REVIEW: The Earth Knows My Name: Food, Culture, and Sustainability in the Gardens of Ethnic Americans by Patricia Klindienst

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The Earth Knows My Name: Food, Culture, and Sustainability in the Gardens of Ethnic Americans by Patricia Klindienst

The Earth Knows My Name: Food, Culture, and Sustainability in the Gardens of Ethnic Americans by Patricia Klindienst

I loved this book.

Inspired by an old photograph of her family Patricia Klindienst traveled the United States to explore how people use gardens to connect to their heritage. She visited gardens tended by Native Americans, refugees from Asia, Hispanics who followed Conquistadors to the Southwest, and descendants of African slaves on coastal islands. At each new garden Klindienst explores how people literally put down roots in their new homes by the gardens they grew.

I highly recommend this book for fans of Angelo Pellegrini and Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.

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Books about gardening for mud season

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I went to write a post about gardening books to read when you’re waiting for gardening season to start only to find I had already written it. Here’s a repost from 2016.

We've had some warm days this month, and the temptation to go outside and plant something is strong. It's a fool's errand though. Anything I plant will just drown in the wet soil, and more mud will end up on my shoes than on the ground. Here's what I'm reading until it's safe to work in the garden.

The Food Lover's Garden by Angelo Pellegrini - this is an old book that doesn't read like an old book. If you love to grow vegetables it's worth seeking out.

The 100 mile diet made popular by Plenty and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle isn't as popular as it once was, but these books are worth going back to.

The Backyard Homestead will make you want to plow your lawn, and grow paw-paws, tree nuts, and all sorts of other crazy things. That's not a bad thing!

What are your favorite books about gardening?

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Books for little gardners

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As any good parent would, I'm trying to brainwash my kids into liking all of the things I do -- mostly the Red Sox, hiking, reading, and gardening.  These books about the garden and vegetables help with the last two.

Cheers for a Dozen Ears: A Summer Crop of Counting is a rhyming book with vibrant pictures.  It makes for a great read aloud.

A Cottage Garden Alphabet doesn't have much of a story, but is wonderful to flip though on a rainy day with your favorite little person.

Eating the Alphabet has long been a favorite of ours -- and my go to baby shower or 1st birthday gift.  The pictures are so lovely, I sometimes find myself looking through it when my kids aren't around.


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New gardening books to beat the winter blues

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Every day this week my mailbox has been stuffed with gardening catalogues. Winter just started and already I'm dreaming of spring. Before I start my seeds, I'm going to see what's new in the gardening section of my library. Here's a few that I'm hoping I'll find.

A Wilder Life by Celestine Maddy

The Urban Farmer by Curtis Stone

The Herbal Apothecary by JJ Pursell

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