Greenhouse Gardener’s Companion, Revised: Growing Food & Flowers in Your Greenhouse or Sunspace
- ISBN13: 9781555914509
- Condition: USED – VERY GOOD
- Notes:
Product Description
Imagine savoring the taste of your own homegrown tomato, fresh from the vine, in February! How about harvesting fresh organic salad greens year-round, or stepping into a blossom-laden tropical paradise on the coldest of winter days? Today, greenhouses and sunrooms are real living spaces where gardeners spend as much time with a book and a cup of coffee as they do with a watering can and a pair of pruning shoes. In this fully revised edition of a best-selling classic, veteran gardener Shane Smith embraces this new lifestyle approach to greenhouse gardening. … More >>
Greenhouse Gardener’s Companion, Revised: Growing Food & Flowers in Your Greenhouse or Sunspace
This is really a reference book. I can’t imagine anyone reading it cover to cover. For me, the first 90 pages on green house design and operation were exactly what I needed. In the middle, there are 170 pages of commentary, organized by plant, in which the author makes witty and pointed comments on the utility of growing the specific plant in a green house. For example, on Avocados, he writes: “Before you get excited about homegrown guacamole fresh from your greenhouse, I need to tell you that avocados are difficult to get to produce fruit in a greenhouse.” On banana, he states: “Bananas are worth growing solely for the tropical look they bring to a sunspace, and you can also get a harvest from your banana.”
Throughout the other 200 pages, Smith offers guidance (and opinions) on just about everything you might want to know regarding green house gardening. For example, he has his own favorite composting technique and cannot get excited about hydroponics. He is excited about manual pollination techniques, though. He likes to have fun in his greenhouse, and his enthusiasm is contagious.
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I have a lot of greenhouse books- the Ortho greenhouse book and the “Expert Greenhouse” book and others. This book is by far the best. I bought the first release and then upgraded to the (2000) “revised edition.” What a pleasant surprise! It covers all the bases from setting up your greenhouse to growing specific crops. Now I’m eating fresh salads and home grown greenhouse tomatoes. If you want to too- get this book! It even explains organic – chemical free pest controls!
I love this book and am having such fun reading it. Shane Smith shares himself in such a way that although I’ve never met the man, I now think of him as a friend! His writing style is easy going and often very funny and personal and the information he imparts is useful, and obviously comes from years of real experience. Running even a hobby greenhouse can be expensive with all the gadgets, yet he gives good and practical advice for those who don’t necessarily have the means to buy the biggest and best of everything the manufactures would like to sell you! He tells you what you really need to have and know, and what’s just “fluff.” I would recommend that anyone with a hobby greenhouse invest in this book.
This book is like having a good neighbor with a greenhouse or mentor always at your disposal. I really liked how the glazings (what covers the structure)are explained and the new developments in technology that are now available. Benefits and drawbacks of each type of glazing are explored. Great examples about getting the maximum use out of greenhouse space (both in how/what to grow and simple tricks-of-the-trade that only comes with a lot of experience. The information is presented in a detailed but easy to understand manner and is very well organized. You gain experience of the pitfalls other people have gone through like which types of wood preservatives kill plants, without loosing the money. There are good sections on propagation, veggies, flowers (including basic orchid culture) natural insect controls, pruning for best production, etc. I liked all the Appendices expecially all the greehouse supply sources with toll free numbers and web sites all listed. This is a very updated book with lots of goodies. You can tell that the author is someone who really “walks the walk”.
This is the most comprehensive text on greenhouse growing that I have found to date. If you’re like me and want to build/buy a greenhouse, this is the book for you. It covers construction (kits or homemade) in excellent detail. It isn’t a construction “how to” book…it just gives you everything you need to know about the nuances of a greenhouse. It then goes into even further detail on how to operate it. I also found these sections very useful in learning how I want to build the greenhouse itself.
It is very well written and easy to read, including some injected humor. It’s a big book and will answer most any question the fledgling greenhouse grower could imagine.