Garden, Award-Winning, Home and Garden, Prairies,

The Prairie Gardener’s Go-To for Soil

By (author): Janet Melrose, Sheryl Normandeau
ISBN 9781771513661
Softcover | Publication Date: March 15, 2022
Book Dimensions: 5.5 in. x 8.5 in.
160 Pages
$15.00 CAD
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About the Book

The fifth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series is all about getting good soil—from chemical composition to compost, fertilizer to fungi, and much more.

Soil is a whole world under our feet, full of fun words you may have heard but never quite understood, like hard-pan, humus, loam, and tilth. In this fifth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series, master gardeners Janet and Sheryl provide the basics of soil science so that you can apply it to your gardening endeavours.

They answer your questions on things like

  • How do I test the chemical composition of my garden soil?
  • What’s the difference between organic, inorganic, and natural fertilizers?
  • What do those numbers on packages of fertilizer mean?
  • How and when should I amend my garden’s soil?
  • Hot compost? Cold compost? Worm compost?
  • Egg shells, coffee grounds, banana peels—yes or no?
  • What exactly do mycorrhizal fungi do?

In this handy Q-and-A guide, focused specifically on the prairie region, you’ll learn what particles are dominant in your soil, how to make successful compost, the value of mulch, tips on no-till practices and cover crops, and solutions to problems such as compaction, heavy clay, salinity, and soil-borne diseases. With Janet and Sheryl’s insight you’ll soon be well on your way to healthy, happy soil.

About the Author(s)

Janet Melrose is a garden educator and consultant, and an advocate for Calgary’s Sustainable Local Food System. She is a life-long gardener and holds a Prairie Horticulture Certificate and Home Farm Horticultural Therapy Certificate. She has a passion for Horticultural Therapy and facilitates numerous programs designed to integrate people marginalized by various disabilities into the larger community. She is a regular contributor to The Gardener for Canadian Climates magazine. She lives in Calgary where she runs her education and consulting company, Calgary’s Cottage Gardener.

Sheryl Normandeau is a life-long gardener, and holds a Prairie Horticulture Certificate and a Sustainable Urban Agriculture Certificate. She is a freelance writer specializing in gardening writing with hundreds of articles published. She is a regular contributor The Gardener for Canadian Climates, The Prairie Garden Annual, Herb Quarterly, and many more. She lives in Calgary.

Reviews

Honorable Mention, American Horticultural Society Book Awards

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