Good Gardening Book for a Beginner

Blakey1982

Hi All

after a semi successful vegetable growing session last spring that i started very late i am hoping to do better this year.

Is there a Book or maybe Computer program (book preferably) that is highly recommended that i can get?

Ideally one that shows everything like:

When to make a vegetable patch (currently my garden is all grass with a little shed)?
How to space things out
When to plant seeds
What to plant in
etc etc etc etc

Something with pictures too that shows when i should consider transferring plants to the ground

as you can see i am very new to this but really keen to get started and continue every year.

Much appreciated and sorry for sounding like a fruit cake

Paul

choille

I started off with this guy's book. I think they're really good without flummoxing you with too much information.

http://www.ciao.co.uk/The_Vegetable_Expert_D_G_Hessayon__32917

Suzy_M

We had a look at Alan Titchmarsh's - The Kitchen Gardener. For us it was too basic but for a beginner it would be ideal (also getting very good customr reviews).
RRP is a bit pricey but Tesco have/had it on offer - or drop very heavy hints for Christmas.

Blakey1982

brilliant thanks both

ktpie

Just looking at this months Gardeners World magazine and it says that in next months (January edition) there will be a Grow your own year planner which looks like it might be uesful. Plus they have their seed offer on again next month, 10 packs of flower and veg seeds for £2.49 p&p.

I like the Carol Klein Grow Your Own Veg and Fruit books, also I got "Allotment month by month" by Alan Buckingham from the library this week and that looks pretty good.

Blakey1982

excellent thanks ktpie

SurferDan

The Dr DG Hessayon book "The Vegetable & Herb Expert" is very good, but
an equally good choice would be the Haynes (thats right the car manual people) "Home Grown Vegetable Manual" by Steve Ott.
ISBN No 9781844256495
Cover price is £17.99 but can be found for approx £12.50 - try "The Book Depository" or "WH Smiths" online.
Happy growing

the_cat

As a newbie allotment owner I have been browsing books in the library and also online.
I have found it most useful to 'see' someone doing what is described. Found a good series on youtube. Search under 'clare's allotment'

foxgloves

The gardeneing 'bible' in this house is Geoff Hamilton's Organic gardening book. It covers everything. We've got lots of other books but this always seems to be the one we go back to when we need to check how to do something. I can remember the exact day I bought it. I had got no money & mounting debts & could not affiord to buy it when I saw it in WHS (it was about £17). However I still bought it (that was before I reformed!). When I got home, I decided to have a walk around my garden to see if any green shoots were starting (January)...not a lot, but thought as I was out there I might as well pick up a bit of litter that was under my conifers. It was a rather damp stray £10 note! Goodness knows where it could have come from. Anyway, I started to feel less guilty about buying the book, then that same night, I won £10 on the lottery too!! Decided then I was DEFINITELY supposed to have the book & it has been really useful. Still use it more than 10 years later!

Blakey1982

I've asked for a few books for xmas and keep getting asked which one so with this advice i'm hoping for 2 maybe 3 of them that you've mentioned.

We have a rather large garden 60ft by 30ft in a rectangle shape with nobody behind us (a stream and golf club beyond that) so i'm really eager this year.

I've seen those "grow in pots" things you get from supermarkets etc but want some full size beds and greenhouse to grow things. BUT as a complete beginner i wouldnt know where to really start or when to plant and when to move things from pot to ground, and then what sort of ground.....and so on

I really appreciate all the help on this

valentina

Agree about the Alan Titchmarsh book, WHSmith have it on offer online for £6

Also I would recommend River Cottage Handbook No 4 'Veg Patch'

When you get the bug (!!), I think the most comprehensive book for veg growing is Joy Larkcom's ' Grow your own vegetables' - no pics, but everything you need all in one small paperback.