"A regional market with national presence, the Santa Monica Farmers' Market has long inspired both renowned chefs and home cooks. One of the oldest and largest markets in the state (with 20,000 customers weekly), it stands at the forefront of a national trend toward cooking with local and seasonal ingredients. For more than twenty years, Amelia Saltsman has shopped its stands, talked with its farmers, and cooked its magnificent produce for family and friends. The result is The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook, a celebration of the market's excellence and its hardworking farmers. What's the difference between white and green zucchini? What are amaranth, sapote, and ramps? With Amelia as your guide, you'll learn the answers to these questions and more. In these pages, you'll find advice on how to select and store produce, stories about farmers and their crops, chef and farmer cooking tips, and more than 100 of Amelia's simple, tempting recipes"--Publisher description

Principles and farm-tested practices for no-till market gardening--for healthier, more productive soil! From the host of the popular The No-Till Market Garden Podcast—heard around the world with nearly one million downloads! Discovering how to meet the soil’s needs is the key task for every market gardener. In this comprehensive guide, Farmer Jesse Frost shares all he has learned through experience and experimentation with no-till practices on his home farm in Kentucky and from interviews and visits with highly successful market gardeners in his role as host of The No-Till Market Garden Podcast. The Living Soil Handbook is centered around the three basic principles of no-till market gardening: Disturb the soil as little as possible Keep it covered as much as possible Keep it planted as much as possible. Farmer Jesse then guides readers in applying those principles to their own garden environment, with their own materials, to meet their own goals. Beginning with an exploration of the importance of photosynthesis to living soil, Jesse provides in-depth information on: Turning over beds Using compost and mulch Path management Incorporating biology, maintaining fertility Cover cropping Diversifying plantings through intercropping Production methods for seven major crops Throughout, the book emphasizes practical information on all the best tools and practices for growers who want to build their livelihood around maximizing the health of their soil. Farmer Jesse reminds growers that “as possible” is the mantra for protecting the living soil: disturb the soil as little as you possibly can in your context. He does not believe that growers should anguish over what does and does not qualify as “no-till.” If you are using a tool to promote soil life and biology, that’s the goal. Jesse’s goal with The Living Soil Handbook is to provide a comprehensive set of options, materials, and field-tested practices to inspire growers to design a soil-nurturing no-till system in their unique garden or farm ecosystem. "[A] practical, informative debut. . . .Gardeners interested in sustainable agriculture will find this a great place to start."—Publishers Weekly "Frost offers a comprehensive, science-based, sympathetic, wholly practical guide to soil building, that most critical factor in vegetable gardening for market growers and home gardeners alike. A gift to any vegetable plot that will keep on giving."—Booklist (starred review)

Become a better grower, one week at a time Did you know that keeping a journal can help you grow bigger and better veggies? Packed full of handy guidance and room to record weekly notes, this yearlong journal is the perfect companion for new and experienced vegetable gardeners alike. This top choice in gardening books for beginners features: Guidance wherever you grow--No matter what gardening zone you're in, this journal has the advice you need to achieve garden success. Garden planners--Start things off right with a collection of grid pages perfect for laying out and sketching your ideal garden plots. Green thumb 101--Find profiles for popular vegetables and herbs, tips for dealing with common pests, guidelines for crop rotation, and more. An incredible gift--If you have a gardener in your life, this journal is ideal for helping them realize their goal of creating a thriving vegetable garden. Go beyond other vegetable gardening books and ensure your harvest is a success with this convenient journal.

An insider's guide to market gardening and farming for those in the business of growing and selling food, flowers, herbs, or plants. Market Farming Success identifies the key areas that usually trip up beginners—and shows how to avoid those obstacles. This book will help the aspiring or beginning farmer advance quickly and confidently through the inevitable learning curve of starting a new business. Written by the editor of Growing for Market, a respected trade journal for market farmers, Market Farming Success condenses decades of growing experience from every part of the United States and Canada. It focuses on the factors that are common to market gardeners everywhere and offers professional advice that includes: • How much you'll need to spend to start a market farming business; • How much you can expect to earn; • Which crops bring in the most money—and whether you should grow them; • The essential tools and equipment you will need; • The best places to sell your products; • How to keep records to maximize profits and minimize taxes; • Tricks of the trade that will make you more efficient in the greenhouse, field, and market. This new Chelsea Green edition of a 2006 classic is greatly updated and expanded, and includes full-color photos, charts, and graphs, plus many inspiring and instructive profiles of successful market-farming pioneers.

The New Horse-Powered Farm is the first book of its kind, offering wisdom and techniques for using horse power on the small farm or homestead. It sets the stage for incorporating draft power on the farm by presenting necessary information for experienced and novice teamsters alike, including getting started with workhorses; the merits of different draft breeds; various training systems for the horse and teamster; haying with horses, seeding crops, and raising small grains; in-depth coverage of tools and systems; and managing a woodlot, farm economics, education, agritourism, and more. It's a must-have resource for any farmer, homesteader, or teamster seeking to work with draft power in a closed-loop farming system.