I stopped buying up gardening books years ago, but picked up a couple recently. The first is “Good Bug, Bad Bug,” by Jessica Walliser. Like Marguerite over at Canoe Corner, I wanted to know more about bugs this year. I asked several Master Gardeners about the bugs I saw in my garden, and there was little consensus about what they were and whether they were helpful or harmful. So, when I was volunteering for the Hort Society at the Fair and saw this book, I snapped it up! 
I like that the “bad bug” pages show pictures of the mature bug and the larval stage. It also provides organic options for controlling the pests and which plants are most desirable by the particular bad bug. Japanese Beetles were my nemesis this year. Ugh. 
The “good bug” pages tell you which pests they control and how to attract them to your garden! I had a few bugs in my garden that weren’t pictured, so I’m going to have to search for a more comprehensive bug book. (I was told they were innocuous, but I’d like to know for certain.) If you’re learning about bugs, like Marguerite and I, check it out!
The second book I picked up (used) is “The curious gardener’s Almanac—centuries of practical garden wisdom” by Niall Edworthy. I love the illustrations; and the “warning” up front to not read too much at one sitting is charming. He suggests, instead that “readers may delve into it from time to time in the hope that they will be intrigued, amused, enlightened, surprised, or even inspired.” I’ve delved in a few times over the last few days and was all of those things. I know I’m going to have this one handy by the fire on those long winter nights that are getting closer and closer.p.s. It's the Tuesday Garden Party over at An Oregon Cottage. Visit the link and check out what other gardeners are doing today!
4 comments:
Auntie K, thank you yet again for mentioning me and my blog. I'm honored that you come by to read my posts. I could really use a good bug book. It's hard to find ones that have actual photos of bugs, in all their stages of development and then also suggest remedies that don't involve covering your yard in pesticides. Perhaps I'll have to take a look at your new book.
Hi Marguerite; You're welcome! I think I mentioned this bug book the last time we were both thinking about bugs! I really do like it. I think I'd like something more encyclopedic.
I'm always trying to figure out if the bugs are good or bad so this would be a good book for me, too. Thanks for sharing this at the TGP!
Hi Jami;
You're welcome. It seems like bugs are such a big part of the garden that I couldn't be so uninformed any longer. I love the TGP, but don't always have something party-like to contribute!
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