Growing Vegetables West of the Cascades: The Complete Guide to Natural Gardening
by Steve Solomon
Average Customer Review:
Paperback (01 March, 2000)
list price: $18.95 -- our price: $12.89
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Reviews (8)

Re-ignite your garden
I've only been gardening for a year or so, but in that short time I've read more than my share of gardening books and advice online.Mr. Solomon's book is a great inspiration -- he provides no-nonsense, practical, honest advice about how to plan for and expect the best from your garden.After reading this, I finally feel mentally equipped to get the most from my backyard.

However, I'll agree with another reviewer: this book has a definite "homestead" bent which doesn't apply well to us city folk.While the self-sufficiency angle is interesting and doesn't lead to any irrelevant tangents, it would be nice for a chapter or two on planning and management for small (less than 200 square feet) gardens.Maybe in the next edition?

The book is well-organized, and the writing is pleasant and easy to follow.If you live in western Oregon, Washington, or BC, then this book is a must-read.

My Gardening Bible
I loved this book! I knew very little about growing vegetables and needed step by step instructions and confidence. I even ordered the lettuce from Territorial Seed Co. on the last page and they grew well! If you live in the Northwest and want to grow vegies organically and as a bonus, harvest year round, and don't want to spend alot of money on a book, buy this book!

If you garden in the city
I read the book nearly cover to cover and was disappointed at how little direct help I found for vegetable gardening in my small Seattle back yard.Since the majority of folks living "West of the Cascades" don't garden on the acreage the author enjoys, I felt a little duped by the title.I know I'd appreciate a chapter in the book dedicated to those of us who garden in 200 square feet or less. ... Read more

Isbn: 1570612404
Sales Rank: 61569
Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Northwest Coast of North Ameri    5. Northwest Coast of North America    6. Organic gardening    7. Regional - General    8. Regional - Pacific Northwest (OR, WA)    9. Vegetable gardening    10. Vegetables   

The Maritime Northwest Garden Guide
by Carl W. Elliott Rob Peterson Megan Ernst
Average Customer Review:
Paperback (01 February, 1998)
list price: $10.00
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Reviews (1)

Maritime Northwest Garden Guide
As a newcomer to the Northwest, I was delighted and relieved to find the Maritime Northwest Garden Guide. It is a planting calendar for year-round organic gardening and so much more. Growing in this climate is so vastlydifferent from my experiences in the Midwest that sometimes I felt like acomplete novice.Month-by-month, the Garden Guide provides a nearlyexhaustive list on which seeds are appropriate to sow indoors, sowoutdoors, and sow under cloches. Following their suggestions yieldsyear-round produce. It's full of great reminders that January is the timeto start planning your crop rotation, February is the time to have yoursoil tested, March is the month to begin the soil amendments and April isthe time to begin hardening off. What? you don't know what "hardening off"means? You really need to buy this book! ... Read more

Isbn: 0931380170
Sales Rank: 1040566
Subjects:  1. Calendar    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening / Organic    4. General    5. Gardening    6. Northwest, Pacific    7. Organic    8. Organic gardening    9. Pacific Northwest   

Organic Gardening
Average Customer Review:
Magazine
list price: $29.94 -- our price: $24.96
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• Magazine Subscription

Reviews (7)

AMEN TO "A SHADOWOF ITS FORMER SELF"
i too have stacks of organic gardening and farming. i love to go back and visit Robert Rodale.Too bad it has become a political bullypulpit. I would not subscribe again with out a major change.

A shadow of its former self
I have read and subscribed to Organic Gardening (and Farming)since mid-70's but dropped my subscription in and around 2000. I pick up an issue now and then in newstands, just to "check in" and hope for a return to the "good ole days". The publication used to be superior (find old issues in a library to see the what I mean - especially the 70's) and gave tons of information to all levels of gardeners (some issues used to have 100's of pages, almost all text - though in a smaller format). I still have old copies and to this day find inspiration in those articles. Now its just LARGE glossy pictures, sparse writing, reduced page counts, basic gardening info/lists and more than a dose of Maria Rodale's opinion/politics. I guess their surveys/advertisers tell them this is what "organic" gardeners want...but I would bet Robert Rodale (who edited the mag back in 70's and early 80's) would be upset to see how his daughter has screwed up the magazine. Save your subscription and read the old ones at a library. Yeah...the varieties will be out of date (that's what a seed catalog is good for and/or seedsavers.org) but the info is pure "organic gardening".

