Fabulous Food From Every Small Garden
Mary Horsfall, 2009
CSIRO PUBLISHING

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Clearly, if unimaginatively laid out the Fabulous Food From Every Small Garden provides a wealth of information on different techniques and products that can assist the size-challenged-but-keenness-endowed vegie gardener. Some of the techniques are tried and tested, while others, such as aquaponics, are relatively new to Australian backyards. Projects vary in size and complexity, meaning that there’s food for thought for the apartment dwelling amateur as well as those with a bit more land and experience.

As you would expect from CSIRO there’s plenty of technical detail, especially regarding soil and nutrients, however on the whole the text is very chatty and reader friendly. There are some inexplicable omissions in the vegie growing chapters, like zucchini and eggplant – which are described as ‘not well liked’, while some relatively uncommon sub/tropical fruit get a guernsey.
A welcome inclusion is a section on how to grow bush tucker such as Midgenberries, Finger Limes and Warrigal Greens, all of which are becoming increasingly commercially available.
A basic how-to with some interesting additions, Fabulous Food From Every Small Garden is a good beginner’s guide to vegie gardening in Australia.

Creating Your Eco-Friendly Garden
Mary Horsfall, 2009
CSIRO PUBLISHING

A second title from Mary Horsfall and CSIRO, Creating your Eco- Friendly garden is another basic guide for gardening in Australian conditions. The author writes from personal experience of developing an ordinary suburban block, but draws on earlier experience running a larger property and writing for self-sufficiency magazine, Grass Roots.

For those starting from scratch, this book follows the process of conceptualising, planning, developing and maintaining an eco-friendly garden. The book covers many tips and tricks for increasing the biodiversity of home gardens, from soil management to plant choice and watering strategies. The concepts are all relatively straightforward and for the most part are strategies that are becoming relatively mainstream. Avoiding synthetic pesticides, installing grey water recycling systems, seed saving, mulching and working with microclimates are increasingly familiar concepts to even novice gardeners.

In the face of inaction on climate change on a widespread political scale, many are turning to earth-friendly strategies achievable at home like using eco-friendly gardening to increase biodiversity in suburban backyards. Particularly as Creating Your Eco-Friendly Garden comes from CSIRO it is disappointing that there is not some evidence-based analysis of the impact of the recommended products and techniques of ‘eco-friendly’ gardening when implemented on a widespread scale. The book however is a clear, easy to read guide to basic gardening techniques.

Zoe Carter