February hasn’t improved on January when it comes to gardening weather but it has meant I’ve been catching up on reading and a grow your own guide by ‘Lady Muck’ has been the perfect antidote to mid-winter blues.
(I was given a review copy but not paid.)
Light-hearted and self-deprecating, this is not a typical ‘how to’ guide. Rather it’s a series of annecdotes about a gardener’s life and mishaps with the gardening tips more like the garnish on the cocktails Lady Muck enjoys.
The format is confessional, outlining the misunderstandings, mistakes and muddle of a novice gardener before using these tales to give sound advice on everything from starting a compost heap to sowing seeds and making garlic spray to deter slugs and snails.
There’s advice on ‘warring veg’ – use a crop rotation plan – and an explanation on how to grow hops to make beer. In fact, much of her gardening and advice are alcohol-fuelled. There are recipes for gins flavoured with garden produce and suggestions for growing herbs for cocktails as well as ideas for a crop of hangover-curing plants.
Part-reality, part-fantasy, the book is a collection of magazine articles by Catherine Saunders, creator of the Lady Muck character. Catherine turned to gardening as therapy after 10 years of debilitating ME and her enthusiasm for growing is obvious.
The book is as much a plea to get gardening as a guide on what to do with the emphasis on not worrying about getting it wrong – there’s a story of how she learned that “carrots don’t grow in bunches like the ones I buy in Waitrose” and the accidental poisoning of tomato plants.
And as she says “growing food doesn’t have to be difficult or dull”.
Grow Your Own Food Lady Muck Style by Catherine Saunders is published by Timga Publishing. You can buy it here for £10.99 (If you buy through this link, I receive a small commission. The price you pay is not affected.) Alternatively, you may wish to buy from an independent bookseller here. All prices correct at time of publication of this post.
Enjoyed this? You can read more of my gardening and garden-related reviews here.
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