Tomorrow is February 1st, which means it is time for me to start checking my seed starting equipment and making sure I have everything I need to begin sowing some of the slower growing plants. I didn’t get to work on Winter sowing at all this year. (Planting coldhardy seeds in containers and leaving them outside all Winter.) Maybe I’ll have things better organized next year.

It is also a good time to start shining up rusty tools and reviewing last year’s garden notes so I can place an order for some fill in the blank spot shrubs and perennials.

If your vegetable garden is your pride and joy, you may want to take a look at Jack Staub’s book, 75 Exciting Vegetables for Your Garden. This book is worth buying just for the lovely watercolor illustrations, which are done by Ellen Buchert. However, the information about each plant is just as well done. Each of the 75 plants has it’s own section. It begins with a quote about the plant or a short historical tidbit and goes on to give a history of the plant’s origins. Growing instructions and cooking information finish off each section.

Staub has written about each plant in such an easy to read and interesting manner that I enjoyed reading about even those vegetables that I don’t plan to grow and I now have a rather alarmingly large list of new plants to try in next year’s garden. In fact, the lovely illustrations have inspired me to add a few of these vegetables to my plans for next year’s flower borders, as well.

75 Exciting Vegetables for Your Garden is sure to please even the most jaded vegetable grower. This book is so nicely done that it makes an ideal gift for plant lovers, expecially when it is tucked into a basket with a few vegetable seed packets and a good pair of gardening gloves. I give this lovely little book five out of five sunflowers.

About the Book:
Title: 75 Exciting Vegetables for your Garden
Author: Jack Staub
Publisher: Gibbs Smith
Date: April 2005
ISBN: 1-58685-250-7
Pages: 240
Price: $24.95

I was pleasantly surprised by Rosalind Creasy’s book, The Edible Flower Garden. This book is much more than a list of edible flowers and a few recipes. It is a book for people who love flowers, but it is also a book for those who have a passion for cooking. Additionally, this book is filled with lovely photos.

The first section of the book, Edible Flower Gardens, discusses how to grow edible flowers and includes a very useful section on identifying and avoiding poisonous plants.

The second, section of the book, Encyclopedia of Edible Flowers, is the largest. This section is very well done. Each plant is clearly photographed to make identification easy. There is a how to grow and how to use section for each plant, as well. Although this encyclopedia does not list every edible flower, it is extensive enough to give the beginner a good start.

The final section of The Edible Flower Garden is Favorite Flower Recipes. The recipes are accompanied by mouth watering photos. I personally loved the recipe for Lavender Shortbreads.

An appendix with basic gardening information and a section on pest control finishes off the book.

If you want to find out more about edible flowers, don’t miss this book. I give The Edible Flower Garden 5 out of 5 Sunflowers.

About the Book:
Title: The Edible Flower Garden
Author: Rosalind Creasy
Publisher: Tuttle
Date: 1999
ISBN: 962-593-293-3
Price: $14.95