This image is the cover for the book Building Soil: A Down-to-Earth Approach

Building Soil: A Down-to-Earth Approach

A down-to-earth, complete manual for achieving great gardening results with your own rich, organic soil.

All the secrets to rich, sustainable soil are revealed to you. You’ll be amazed how easy it is to improve your garden or yard when you begin at ground level.

Even experienced gardeners can be intimidated by soil. It isn’t just the soil-testing data and all the big words, like vermicompositing and mycorrhizal fungi. It’s also the fact that when you begin to work with the soil, you’re working with the very earth you grow in; you don’t want to make any mistakes. But with Building Soil as your guide, you can achieve your goal of rich, sustainable soil without the fear.

Building Soil: A Down-to-Earth Approach is rich with practical, up-to-date information on how to grow and maintain healthy soils. Simple methods perfect for the home gardener’s use put healthy, organic soil within everyone’s reach. Because it’s written in plain language, you don’t need a degree in soil management to understand this book—you only need a yard or garden and the desire to improve it at the most basic level. By following author Elizabeth Murphy’s detailed instructions, you can become a successful soil-based gardener, whether you want to start a garden from scratch or improve an existing plot.

Less weeding & laborLess water waste100% natural

Elizabeth Murphy

Elizabeth Murphy has a passion for growing food that led her to a master's degree in soil science from University of California, Davis, where she researched soil organic matter storage and a farmer's ability to improve it. She has worked as a faculty instructor for Oregon State University Extension's Small Farms Program, where she taught and consulted with gardeners and farmers about best management practices to build healthy soils. Since 2006, she has owned a half-acre garden in southern Oregon, which she considers her laboratory for experimenting with sustainable soil management and gardening practices for landscapes and vegetables. Currently, she lives in Tacoma, Washington.

Cool Springs Press