Growing Vegetables: A Simple Guide for NZ Gardeners product reviews

I like everything about this book. The eye-catching cover simply begs readers to roll up their sleeves and get digging. The vibrant colours spill over into the front matter with a page dedicated to a basket of vegetables and the reverse to a shot of a raised garden bed featuring beans and other plants. The only words on these pages are "Growing Vegetables" and "BEANS", the latter on a sign indicating what is growing in the garden. These introductory illustrations set the scene for what is to follow. The text is important of course, but no more so than Sarah O'Neil's stunning photography.

The visual features do not stop there. Mouthwatering though the vegetables may appear, this is not the only technique that O'Neil has used to seduce the reader. Anyone who has compromised vision or tends (as I do) to consult a gardening book outside and in full sun will appreciate the way the author has organised the print layout colours. Many publications print text in a contrasting colour on top of a coloured background, and that is really difficult to read. This book, however, uses coloured boxes for information but the superimposed print is black, clear and very easy to see.

The main content of Growing Vegetables is organised by season, with the top of each page of a section colour coded for quick reference. It is organised for the New Zealand calendar but could be adjusted for gardeners in the northern hemisphere if the climate is similar. Each section has one or more dedicated spaces headed "Take Note". These small boxes include guiding questions as well as space for the gardener to record observations. The convenience of having everything in the one book cannot be stressed enough, and the bright cover ensures that the book itself will not be easily mislaid. No more vital notes scrawled on empty seed packets!

Growing Vegetables provides a wealth of information and hints for the experienced gardener as well as the novice. Useful advice is plentiful and often supported by clear photographic evidence. I was especially interested in the section on common pests. The green vegetable bug (shield bug) eggs are incredibly clear! The section entitled Not All Insects Are Bad is also informative. Generally, I tend to leave small creatures - even wasps - alone if they are not bothering me. But it is good to know some of them have a legitimate reason to be in the garden. Even so, I am not sure the last two mentioned (spiders and frogs) qualify as insects.

At the end of the book, there is a compilation of further information. There are tables on plant spacing, a list of garden-specific terms (some of which were new to me), and an outline of things that can go wrong. Then there are write-on pages for planning the garden layout, germination and harvest records, weather data by season, and a seed list. Finally, there is a climate map of Aotearoa New Zealand and an index. Some of the most useful records in the book are in this section - and, as is the case elsewhere, there is plenty of space for gardeners to record their own observations. I can see that this is a book that will be consulted regularly over the years.