Gaia's Garden (Toby Hemenway)

"A book that will be absolutely necessary in the world ahead."—Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy and Hope, Human and Wild The revised and updated edition of the classic guide to ecological gardening for home gardeners to achieve more beautiful, abundant and forgiving gardens of any size Featuring new guidance on urban permaculture for people with limited growing space Many people think that ecological gardening—which involves growing a wide range of edible and other useful plants—can take place only on a large, multiacre scale. But it’s fun and easy even for beginners to create a backyard ecosystem by assembling communities of plants that can work cooperatively and perform a variety of functions, including: • Building and maintaining soil fertility and structure • Catching and conserving water in the landscape • Providing a rewilded and biodiverse habitat for beneficial insects, birds, and animals • Growing an edible “forest” that yields seasonal fruits, nuts, and other foods Best of all, once it’s established, an ecological garden will reduce or eliminate most of the backbreaking work that’s needed to maintain the typical lawn and garden. Gaia’s Garden has sparked the imagination of home gardeners the world over by introducing a simple message: working with nature, not against her, results in more beautiful, abundant, and forgiving gardens. You can apply basic permaculture principles to make it more diverse, more natural, more productive, and more beautiful no matter what size garden or yard you have. "An amazing achievement showing how we can and must live in harmony with nature!"—Paul Stamets, author of Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World