, gifting her know-how, but humbly sharing her past experimental mistakes. It is well written. I have read some gardening books that would put your flowers to sleep.
If you haven’t had much to do with Nicole, find her on YouTube as well (but read this book!!); she is an absolute garden Goddess, full of wisdom. I’m so grateful to have come across her content and literature.
Happy Gardening!
March 8, 2020
This was certainly a fun book to read…and desperately needed to help with the winter blahs. I consider myself a pretty decent gardener, but I found such interesting things in Nicole Johnsey Burke’s book, Kitchen Garden Revival, that I cannot wait to get out and do some rearranging on my garden beds. It was also pretty interesting how she grouped vegetable and plants by groups…that was kind of surprising. The whole idea of the book was how great a veggie garden close (or not close) to your kitchen would be. She offers several examples of garden layouts, building materials, and even tells how to harvest. All in all, this is a very inspiring, uplifting, colorful garden manual.
September 12, 2020
I received this book through the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.
This is a bit of a dense read but is very helpful!
There's a lot of information about starting an edible garden including how to design it, what to plant, when to plant, etc. I really appreciate the formula breakdown of soil since that's something I've been trying to figure out. There's also great pictures of actual gardens which is nice to see instead of just drawings of garden setups.
This book can show you how to set up raised beds, how to design the outline of your garden, and other helpful information. It wasn't exactly what I expected but I'm glad I found this book!
This is a bit of a dense read but is very helpful!
There's a lot of information about starting an edible garden including how to design it, what to plant, when to plant, etc. I really appreciate the formula breakdown of soil since that's something I've been trying to figure out. There's also great pictures of actual gardens which is nice to see instead of just drawings of garden setups.
This book can show you how to set up raised beds, how to design the outline of your garden, and other helpful information. It wasn't exactly what I expected but I'm glad I found this book!
January 13, 2022
I loved the first half of this book. I've long been in a mindset to do gardens as cheaply as possible. But this book opened my eyes to the beauty of creating a higher end looking garden. Some of her garden designs are stunning!
The gardening instructions were less revealing to me, though. They followed the same idea of spending money that doesn't need to be spent. I disagreed with a lot of her advice too (seeds from the store germinate fine and seeds that are older than a year are perfectly usable too!).
This was a different take on gardening than I'm used to, and I have re-thought out my garden plans because of it. But overall, I wouldn't give this book to a first time gardener.
The gardening instructions were less revealing to me, though. They followed the same idea of spending money that doesn't need to be spent. I disagreed with a lot of her advice too (seeds from the store germinate fine and seeds that are older than a year are perfectly usable too!).
This was a different take on gardening than I'm used to, and I have re-thought out my garden plans because of it. But overall, I wouldn't give this book to a first time gardener.
June 24, 2023
What a lovely resource! It contains so much useful advice and information on making a kitchen garden thrive. I borrowed it from the library, so I took copious notes before returning it! I found particularly useful the sections on soil composition and thinning/pruning (things that have always been a bit mysterious to me). The description of the various plant families and what each needs to thrive was also hugely helpful. I have a lot of new knowledge to take with me into the next growing season! The beautiful photos are the icing on the cake. Definitely worth a read for anyone trying to enjoy homegrown produce.
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