In their thirteenth book, experienced gardeners and authors Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau share their wisdom on growing veggies, herbs, fruits, and more indoors in our homes, bringing the greens inside and growing food all year. Whether plagued by a short growing season or a lack of outdoor space, or inspired by a love of edible greens, there are a dozen reasons to bring the garden indoors. Plants outside their natural habitat need a totally different kind of tender love and care, though, and that's especially true of voracious sun-drinkers like veggies, fruits, and herbs. In their signature accessible question-and-answer style, Janet and Sheryl explain the differences between standard houseplants and edible plants and cover everything you need to know to have a thriving garden right inside your home. After a strong foundational chapter in essentials like natural and artificial light, temperature, tools, and growing medium, you'll be fully equipped to learn about techniques like hydroponics, aquaponics, vertical growing, and grow tents. If you're daydreaming about what you can grow for the dinner table, dive into the nitty gritty of each type of gardening with chapters on microgreens, veggies and root veggies, herbs and spices, and fruits. After the harvest, learn about making more with less by growing from kitchen scraps. Of course, Janet and Sheryl also answer all your questions about what happens when things go wrong and help you tackle pests and mould, brighten up leggy plants and less-than-abundant harvests, and troubleshoot more complex growing systems. Full of valuable tips and tricks and heartening enthusiasm, Gardening for Indoor Growing is the perfect companion for first-time and experienced indoor gardeners alike.

A beautifully illustrated guide to the plants of Christmas and the holiday season, Decking the Halls makes for a perfect gift and is sure to delight the home decorator, dedicated gardener, and curious plant-lover alike. Seasoned gardeners with twelve books under their belts, Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau bring their passion and expertise to the trees, shrubs, vines, fruits, and herbs of the holiday season in this gorgeously illustrated guide. Opening with the stories and traditions behind the most iconic Christmas plants, indoor and out, the delicate illustrations and well-researched tales tap into the joy and wonder of Christmas. Plants are central to adorning our homes with holiday cheer and filling our kitchens with the scents of the season, and Janet and Sheryl walk readers through the many ways you can bring in the greens: from Christmas tree selection and care, to trying your hand at wreaths, garlands, and arrangements with helpful how-to illustrations, to the aromatics that enliven the traditional culinary delights of the holidays. A perfect holiday gift or stocking stuffer, this luxurious hardcover illustrated book is a pleasure to hold. From seasonal forest plants to kitchen herbs, from tiny berries to towering trees, Decking the Halls shines a light on the uplifting greenery that helps us weather the darkest months of the year.

A handy Q&A guide by the authors of the Prairie Gardener series, Staying Alive: The Go-To Guide for Houseplants provides expert advice to ensure your houseplants thrive, wherever you call home.Whether you have one tiny succulent on your desk at work or a massive collection of tropical plants in your home, caring for houseplants can be a real source of joy-and the occasional moment of wild frustration. In this Q&A guide to happy, healthy houseplants, lifelong gardeners Sheryl Normandeau and Janet Melrose are here with the insight you need to take you from perusing the plant shop to the dreaded repotting to splitting your mama spider into little spidies to share with friends. Learn:How to choose the right plants for your space (from aloe to ZZ)How to train vinesHow to create and care for a terrariumWhen to repot your plantsAll about tap water, rainwater, distilled water, too much water, and not enoughPerfecting your potting soilDividing, repotting, and growing plants from seedHow to tackle problems like flies, fungus, spots, and even general malaiseOpening with a chapter on setting up a houseplant-friendly home, the pair talk containers, lighting, watering, soil and nutrients, propagation, pests and other problems, and offer a final grab bag of tips to help you satisfy some of those trickier plant pals in your midst (calling all orchids).

"With advice on which native grasses to use—and why—the book gives gardeners both inspiration and knowledge." —Alberta Views In the tenth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series, lifelong gardeners Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau take on the very prairie subject of grasses.Was ever there a prairie-er subject than grass? Important providers of habitat and food for numerous wildlife species, grasses also serve an integral role in erosion control. For the gardener they can open up a bounty of landscaping options, from the lawn to the pond. In the tenth installment of their popular gardening guide series, lifelong gardeners Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau give you the skinny on everything from sod to sedges and raking to rushes.Following a primer on what exactly defines a grass, Sheryl and Janet take your questions on matters like clumpers vs spreaders, mulching and fertilizers, how to tackle problems like chinch bugs and fairy rings.The pair dedicate a chapter to lawns, providing a wide selection of alternatives to the tried and true commercial lawn species and answer questions on raking, aerating, laying sod, mowing, and dealing with dogs and all the damage they seem hardwired to do.Taking your questions on aquatic grasses, as well as edible species (like wheat, rye, and corn), and finishing up with a hall of fame of the best grasses for your every plan and purpose, the authors are sure to expand your knowledge on this truly homegrown topic!

