The Ann Lovejoy Handbook of Northwest Gardening: Natural, Sustainable, Organic

The organic gardening movement has been long established among vegetable growers. With the mainstreaming of ideas about environmental and ecological preservation, the organic movement has come to ornamental gardening. And one of the primary spokespeople for that movement is Sasquatchs longtime author Ann Lovejoy. This new book is a complete handbook for ornamental gardening follows the principles and techniques of organic and sustainable gardening. Gardening naturally does mean going without products like Roundup, Weed and Feed, and chemical fertilizers. It also means that gardeners may opt for a selection of native plants that are compatible with local climate and soils. Some of the paradigm shift has to do with getting over the notion that ones garden needs to be as spotless and tidy as something on a magazine cover. Gardening is all about process, and the methods that Ann Lovejoy explains in this book emphasize good soil preparation, composting, drainage, mulching, and right plant selection. This comprehensive book covers the steps from landscaping and designs to soil preparation to planting beds. She covers all of the elements of the garden: ground covers, lawns, shrubs, bulbs, trees—all with an eye to building a sustainable garden that grows without chemical fertilizers and pest control. You can try to make an Arizona backyard look like a Connecticut estate, but its going to take a lot of work, constant maintenance, more water than all the other gardens on your block, and a fat checkbook. Theres a simpler, more gratifying way to garden that is also good for people, pets, and wildlife. This practical book tells gardeners how to achieve that.

Written by veteran Pacific Northwest gardening writer Ann Lovejoy, the revised edition of this handbook contains tips for reducing the workload of a garden through companion planting, matching the appropriate plant to the right environment, mulching, using compost, building healthy soil, making a garden based on reduced watering, and many other techniques. The volume includes a wealth of information about gardening in the Northwest, including lists and descriptions of shrubs, trees, perennials, and annuals. Unfortunately, rather than use inset boxes, the book's designer chose to insert quantities of text in the margins that continue across several pages, making it attract the eye but confuse the reader, who needs to page back to find the beginning of the interesting and pertinent but literally marginalized text. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

In her latest book, Ann Lovely covers every corner of natural gardening in the Pacific Northwest. All the steps are here in detail, from landscaping and design to soil prep and planting beds. She explains organic approaches to ground covers, lawns, shrubs, trees, and more, all with an eye to building a beautiful and sustainable garden that's friendly to people, pets, and wildlife, and that flourishes without chemical fertilizers and pest controls.

Ann Lovejoy is a weekly garden columnist for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and the author of 18 books. She lives on Bainbridge Island, WA. Photographer Janet Loughrey lives in Portland, OR.