Organic but thin
Still the leader for US Organic resources, techniques, and current resources, _Organic Gardening_ has been deeply downsized since its inception as _Organic Gardening and Farming_ decades ago.It now contains beautiful pictures, but not much in-depth information in each issue besides A) a plant that can't grow in your zone, B) birds that you'll never see, C) yet another article about tomatoes and D) occasionally good information to help you grow a healthier garden (celery growing tips, Clopyralid in municipal compost heaps).

I subscribe to this magazine primarily to support the EXTREMELY informative Forums found on its webiste, www.organicgardening.com under 'gardener2gardener'. ... Read more

Asin: B00005Q7DO
Sales Rank: 288
Subjects:  1. Gardening (Garden, Gardens)    2. Organic Foods   

Gardening Under Cover: A Northwest Guide to Solar Greenhouses, Cold Frames, and Cloches
by William Head
Average Customer Review:
Paperback (01 October, 1989)
list price: $12.95
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Reviews (1)

Good information on extending the growing season in the NW
The book was helpful, with ideas for extending the growing season in the Pacific Northwest with several simple designs for cloches and coldframes.However, it is noteable that almost half of the book is devoted togreenhouse gardening in and designs for a "solar" greenhouse. Other northwest gardening experts I have read (ex., Steve Solomons,"Gardening West of the Cascades") state that "solar"greenhouses do not work in our perpetually cloudy winter climate,greenhouses must be all glass. ... Read more

Isbn: 0912365234
Sales Rank: 689921
Subjects:  1. Cloche gardening    2. Cold-frames    3. Gardening / Horticulture    4. Gardening/Plants    5. Greenhouse Horticulture    6. Greenhouse gardening    7. Greenhouses    8. Northwest, Pacific    9. Solar greenhouses   

Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long
by Eliot Coleman Kathy Bray Barbara Damrosch
Average Customer Review:
Paperback (01 October, 1999)
list price: $24.95 -- our price: $16.47
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Reviews (11)

good info buried in blah blah blah
The author likes to tell stories and reminisce. There is good and helpful information in this book. But I was often frustrated while trying to find it.If this book was half of it's length (cutting out all of the non- technical info)I would find it twice as effective.

Cold hardy winter vegetables
It is probably not easy writing a second book on a similar subject.I read and reviewed Eliot Coleman's first book on Organic Gardening.And as you can read in that first review,I just loved that book.The second book,I would have called "Cold Hardy Winter Vegetables",rather than the Four-Season Harvest.
Of course there is a list for growing vegetables all year round.But apart from the list what one can grow during the colder season,it is just pretty much a recapitulation of the first work Coleman put on paper.
So I still give this book 4 Stars.Because if you have not read his first one,then of course it would be a great book.

The author is too self involved - not enough real info
After seeing the book here on Amazon I thought I wanted it. While looking for another book at the local library I found this book in it's revised and updated edition. I was sadly disappointed. It is more a travellog than a how-to on gardening. I read several other similar books and the best one I found was "Solar Gardening" by Leandre Poisson from Chelsea Green. ... Read more

Isbn: 1890132276
Sales Rank: 5970
Subjects:  1. Gardening    2. Gardening / Horticulture    3. Gardening/Plants    4. Organic    5. Organic Gardening    6. Vegetable Crops    7. Vegetable gardening    8. Vegetables   

Lettuce in Your Kitchen: Where Salad Gets a Whole New Spin and Dressings Do Double Duty
by John Willoughby Chris Schlesinger
Average Customer Review:
Paperback (01 October, 1998)
list price: $10.00
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Editorial Review

If you have a thing for lettuce, a craving for greens, a garden begging to be eaten, or just a plain and simple passion for salads, Lettuce in Your Kitchen is the book for you. Coauthors Chris Schlesinger and John "Doc" Willoughby have written what might be the definitive volume on salads. Everything from the history of greens--they appear in Egyptian tomb drawings that are at least 4,500 years old--to a myriad of recipes is included. And these aren't iceberg-lettuce salads smothered in Thousand Island dressing, either. The authors believe in the full-meal deal in which salads can be appetizer, entree, or even dessert.

