Vegetable Gardening For Dummies

Now updated — your guide to growing fresher, healthier food at home Want to start a vegetable garden but don′t have a green thumb? No worries! This practical, hands–on guide gives you the tools to grow and enjoy your own vegetables, from selecting the right spot for your plot to preparing the soil to harvesting and preserving. You′ll confidently plant your veggies, give them the care they need, and pick them at the right time! Go ahead and veg out — from carrots to cabbage and from peppers to potatoes, discover the best varieties of vegetables to grow and the specifics on how to grow them Enjoy other edibles — grow berries and herbs to add flavor to your garden Get down and dirty — review the latest techniques for proper watering, mulching, fertilizing, succession planting, interplanting, and container gardening Say goodbye to pesky pests — keep your plants pest–free and healthy using the newest, safest methods Open the book and find: A new 8–page color insert Updated illustrations The benefits of growing vegetables Ideas for different garden themes A garden–planning guide Different varieties of vegetables All you need to know about seeds and transplants How–tos on techniques for increasing your bounty The best tools of the trade Practical tips on harvesting and storing veggies

Introduction. Part I: Digging Into the Basics of Vegetable Gardening. Chapter 1: Vegetable Gardening 101. Chapter 2: The Popularity and Benefi ts of Vegetable Gardening. Chapter 3: Planning Your Veggie Garden. Part II: Vegging Out. Chapter 4: Tomatoes: The King of Veggies. Chapter 5: Meeting the Tomato’s Cousins: Peppers and Eggplants. Chapter 6: Growing Underground Crops: Carrots, Onions, and Potatoes. Chapter 7: Sweet and Simple: Beans and Peas. Chapter 8: Vigorous Vines: Cucumbers, Melons, Pumpkins, and Squash. Chapter 9: Cool Weather Staples: Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, and Caulifl ower. Chapter 10: A Salad for All Seasons: Lettuce, Spinach, Swiss Chard, and Specialty Greens. Chapter 11: Sweet Corn and an A to T of Other Worthy Veggies. Chapter 12: Growing Berries and Herbs for an Edible Landscape. Part III: Getting Down and Dirty in Your Vegetable Garden. Chapter 13: On Your Mark, Get Set . . . Grow! Chapter 14: Workin’ the Dirt. Chapter 15: Maintaining Your Vegetable Garden. Chapter 16: Surveying Some Cool Farmer Techniques. Chapter 17: Keeping Your Plants Healthy. Chapter 18: Containing Your Veggies. Chapter 19: Harvesting, Storing, and Preserving Vegetables. Part IV: The Part of Tens. Chapter 20: Ten Tools of the Trade. Chapter 21: Nearly Ten Ways to Extend Your Growing Season. Appendix: Planning Guidelines and Other Resources. Index.

Charlie Nardozzi has worked for more than 20 years bringing expert gardening information to home gardeners through the printed page, the Internet, radio, and television. He is currently a radio show host and a guest expert on many nationally syndicated radio shows such as Martha Stewart Living Radio. He was the host for PBS′s Garden Smart and has been a gardening expert on other television shows such as HGTV′s Today at Home.