In the ninth book in Guides for the Prairie Gardeners series seasoned gardeners Sheryl Normandeau and Janet Melrose take all your questions about growing and enjoying herbs.If you’ve ever stood in the produce section of the grocery store trying to pick out the least wilty of those little plastic containers of herbs, you’ll understand the appeal of growing your own. In the ninth installment of their prairie gardening series, seasoned (ahem) gardeners Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau answer all your questions about growing these culinary, medicinal, and spiritually beneficial plants, including their potential for use in pest management and as hardy lawn replacements.Beginning with the where (containers, raised beds, spirals, and more), the pair then provide guidance on choosing healthy plants, how to nurture herb seedlings, soil needs, watering, dealing with aggressive spreaders (hello, mint!), pest prevention, overwintering—including how not to kill that potted rosemary you brought inside for its own darn good—and lots of ideas for storing and enjoying your herbal goodies, from drying and freezing to making tasty infused oils, vinegars, and butters.The final chapter is a roundup of herbs for all occasions and locations, including the pair’s top choices for insect repellers, butterfly and hummingbird attractors, edible flowers, and ingredients for herbal tisanes.

“The comprehensive, gardener-friendly guide to soil science everyone who grows a garden needs to read.” —Daryl Beyers, author of The New Gardener’s Handbook The fifth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series is all about getting good soil—from chemical composition to compost, fertilizer to fungi, and much more.Soil is a whole world under our feet, full of fun words you may have heard but never quite understood, like hard-pan, humus, loam, and tilth. In this fifth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series, master gardeners Janet and Sheryl provide the basics of soil science so that you can apply it to your gardening endeavours.They answer your questions on things likeHow do I test the chemical composition of my garden soil?What’s the difference between organic, inorganic, and natural fertilizers?What do those numbers on packages of fertilizer mean?How and when should I amend my garden’s soil?Hot compost? Cold compost? Worm compost?Egg shells, coffee grounds, banana peels—yes or no?What exactly do mycorrhizal fungi do?In this handy Q-and-A guide, focused specifically on the prairie region, you’ll learn what particles are dominant in your soil, how to make successful compost, the value of mulch, tips on no-till practices and cover crops, and solutions to problems such as compaction, heavy clay, salinity, and soil-borne diseases. With Janet and Sheryl’s insight you’ll soon be well on your way to healthy, happy soil.

Book six in the Guides for the Prairie Gardeners series demystifies planting and caring for trees and shrubs on the prairies, with tips on stock size, fruit production, pests, and winter protection. Trees and shrubs together make up the bulk of Earth's biomass. They are responsible for carbon dioxide storage, oxygen production, movement of water, and a host of other functions. In our gardens, trees and shrubs provide numerous benefits, including reducing air, light, and noise pollution, protecting our homes from wind, cold, and heat, and providing habitat for birds, insects, and other animals.In the sixth book in the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series, lifelong gardeners Janet and Sheryl offer advice and recommendations to help you successfully grow trees and shrubs from the ground up. They answer your questions onWhether to choose small or large trees and shrubs to match your needs The fine art of digging holes Care and feeding (and mulching and watering and fertilizing) When and how to train and prune for your plant's health and appearance How to protect young trees and shrubs through a bitter winter When to call your local arborist Janet and Sheryl help you trouble shoot on common issues like a tree's failure to produce fruit, girdling, and weather-related challenges, as well as an introduction to pests and diseases like leaf miners, leaf rollers, leafhoppers, and their friends. They also provide prairie-specific lists of recommended trees and shrubs for flower displays, autumn colour, beautiful bark, smaller yards, hedges, and shade.

A National Post Best Cookbook of 2021A celebration of some of the lesser-known berries local to the prairie region, including sea buckthorn, haskap, saskatoons, currants, sour cherries, and chokecherries.This little cookbook is all about the berries and small fruits grown in prairie gardens, gathered from U-pick farms, and foraged in the wild. Home cook and accomplished gardener Sheryl Normandeau presents 65 recipes for everything from meat, poultry, and fish dishes, vegetable and grain dishes, to desserts, baked goods, beverages, and preserves (including fruit leather). If you’ve ever gathered some of these favourite prairie berries and then wondered what to make, with Normandeau’s help you’ll soon have no trouble putting them to use in easy, fun, and flavourful recipes like:Sea Buckthorn Berry and Earl Grey Tea CocktailPan-Fried Salmon with Sea Buckthorn Berry SauceSaskatoon Berry Cream PuffsCurrant Meringue CookiesHaskap Beet Dark Chocolate BrowniesBaked Brie with Chokecherry DrizzleChokecherry Rosewater JellyBeautifully illustrated, the book also includes instructions for how to make and process jams and jellies, tips for storing and drying berries, and guidelines for successful foraging. Whether you’re new to the prairie region’s flora or have a stockpile of fond roadside berry-picking memories, it’s the perfect go-to and gift.