Tag Archives: spring

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Free gardening eBooks

FlowersWe are in the middle of that wonderful season in Minnesota that is springtime! Excited to get outside and begin your next garden or yard project? If you need a little extra help, consider checking out the eBooks MN collection for gardening books.(Not sure what I am talking about? Get caught up with our earlier CMLE posts on eBooks MN).

They have a variety of gardening books, for everyone from the beginner planning their first garden to the experienced gardener. They feature topics like miniature, container, and edible gardening.

This article recommends starting with the Beginner’s Illustrated Guide to Gardening: Techniques to Help You Get Started by Katie Elzer-Peters. The book features helpful color images as well as illustrated tools, tips, and tricks to help you in your next gardening venture!

Image credit: http://tinyurl.com/mcpp3y2, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

 

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Treasure trove of old seed catalogs

everything for the gardenWarmth in the air, sun on your face, the feeling of soil between your fingers…welcome to springtime gardening! After the gray and depressing landscape of winter, we are itching for a change – preferably one that is colorful, sweet-smelling, and edible!

With gardening on the brain, you may be interested in this article, which explains that Archive.org is currently working on expanding their collection of over 18,000 seed and nursery catalogs. The National Agricultural Library has been working on digitizing the Henry G. Gilbert Nursery and Seed Trade Catalog Collection, a huge undertaking since it includes more than 200,000 catalogs!

These seed catalog collections are important because they teach us about agricultural history, including changes in landscaping, seed prices, and plant hybridization. They also showcase some beautiful line drawings.

An excerpt from Everything for the Garden: 1922 urges readers, “For your health’s sake, grow and eat plenty of vegetables,” advice that we would still be wise to follow today!

Image credit:https://archive.org/details/everythingforgar19pete_19