Vertical Vegetable Gardening - Book Review and Giveaway

There are several perks involved in being friends with an author. I have generally found writers to be intelligent, interesting individuals who use proper grammar and know how to correctly use the semi colon - and aren't afraid to do so! But the main benefit to being friends with an author is that they give you free copies of their books - sometimes even before they are published.  

I am proud to call Chris McLaughlin a friend. She is all of the above, in addition to being witty and down to earth.  She not only gave me a copy of her new book Vertical Vegetable Gardening to read and review, but she is also providing a second copy to give away to one lucky reader!

Now I am the first to admit that I don't possess much of a green thumb. I manage to do okay with most herbs, especially mint which is nearly impossible to kill anyway, and some basic vegetables, but I tend to  be much more enthusiastic early in the spring.  I love to pore over seed catalogs, mosey down the aisles of seedlings at the garden center and carefully plant what I've bought in the warm, fertile soil on a sunny spring day.  I faithfully water my garden....at first.  Then life gets in the way. There are chicks hatching, lawns to be mowed, outdoor projects I can't wait to start.  Then when the weeds start popping up, the brutal southern sun requires shading the tender plants and demands more frequent watering, my garden starts to suffer.

I keep telling myself I am going to build a cold-frame so I can start planting earlier in the spring and hope to harvest vegetables before it gets too hot, and I think after reading this book I am now sufficiently inspired to actually build one this winter.

Chris starts out her book by writing that vertical gardening requires less water and less weeding.  Okay, now that's more like it! I think I am liking this idea already.  Space is not an issue for us. We have plenty of land on which to plant, but as Chris points out, there are other benefits to planting UP instead of OUT besides the space factor.

This book puts such a creative twist on traditional gardening. I really dove right into it and now my wheels are turning.  One trip to the local dump or Goodwill, or even our garage, and I will be able to find containers, stakes and other implements to start my own vertical gardens using repurposed items.  

There are sections in the book on cold frames and hoop houses, trellises and lattices. I love this idea of using an old stepladder as a 'planter'.

Even cement blocks can become a container for plants.

There is a whole section on herbs.  I love growing herbs, as I mentioned earlier. But I never thought to grow them inside such everyday items as old rubber boots and hanging shoe bags.  

In addition to sections on growing berries, fruit trees and vegetables, Chris also covers composting and manure, soil, natural pest control and other issues important to gardeners.   I would definitely classify myself a gardening novice and I appreciated that this book, while covering what I would consider 'advanced' topics such as espalier and companion planting, still kept things simple for beginning gardeners such as myself.

I can't wait for spring so I can implement some of these ideas!  My first project will be a vertical herb garden growing on the side of our chicken coop for easy access to put herbs in our hens' nesting boxes.  I am thinking something like this would be perfect.

~photo courtesy The Vertical Vegetable Garden~

If you aren't already convinced that you NEED to read this book, read what Kate from Farmhouse38 has to say about the book. She says it SO much better than it do!

Now for the giveaway.  One luck winner will be chosen at random to win a copy of Vertical Vegetable Gardening written by Chris McLaughlin which comes out today.

Vertical Vegetable Gardening: A Living Free Guide by Chris McLaughlin Paperback: 288 pages Publisher: ALPHA (December 31, 2012) ISBN: 978-1615641833

To enter:

1) Be sure you are a follower of this blog (via email, networked blogs or Google Friend Connect)

2) Like Fresh Eggs Daily on Facebook

3) Visit Vertical Vegetable Gardening on Facebook and leave a comment for Chris
4) Leave a comment below letting me know that you would like to win (be sure to include some way to contact you if you are the winner)

That's it! One winner will be chosen from all entrants who satisfy the entry requirements.
Contest ends Saturday, January 5th.

GOOD LUCK!

If you can't wait to see if you are the winner, you can purchase a copy of this book, as well as several others by Chris McLaughlin, here:

      

Visit The Vertical Vegetable Gardener HERE on Facebook.
Visit Chris, A Suburban Farmer HERE on Facebook.

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