Garden & Orchard
The Family Garden Journal: A Keepsake of Daily Plans, Observations, and Harvests
by Michelle Lindsey
Published by Homestead on the Range
Develop your green thumb while creating a keepsake! The Family Garden Journal offers an effective way to make the most of your learning experience in the garden. Paperback. Read more »
Rodale’s Ultimate Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening
by Fern Marshall Bradley, Barbara W. Ellis, Ellen Phillips
This old classic just keeps on going! Fruits, vegetables, herbs, ornamental plants—it’s all here, along with a diverse array of natural gardening tips and techniques. Paperback, hardcover, or Kindle. Read more »
The Dirt-Cheap Green Thumb: 400 Thrifty Tips for Saving Time, Money & Resources In and Around the Garden
by Rhonda Massingham Hart
Gardening on a budget doesn’t mean that you have to sacrifice looks or taste! These tips will improve your efficiency every step of the way, from choosing your garden site to using the harvest. Paperback or Kindle. Read more »
FREE: Home Vegetable Gardening: A Complete and Practical Guide to the Planting and Care of All Vegetables, Fruits and Berries Worth Growing For Home Use
by F. F. Rockwell
This book is about a hundred years old, but is still useful to anyone who wants to try their hand at raising their own produce. Quite a few of Rockwell’s favorite plant varieties are even in existence after all these years! Variety of eBook formats. Read more »
FREE: The Home Acre
by Edward Payson Roe
So what if you only have an acre or so to work with, but are eager to grow a little bit of your own food? A garden and maybe even a small orchard are two options you may want to consider. Variety of eBook formats. Read more »
The Christian Kids’ Gardening Guide
by Rebecca Park Totilo
Looking for a gift idea for a young gardener? Here’s a book that may spark an interest. Spiral-bound. Read more »
All New Square Foot Gardening: The Revolutionary Way to Grow More in Less Space
by Mel Bartholomew
Specifically designed for small-scale gardeners, Bartholomew’s method involves building a square box just the right size to reach into, filling it with the perfect soil mix (Mel’s Mix), marking off the planting area into square feet with a grid, and planting only what you really want to grow. Paperback or Kindle. Read more »
Wide Row Planting
by Dick Raymond
This Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin outlines another intensive gardening method that may be attractive to those seeking to grow more in less space with less time and effort. Find out how to plan, plant, maintain, and harvest your wide row garden quickly thanks to the concise format. Paperback or Kindle.
Drought Gardening
by Sue Hakala
Before you have to deal with the next drought, be proactive. Plan ways to make your garden more water-efficient. Paperback or Kindle. Read more »
The Complete Compost Gardening Guide
by Barbara Pleasant and Deborah L. Martin
Composting doesn’t have to be that difficult! There are many different ways to approach composting, and some of them are quite simple. Hardcover, paperback, or Kindle. Read more »
FREE: Cover Crops for Vegetable Growers
by Kansas State University
Excellent resource for choosing the right cover crop for your needs, especially for growers in Kansas. Concise presentation of the characteristics, adaptation, sowing dates, seeding methods, management, and suitability for small growers of a wide range of cover crop species. PDF.
FREE: Integrated Pest Management for Greenhouse Crops
by National Center for Appropriate Technology
Although written with greenhouse crops in view, this free guide can also give you an idea of how IPM can work in other areas of farming. PDF.
FREE: Vegetable Garden Planting Guide
by Kansas State University
A wealth of information in four short pages! Includes vegetable yield estimates, planting information chart, a planting calendar, a troubleshooting guide, and tips for successful gardening. PDF.
FREE: Recommended Vegetable Varieties
by Kansas State University
Several varieties are recommended for each plant type, helping you choose one that will fit your precise needs. The emphasis is on hybrids, but some more traditional varieties are included, as well. PDF
FREE: Building and Using Hotbeds and Cold Frames
by University of Missouri Extension
Explains where to put a cold frame, how to build it, and how to use it. Detailed construction plans are not included, but a link is provided. PDF.
FREE: Black Walnut Toxicity
by Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service
Find out why black walnut trees are a threat to your garden and how to avoid the risk. PDF.
FREE: Record Longevities of Vegetable Seeds in Storage
by E.E. Roos and D.A. Davidson
Seed lifespan records for many vegetable species. Includes practical hints on seed storage. PDF.
FREE: Planning Your Fruit Garden
by Kansas State University
Starts out with the basics of choosing the perfect site for your orchard, then moves on to the facts you need to know about each plant, including its yield, lifespan, and space requirements. A must-read for anyone wanting to start a fruit garden in the Sunflower State. PDF.
FREE: Leaf Curl of Peaches and Nectarines
by Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service
A two-page fact sheet that can help you identify this common orchard fungal disease. Advice on chemical control is also provided. PDF.
FREE: Buffalograss Lawns
by K-State Research and Extension
How to establish and maintain this drought-tolerant grass, along with the pros and cons. PDF.