How about a Watercress and Grilled Chicken Salad with Mangoes and Grapes livened up with a curry-lime vinaigrette? Chris and Doc are masters of juxtaposition and tend to be more adventurous than classicists like Alice Waters. Try the Bitter Greens with Fiery Seared Squid, or Escarole with Papayas and Fried Plantains for a culinary experience not soon to be forgotten. Their approach isn't always as dramatic. There is an excellent chapter on simple salads, and gardeners looking for new ideas in late summer will appreciate the chapter on tomatoes. The most refreshing declaration the authors make is that there are no hard and fast rules in making salads. They openly encourage experimentation and substitution from the outset, and 100 different dressing recipes provide an exponential level of combinations. The ingredients guide references greens and other major ingredients, and shows what can be substituted in those desperate moments when arugula just can't be found. This is the third book from Chris and Doc. Their earlier works, Big Flavors of the Hot Sun and The Thrill of the Grill were both critically and popularly acclaimed, and Lettuce in Your Kitchen continues their tradition of bold, innovative cookbooks. --Mark O. Howerton ... Read more

Reviews (6)

The Only Salad Cookbook Worth Owning
I bought this book in hopes of having a real tool for eating better. So many cookbooks have a few ho-hum salad recipes here and there, and some of the other salad cookbooks I've seen have recipes that are just too elaborate for everyday cooking. This book has a broad range of interesting and tasty salads that are easy to make. You will never get bored, and your friends and guests won't either. The dressing part of each recipe makes a large amount so that you can have extra to use later (I always make half of the dressing recipe, toss the salad with just a few tablespoons, and still have a lot left over). So if you can only muster the energy to throw some lettuce in a bowl some night, you will have great leftover dressing to toss it with. Since I've been using this book, I have stopped buying bottled dressing and have even started growing my own salad greens.

Lucious lettuces!
Who would have thought this small book on greens, salads and dressings would be indespensible?But it is!Do these authors ever go wrong?Every single cookbook of theirs', which I have read, is far and away the best on its respecive subject.

These salads rock!
Whoever thought you could say that about a salad?But they do. They rock!For a niche cookbook, this one has a lot of variety in flavors.Each recipe gives lettuce alternatives, which is helpful if you live in an area that doesn't carry a large selection of lettuces.Some of the combinations are quiet unique, such as one concoction of watermelon, red onion and vinegar - sounds a little kooky, but once you taste it, it all makes perfect sense.This is a great book to try interesting and healthy new salad combinations.I hope you enjoy it. ... Read more

Isbn: 068816062X
Subjects:  1. Cooking    2. Cooking / Wine    3. Courses & Dishes - Salads    4. Salad dressing    5. Salad greens    6. Salads   

OXO Good Grips 32480 Salad Spinner
Average Customer Review:
Kitchen
list price: $35.00 -- our price: $24.95
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Editorial Review

Washing and drying leafy vegetables has never been simpler or more fun than with this gadget. One hand is all you need to press the soft, cushioned knob to start the spinning; when the built-in brake is applied and the job is done, the basket and bowl can be taken apart and used separately. The knob locks down for easy storage, and the spinner is dishwasher-safe. Use this tool with lettuce, raw spinach, broad-leafed herbs, and greens--they end up clean and oh-so-dry, and the drier your leaves, the better salad dressings will adhere and the less mushy your sandwich bread will become. Puddles at the bottom of your salad bowl disappear... Good Grips products are moderately priced and have won the Tylenol/Arthritis Foundation Design Award. --Laurie Notaro ... Read more

Features

• Dishwasher-safe on top rack
• Fun, simple operation requires only one hand
• Nonslip knob is soft and cushioned; brake button stops spinning with a fingertip
• Great for washing and drying lettuce, herbs, greens
• Plunge-style knob locks down for easy storage

Reviews (159)

Worked great until it broke
This was a wonderful salad spinner for the several months it worked.Then it broke.In my kitchen, very few things break.The occasional wooden spatula after fifteen years of use is fine but things tend not to break unless I drop them.This is my second Oxo product that broke while I was using it (the other one was a knife--yes, a knife snapped in two while I was cutting).I still love my Oxo peeler but with two out of three of my Oxo products breaking, I'm done with Oxo for the most part.

worked well until it exploded
I bought this item and used it for about 2 months, then It exploded while I was spinning a salad and was impossible to repair. I went on to buy a Tupperware salad spinner (green) and have been using it for four years with no problems at all.

Agree it's great ... but it has 1 huge problem
This has got to be the best salad spinner ever, on that point I agree with all the other rave reviews. But just try picking this unit up off a shelf when you have wet hands--or even dry hands!!!!!!! It's difficult!!!! Just wish they would put a small, very small, handle, ridge or inset on the bowl!!! Please!!! ... Read more

Asin: B00004OCKR
Subjects:  1. Kitchen    2. Utensils    3. Gifts    4. Cooking    5. Salad Spinners