the salad garden by joy larkcom. A book review.

Two hundred and eighty-seven pages packed full of salady, delicious information.

I did find the title of this book 'The salad garden' a little ambiguous seeing as this book is much, much more than just growing 'salad' plants.

A comprehensive and thoroughly detailed book, it runs the full course of what to grow and how to grow plants for the veggie garden, broken up into seven chapters including,

• Leafy Salad Plants, which is what I thought this book was going to be all about. (Lettuce, Chard & Spinach etc.)
• Brassica Tribe. (Cabbage and Kale etc.)
• Oriental Greens. (Chinese Cabbage, Pak Choy & Mustards etc.)
• Stems and Stalks. (Celery & Kohl rabi etc)
• Fruiting Vegetables. (Tomato, cucumber & peppers, etc)
• The Onion Family.
• Root Vegetables.

Other chapters included are

• Finishing Touches (Herbs and Flowers) 
• Garden Practicalities, where Joy gets down and dirty covering design, compost, Manure and fertilizers to name a few.
• Last but not least, Salad Making.

A guide to growing more than 200 salad plants,The Salad Garden covers all you need to know, from site preparation to harvesting, detailing special planting techniques, advice on the best varieties (for growing and for flavour) and plenty of tips and tricks for bountiful crops. Joy Larkcom also shows you how to create a beautiful potager garden, with tips such as training tomatoes up attractive spiral supports, planting for theatrical height and edible seed pods.

About the Author

JOY LARKCOM is one of Britain's most respected vegetable garden makers and gardening writers. She has contributed to many magazines and newspapers, radio and TV programmes and has lectured all over the world. Her accolades include the Garden Writer of the Year award (three times); Lifetime Achievement Award from the Garden Writers' Guild in 2003, and the Veitch Memorial Medal for horticulture, the RHS's highest honour, in 1993. Her other titles for Frances Lincoln are Oriental Vegetables and The Organic Salad Garden.

The first book is the fully revised and updated edition of the ‘book of the century’, The Salad Garden by Joy Larkcom. When The Salad Garden was first published in 1984, it was heralded as a game changer by gardeners, chefs and the professional growers who supplied restaurants and supermarkets. In the 30 years since ‘Salad Garden’ burst on the scene, the pace of life has accelerated, and changes have taken place in the horticultural world. This fully revised and updated edition recognises the growing numbers of gardeners with small spaces, and emphasises techniques and varieties suited to patios, window boxes, containers, and small raised beds. Updates include the latest, improved varieties of salad plants, as well as new plants such as Cucamelon, marsh plant Salsola, ‘February orchid’ and exciting new types of sorrel, salad rocket, cabbage and kales among others. Similarly the recipes have been updated with a more contemporary feel, reflecting changes in eating habits; classic recipes rub shoulders with imaginative new ideas. 

Available from Booktopia and other leading book stores.

 Bursting full of useful information for the veggie gardener.