No Dig: Nurture Your Soil to Grow Better Veg with Less Effort

It seems to me we are experiencing a wave of new gardening books written by people presumably stuck at home during the pandemic that decided to try their hand at gardening resulting in many beautiful books with sketchy content. Well, this book is most emphatically not that!! Mr. Dowding has utilized his lifetime of experience growing, experimenting and educating to create a very well designed, readable and enjoyable book. He leads with “no dig” and this and his various works have seriously advanced the case for no dig but it is as much a book about gardening as it is about no dig. I’ve attached a photo of the Table of Contents- you can see what I mean.My growing conditions are far less benign than Mr. Dowding has and where his book stands out for me is he communicates “why” as much as “how” which allows one to translate the techniques to growing conditions much different than his. Reality is there isn’t much translation required except to adjust for frost/planting dates. The book includes broader gardening techniques, practices, specific information on growing specific vegetables, variety information and of course no dig. The book is copiously illustrated with photos and various graphics. My only complaint is that for a $40 book the photos should have better printing quality. They aren’t bad though and I don’t know whether the book actually sells for $40 as I paid much less on Amazon and Chelsea Green Publishing has had it on discount too so not unhappy.

A great intro to the science and practices behind no dig

Love this book- it’s a great reference for any home gardener.

I am so glad I purchased this book! After years of traditional gardening with mixed results, I found Charles Dowding on YouTube and was super intrigued by the no-dig method. It's been a game changer! I kept returning to YouTube trying to find information and decided I needed a book to reference back to. This book is lovely and high quality! It's format is easy to read and find the information I am looking for, I'm constantly referring back to it throughout the growing season. Our garden has never looked or produced better! This is a must have if you are using the no-dig method!

Given the number of gardening books on the market, it was difficult to decide. Each have different styles, methods, materials, etc. that are being championed. After listening to many audiobooks to discover writing styles and content inclusion, in my opinion, this is the only book you really need to buy if you were trying to choose one. After watching Charles’s content on YouTube and listening to him read the first 3 chapters of this audiobook, it was time to purchase. This book has a wealth of knowledge, for both the methods used, and for planting and growing many common and less common types of vegetables.

The author shares the years of expertise and his own trials of growing veg over many years. The method is less work than most gardening books describe up until recently. His compost method makes fertile soil and beautiful veggies. The reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is that many of his suggestions are tailored to the climate in southern UK. Readers in other climate will have to adjust planting dates and storage methods. Otherwise, well written and easy reading. Good pictures.

Es una excelente guía. Buenas explicaciones y ordenado. Facilita mucho el trabajo de huerta. Buenas fotos, prácticas fáciles de seguir

Well written, easy to understand and follow, and illustrations were great.Used it for my no dig vegetable garden.Reasoning for why this is the best and easiest way to maintain a vegetable garden was explained in detail.I would recommend to anyone with vegetable and flower gardens.