The First-Time Gardener: Growing Vegetables

This book has a lot of really great information from when to plant, how much to water, what to dirt to use, etc. A lot of this information is great for gardeners who has been growing their own vegetables for awhile not just new ones. I highly recommend this book!

This book is very useful for beginner gardeners. Inside there are a lot of answers to beginner questions. And after reading this book, you will know where to start. I would say there's a lot of information even for gardeners that are not complete beginners. You will learn what to grow, growing from seeds, growing in different seasons, harvesting, and more.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this! All opinions are my own.

This book had lots of beautiful pictures and gives a good overview on starting a veggie garden. My only critique is that it focuses more on large space gardening and I wish it had more tips and options for small space gardeners.

I loved this book, it is very informative. I've only had a garden for the last two years and most of the information I've used had been from Jess and her Youtube channel, Roots and Refuge. This book is just an expansion of all of her knowledge from YouTube and I will be buying this when it's released. The pictures in this book are gorgeous and make me very excited for my garden this summer. This book would be great for gardeners new and old because of all the great information.

Jessica Sowards’ book for growing vegetables is a lovely primer for those who dream of starting their own backyard garden. This easy-to-navigate gardening guide features full color pictures alongside Jessica’s encouraging garden wisdom and her tips for growing a full harvest. She covers topics including soil health, pest management, heirloom varieties, and harvesting. Anyone who is a fan of Jessica’s YouTube channel will enjoy this book. Even though I’m no longer a beginner gardener, I found this book to be informative and helpful.
#TheFirsttimeGardenerGrowingVegetables #NetGalley

I found this book to be so helpful! Homesteading and becoming more self sustaining is a big interest of mine so I'll take what I learned from this book and it'll go a long way!

This is a gorgeous, helpful, encouraging book not just for first time gardeners. It's packed with beautiful photos of the author's own gardens and lots of info.

There were a few areas where I wished there was more info, like Sowards recommends straw and hay (less so) as mulch but she also says she is an organic gardener and I have never been able to find any straw or hale that wasn't treated with Roundup and/or other really problematic herbicides and chemicals (see https://www.the-compost-gardener.com/... and https://simplysmartgardening.com/best...).

There were a few other places where I wish she had included more information (like other ways of creating beds like lasagna gardens and no-till gardening and a little less focus on killing bugs even with organic methods) but those are small things and this is still one of my favorite new gardening books that I've read in a while (and I read a lot of them). Sowards' cheerful attitude, beautiful photos and clear knowledge all create a book that's a real delight.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for review.

The First-time Gardener: Growing Vegetables by Jessica Sowards is a great resource for first time or intermediate gardeners. The layout makes it easy to read and understand gardening fundamentals. The pictures are beautiful! It made me look forward to starting my garden this spring.

The First Time Gardener is an important guide for anyone interested in growing their very own garden this summer. Sowards’s book provides important information for any beginner and even if you've dabbled in gardening before, The First Time Gardener offers gardening insight for everyone. This is 100% a book you can refer back to for years. The layout is perfect, starting with everything you need to know about starting seeds, soil, fertilizer, and watering, and then how to keep up your summer garden and have a bountiful harvest. Sowards is a great writer and all the information is easy to follow.

On a personal note, I love gardening! While I’m a book blogger, not a garden blogger, and far from an expert, I found The First Time Gardener an incredibly helpful guide. I learned so much from Sowards’s expertise and can’t wait to put what I learned into practice. After spending many hours last year searching for gardening information all over the internet, Sowards book is definitely something I wish I had. Having one book to be able to refer back to for information is such a useful resource for gardeners.

One of the things I love about The First Time Gardener is that it’s fun to read! Sowards’s love for gardening shines through and makes the book a true joy to read. I think imagining all the fresh veggies I will have by the end of summer is part of what makes the reading experience enjoyable. Another bonus is the bright, beautiful photos that fill every page. Sowards gave me so much garden inspiration!

Rating 5/5: I highly recommend this book for anyone looking to begin their own garden or novices looking for a bit of wisdom from a pro. The First Time Gardener will leave you looking forward to spring so you can start planting!

The First-time Gardener is a beginner+ guide to vegetable gardening by Jessica Sowards. Due out 2nd March 2021 from Quarto on their Cool Springs Press imprint, it's 176 pages (print edition) and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.

This is an information dense but also upbeat and accessible guide for readers planning and creating their first vegetable gardens. There's a lot of general garden siting/building/planning information, so this is also a valuable resource for readers looking for info on growing flowers, herbs, and other non-veggie crops. There's also a sister volume with the same layout from the same publisher releasing roughly the same time which is flower specific in focus.

The book has a logical layout: a short (easily understandable, not too technical) intro on botany and some good advice about the willingness to learn and keeping notes is followed by step-by-step chapters on siting and planning, soil building, seeds and plant material, implementation, seasons, garden management, harvesting and planning for next year. The author is very upbeat and encouraging and I found myself smiling and nodding along at places reading the text.

The photography is simply gorgeous. Nearly every page has full color photographs and illustrations.

This was a useful resource. It would make a superlative choice for public or school library acquisition, community garden groups, home library, and for homesteaders and home gardeners. Five stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.