Grow Now: How We Can Save Our Health, Communities, and Planet―One Garden at a Time

Length: 248 pages
Edition: 1
Language: English
Publisher: Timber Press
Publication Date: 2022-02-01
ISBN-10: 1643260472
ISBN-13: 9781643260471
Sales Rank: #137924 (See Top 100 Books)

“Grow Now is an earth manual that applies to everyone, everywhere. Regenerating life begins with our hands, the soil, and our heart. Take this book and go outside, stay outside, and transform.” —Paul Hawken, author of Drawdown and Regeneration

Did you know you can have a garden that’s equal parts food source and wildlife haven? In Grow Now, Emily Murphy shares easy-to-follow principles for regenerative gardening that foster biodiversity and improve soil health. She also shows how every single yard mirrors and connects to the greater ecosystem around us.

No-dig growing, composting and mulching smartly, and planting a variety of edible perennials that attract bees and butterflies are all commonsense techniques everyone can use to grow positive change. You’ll also find detailed advice on increasing your nature quotient, choosing plants that cycle more carbon back into the soil, selecting a broader variety of vegetables and fruits to improve overall soil fertility, rethinking space devoted to lawns, and adding companion plants for pollinators to rewild any plot of land.

Exquisitely photographed and filled with helpful lists and sidebars, Grow Now is an actionable, hopeful, and joyful roadmap for growing our way to individual climate contributions. Gardening is climate activism!

Cover
Dedication
Introduction: The Simple Act of Growing
Grow a Garden, Change Your Life
    Hope from Action
    Planet A: The Biodiversity and Climate Crises
    The Spaces We Plant and Grow Make a Difference
    Change Starts at Home
    Nurture Your Nature
    The Biodiversity Hypothesis
    Your Nature Quotient
    The Power of Our Patchwork of Gardens
Go Beyond Organic
    Carbon Cycling Basics
    Revive. Restore. Regenerate.
    Regenerative Organic Agriculture for Home Gardens
    How Regenerative Gardening Works
    The No-Dig Approach
    Getting Started with Compost
    The Right Compost System for You
Lay the Groundwork
    Planning Where You’ll Grow
    Preparing Ground for No-Dig Planting
    Raised Garden Beds and Boxes
    Filling Small Containers
    Planning What You’ll Grow
Plants for People and the Planet
    Traditional Edible Perennials
    Edible Forest Garden Perennials
    Edible Perennial Vines
    Perennial Herbs
    Annual Vegetables and Fruits
    Root Vegetables
    Berries
    Fruit Trees and Shrubs
    Plants for Butterflies
    Bird Favorites
    Soil-Building Plants
Grow and Gather
    Getting to Know Your Plants
    Grow Your Way to a Smaller Carbon Foodprint
    Starting Seeds
    Transplanting Seedlings
    Troubleshooting the Growing Process
    Nonfertilizer Fertilizing
    Harvesting Your Produce
    Methods of Home Preserving
Rewilding to Support Biodiversity
    The Role of Native Plants
    Biodiversity Begets Biodiversity
    When Insects Disappear
    Growing Habitat Starts at Home
    Living Greenways
Grow More Good
    What You Plant for Tomorrow, You Grow Today
    Power to the People Who Plant
    Swap. Barter. Give.
    Become a Citizen Scientist
    We All Love a Good Story
    A New Normal
Helpful Resources
Many Thanks
Photography Credits
Index
Copyright