Horticultural society makes donation for gardening books

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian

The Meeker County Horticultural Society has given a generous donation to the four libraries in Meeker County to purchase new gardening books. These books have been arriving recently, ready to be checked out.  Members of the horticultural society assisted in choosing the books. 

At the Litchfield Library, the books are Butterfly Gardening with Native Plants: How to Attract and Identify Butterflies by Christopher Kline, The Downsized Veggie Garden: How to Garden Small WhereverYou Live, Whatever Your Space by Kate Copsey, Essential Pruning Techniques:Trees, Shrubs, and Conifers by George E. Brown, Grow Native: Bringing Natural Beauty to Your Garden by Lynn M. Steiner, The Mother Earth News Guide to Vegetable Gardening, Mycorrhizal Planet: How Symbiotic Fungi Work with Roots to Support Plant Health and Build Soil Fertility by Michael Phillips, The Perennial Matchmaker: Create Amazing Combinations with Your Favorite Perennials by Nancy J. Ondra, Raised Bed Revolution:  Build It, Fill It, Plant It… Garden Anywhere by Tara Nolan, RHS Companion to Wildlife Gardening by Chris Baines, Rock Gardening: Reimagining a Classic Style by Joseph Tychonievich, Victory Gardens for Bees: A DIY Guide to Saving the Bees by Lori Weidenhammer, and The Well-Tended Perennial Garden: The Essential Guide to Planting and Pruning Techniques by Tracy Disabato-Aust.

New to the Dassel Library collection are 100 Plants to Feed the Bees: Provide a Healthy Habitat to Help Pollinators Thrive by the Xerces Society, and Teeny Tiny Gardening: 35 Step-by-Step Projects and Inspirational Ideas for Gardening in Tiny Spaces by Emma Hardy. 

The additions to the Grove City Library are Drought-Resistant Planting: Lessons from Beth Chatto’s Gravel Garden by Beth Chatto, and Homegrown Pantry: A Gardener’s Guide to Selecting the Best Varieties & Planting the Perfect Amounts for What You Want to Eat Year-Round by Barbara Pleasant. 

The titles added to the Cosmos Library collection are The Children’s Garden: Loads of Things to Make & Grow by Matthew Appleby, and Glorious Shade: Dazzling Plants, Design Ideas, and Proven Techniques for Your Shady Garden by Jenny Rose Carey.

These new books can be found on the libraries’ shelves of new arrivals.  All of these books are also available to be ordered by anyone in the library system, to be picked up at your nearest library.  Many other gardening books are available on the shelves in our local libraries, some donated in the past by the horticultural society. 

Thank you to the Meeker County Horticultural Society for making so many beautiful and practical books available to the gardeners in our area!

Straw Bale Gardening Workshop at the Library

Join us next Monday evening in the meeting room.  The event is free and you don't need to sign up to attend.

To see a demonstration of the straw bale gardening technique, go to the ACGC High School in Grove City that afternoon.  Again, that workshop is free to attend and you don't need to sign up.

Thinking Spring

by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian
5/19/11

Spring is starting so slowly this year that we’re all getting impatient to get in the garden, in the fields, or just outside in the yard. While you’re waiting for the weather to cooperate, check out some books from our library that can help you plan for the warm weather ahead.

Homegrown Harvest: A Season-by-Season Guide to a Sustainable Kitchen Garden is a new book from the American Horticultural Society. Like the title says, it gives the gardener tips and to-do lists for each season, from early spring to late winter. It’s a beautifully-photographed and practical gardening book.

River Cottage Every Day will motivate you to get creative with farmers’ market offerings and your garden produce when it becomes available. This book is written by British farmer/cook/cookbook author Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, with a focus on using fresh, local, seasonal foods to cook family meals.

If spring means construction to you, the new book Framing a House may be useful. Former Fine Homebuilding editor and builder Roe Osborn created this comprehensive book that’s full of detailed photographs. It covers everything from the planning process and framing the first-floor deck to framing interior walls and installing exterior trim.

The New Backyard Idea Book is full of up-to-date ideas for porches, patios, outdoor rooms, sheds, and pools. If you’re dreaming of a new outdoor space, perhaps a well-organized potting shed or a cozy furnished porch, you’ll be inspired by this book.

If you’d like to do something new with your yard but you want to be frugal or environmentally-conscious, check out The Revolutionary Yardscape: Ideas for Repurposing Local Materials to Create Containers, Pathways, Lighting, and More. You’ll get ideas for turning your old junk into garden décor or junkyard or thrift store finds into pathways, garden lights, or arbors. The reader is encouraged to think outside the box and find creative uses for found objects.

Another do-it-yourself book for improving your outdoor spaces is Landscaping with Stone: A Sunset Outdoor Design & Build Guide. This book gives step-by-step instructions and hundreds of photo examples for using stone to create paths, walls, patios, and other yard and garden enhancements. It also covers plants that complement stonework.

If you’re a real do-it-yourselfer and you enjoy fishing, take a look at Making Wooden Fishing Lures: Carving and Painting Techniques That Really Catch Fish! This book provides patterns and step-by-step instructions for creating over 20 lures, covering surface, floating, diving, and sinking types.

If you’re planning summer travel and you’re over 50, you may find Discounts, Deals, and Steals: For Those Over 50 Who Don’t Want to Pay to Play useful for keeping expenses down. This guide from Readers’ Digest includes tips on getting low rates at hotels, rental car companies, museums, theme parks, and many other venues, travel-related or not.

Finally, if you’re coaching a kids’ baseball team this spring and summer, check out Survival Guide for Coaching Youth Baseball. This new book covers drills for developing fielding, outfield, throwing, pitching, and hitting skills, as well as basics on organizing your team and understanding your role on game days.

Whatever spring and summer activities are occupying your mind, I hope you’ll be able to find something useful about it at the library.