I have an entire shelf of gardening books in my office. But the newest addition has brought to my library a whole new dimension–literally. Vertical Vegetable Gardening by Chris McLaughlin is more than your average gardening book because she concentrates on gardening up.

I mostly enjoyed chapters four and five of the book: DIY Structures from Scratch and Creative Re-purposing. In these two chapters Chris shares ideas for constructing your own trellises, building a concrete block planting wall, and re-purposing stuff you may already own or pick up at yard sales for container gardens.

Remember my paltry potato harvest from two summers ago? Well, this past season wasn’t much better so I didn’t want to embarrass myself by posting it. But in Vertical Vegetable Gardening Chris shares a way to plant potatoes that I believe will revolutionize our harvest. I’m not gonna tell you what it is. You need to get the book and read it for yourself.

But I will tell you, I absolutely love, love the terra cotta tower idea. For this you drive a six-foot length of rebar into the ground. You then thread six 8-inch terra cotta pots onto it through the drain holes and kind of offset them to support one another. Wah-lah! A beautiful way to plant herbs, flowers, or strawberries.

If you’re new to gardening, Chris’ book is also full of general gardening know-how. I’m sure that new gardeners, and old-timers alike, will want to add Vertical Vegetable Gardening to their library.

Blessings,

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for this review. This review is my honest opinion.

This post is linked up to Katherine’s Favorite Things and the Farm Girl Blog Fest.