With a wealth of information and tested advice, this problem-solving treasure gives gardeners every-thing they need to do battle with garden pests, diseases, and weeds—with safe, natural solutions

Combining a troubleshooting approach with encyclopedic coverage and drawing on the most up-to-date research on biological and non- or low-toxic controls, Rodale’s Vegetable Garden Problem Solver features:

• more than 60 vegetables, organized alphabetically from asparagus to zucchini

• individual pest entries on the 30 most common insect pests and how to combat them

• individual disease entries on the 30 most common vegetable plant diseases—including symptoms and causes and ways to keep plants disease-free

• a problem-solving approach to such favorite gardening topics as seed-starting, soil, weather, watering, crop rotation, fertilizing, transplanting, and season extension

• "Beyond the Basics" sidebars for those willing to go the extra mile to eradicate a problem in the garden in a safe and natural way

With numerous tips on prevention so gardeners can spend less time putting out fires and focus instead on producing higher-yielding and more attractive gardens, this will quickly become the trusted companion of every vegetable gardener.

"This encyclopedic collection of gardening advice is, in the Rodale tradition, purely organic, albeit with a no-nonsense, 21st-century attitude. Extensive attention is given to tantalizing techniques such as cover cropping and dealing with deer damage (including what to protect, repellants and scare devices, and 10 kinds of antideer fences). The vegetable entries are equally comprehensive, with sections detailing 'Crop Basics,' 'Secrets of Success,' 'Preventing Problems,' 'Regional Notes' and 'Troubleshooting Problems.' Drawings of pest-infested plants are helpful, and Bradley covers the gamut of solutions, from timed planting to crop rotation, barriers to repellants, wisely advising prevention as the first tactic and using (organic) insecticides as a last resort. The book is extensively illustrated with attractive drawings, although the choice of what to depict is sometimes mysterious; the image of flowering arugula is lovely, for example, although readers may wish they could see a picture of, say a disease called 'aster yellows.' the 'new growth... pale and bushy, forming a witch's broom.' For any gardener who needs to keep track of 'crucial care' for squash, how to control cucumber beetles with a vacuum cleaner or any of the myriad details that arise every day in the garden, this book is a must." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Bradley (editor, Rodale's All-New Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening) offers natural solutions for many common edible garden problems. Covering topics from animal pests to watering, weather, and weeds, the guide includes pest profiles, control methods, resources, recommended reading, and the USDA plant hardiness zone map. The main message: healthy harvests require healthy soils and beneficial insects. The author gardens in upstate New York's Hudson Valley. Annotation ©2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

FERN MARSHALL BRADLEY is a freelance writer and editor with extensive experience in garden and nature books. A former garden book editor for Rodale, she conceived and edited several top-selling titles, including Rodale’s All-New Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening and The Experts Book of Garden Hints. She lives in the Hudson Valley region of New York.