1. Good Organic Gardening - January-February 2016

PICK OF THE CROP
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Cover to cover
The Australian Native
Garden: A Practical Guide
By Angus Stewart & AB
Bishop, Murdoch Books,
$49.99
“It’s not too much of a stretch,”
writes Angus Stewart, “to say
that planting an indigenous
garden can help save the
planet.” The ABC’s Gardening
Australia guru makes the
point that designing a native
garden — droughtproof,
fire-resistant and attractive
to native fauna — is a small
step towards “climate and pollution control as well as ecological
diversity”. This book, lavishly illustrated with beautiful colour photos,
many by Stewart and researcher AB Bishop, is a step-by-step guide
to achieving that, from the fundamentals of soils and growing
techniques to fertilising and maintenance. The authors look at both
wild habitats and some of our best-designed native gardens as
well as native Australian plantations as far away as California and
Europe. Comprehensive and engagingly written, this is all you need
to know to start saving the planet — one callistemon at a time.
The Produce Companion
By Meredith Kirton & Mandy
Sinclair, Hardie Grant, $49.95
Cookbooks are pretty much
the cutting edge of book
design these days and this
stunningly produced volume
is no exception. But behind its
good looks is a 350-odd-page
celebration of the seasonal
delights of fresh produce, from
garden to plate. “Neither of
us can bear waste,” declare
gardening expert Meredith
Kirton and food writer Mandy
Sinclair. “It seems so ungrateful not to make use of everything.”
Accordingly, the authors divide their book into two parts. Garden
is full of fine information about growing, harvesting and storing
fruit, vegies and herbs, from apples and artichokes to thyme
and zucchinis. Recipes presents more than 100 ways to save
and use each season’s bounty, whether as jams or jellies, sauces
or salsas, chutneys or pestos. A bonus is the handy guide to
pickling and preserving. In short, this book is not just a pleasure
to look at but a valuable resource as well.
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