Growing
Herbs and Vegetables
from Seed to Harvest
by Terry and Mark Silber    

Publisher link

Link to Talk of the Nation PBS Radio interview with Mark Silber and Melinda Penkava

http://search.npr.org/cf/cmn/cmnpd01fm.cfm?PrgDate=11%2F15%2F1999&PrgID=5

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Description: Specific, detailed instructions are given for growing 39 vegetables and 48 herbs. Well-organized charts make it easy to find essential information quickly, and drawings and photographs provide visual direction. Sidebars give readers guidance on topics ranging from growing mesclun and making salsa to using moth-repellant herbs. Here is a book guaranteed to inspire us to dig: into the gardening catalogs and then into the earth.  
 
 Mark Silber and Terry Silber are gardeners, designers, writers, experts on everlastings,
and cofounders of Hedgehog Hill Farm in Sumner, Maine. The idea to write Growing Herbs and Vegetables grew out of their wish to create a book that could replace the one they used from the time they started growing plants back in the early seventies, Growing Plants from Seed by Elda Haring. Over the years, their modest growing experience developed to the point that they were seeding more than five hundred species of plants each year. In the process, they kept extensive journals with data and drawings of the plants. Their interest in horticulture led them from being amateur gardeners to owners of a small horticultural center. Their farm includes several greenhouses where plants are sold commercially, display gardens, and a retail shop. A book chronicling the farm's development, A Small Farm in Maine, was published in 1988.
During the eighties and nineties the farm also became a teaching center, with workshops on a variety of horticultural topics. During that same time, the Silbers authored The Complete Book of Everlastings. Their books helped to establish their horticultural reputation and made their farm widely known throughout the United States. Growing Herbs and Vegetables is a natural outgrowth of the experience, research, and teaching that is central to the Silbers' lives at Hedgehog Hill.

Reviews:

  JUST WHEN YOU IMAGINE everything known about vegetable gardening has been written and rewritten, along come two new books that vegetable gardeners are sure to welcome.
Growing Herbs and Vegetables from Seed to Harvest is a compendium of information based on Terry and Mark Silbers' many years of organic growing experience.
Their explanations of organic techniques, the finer points of seed saving, and growing open-pollinated plants are welcome to those of us wandering on the fringes of these trends.
Of particular value are the drawings at the start of each vegetable and herb entry. These display the shape and relative sizes of the plant cotyledons and first true leaves-a great help in distinguishing desirable seedlings from weeds.
Aside from the fact that gardeners in regions outside the Northeast may need to adapt the Silbers' practices for their own zones, this book is an excellent all-around growing guide. The couple, who are also professional writers, have successfully blended practical advice, history, and scientific lore. It is both a good read and an easily consulted guide for planning and growing your own garden. American Gardener

Drawing on nearly 30 years of experience at Hedgehog Hill Farm in Sumner, Maine, the Silbers (A
Small Farm in Maine) share their combined knowledge in this well-organized and thorough garden
primer. An abundance of detailed, specific information explains the basics of garden planning
(including a look at the explosion of horticultural information on the Internet and how best to choose
among all the glossy seed and plant catalogues), propagation, transplanting and the cultivation and
care of both new and mature gardens. Committed seed savers, the authors advocate a "raised-bed
total-mulch program," which involves preserving heirloom varieties and creating a thriving garden by
planting in wide, raised rows protected by weed-suppressing mulch. Comprehensive chapters on
cultivating both vegetables and herbs cover everything from asparagus to tomatoes and angelica to
wormwood, and include an eclectic assortment of recipes (salsa, homemade sauerkraut, herb
tempura) and tips on preserving root vegetables and drying herbs. The workmanlike tone of the book
is offset by the expert advice offered by these experienced gardeners. Publishers Weekly

Review- Herb Companion, January 2000

I grow a few herbs and harvest a few vegetables, but I've never had a high yield from my garden. This year I've decided to get help. It's time to learn to germinate my seeds in the early spring and save summer's seeds in the fall. I'd like to dry some herbs, maybe enough to last the winter. Terry and Mark Silber's new book, Growing Herbs and Vegetables, from Seed to Harvest, appears to be just what I've been looking for to guide my enthusiasm.

The authors of the excellent CompleteBook of Everlastings a wealth of knowledge to share, and their lifelong love of gardening spills readily onto the pages. Growing Herbs and Vegetables offers tips on shopping from seed catalogs, networking with neighborhood gardeners, organizing the garden, improving soil, germinating seeds, fighting garden pests, and, eventually, saving seeds for next year's garden.

More than 150 full-color photographs and easy-to-follow charts supplement extensive information on growing eighty-seven vegetables and herbs. Sidebars include recipes for tempura, salsa, and pickles; craft ideas such as making planting pots from peat moss, vermiculite, and cement; whimsical designs such as a Goddess Garden filled with artemisia; and hints on using culinary herbs as decoration.

Anyone who is familiar with Mark and Terry Silber's work knows, that whatever they do, they do superbly. Their Hedgehog Hill Farm Sumner, Maine, produces works of art from dried flowers and I other plant material, as seen at their popular booth at the Common Ground Country Fair. Mark's exquisite photos depicting life in Sumner were published in Sumner 200. Both have published books about everlastings, farm life, and more. Now they have added a thorough and useful book on herb and vegetable gardening and fanning to their list of accomplishments.

The book includes seven chapters: Getting Started; Seeding Indoors, Growing On; In the Garden; Vegetables; Herbs; and Saving Seeds. It concludes with a bibliography and index. The information Presented is basic but thorough, and even experienced growers will pick up new ideas. The first few chapters tell, for, instance, where to buy, seeds (the local, hardware store versus mail order), how to germinate them, how to care for seedlings, how to transplant how to prepare soil, and so on. A section on season extenders had this tip: To, protect tender crops from early frosts, the Silbers cover them with used dark landscape fabric, "not unlike white row covers in texture and weight." Fitted snugly around tender plants in the middle of the day, the covers warm the air beneath them. "We have brought many frost-sensitive vegetables and herbs through below-freezing nights unharmed. The covers are removed on sunny days and replaced as required. Likewise, a list of herbs that can be seeded outdoors in October is valuable. Excellent photos depict many of the Silbers' suggestions.

The chapters on vegetables and herbs go through these crops alphabetically,- describing the culture of each more than the standard fair: Did you know that asparagus seed can be sown outdoors not only in the spring but also in late fall? Numerous interesting sidebars throughout the book add to its interest, such as one on moth-repelling herbs and another on the futility of using bug zappers.

The final chapter on saving seeds is as well written as the rest of the book and is sure to encourage many growers to get involved in this important practice. Again, excellent photos take the mystique away from, this art and give the reader confidence.

Mark and Terry's personal experiences, related throughout Growing Herbs and Vegetables, lend credence to all they say and helps hold the reader's interest. The Silbers have done it again. MOFGA News

Every gardener I know will find something in these 260 pages that is new, something you will want to try or observe or taste....The Silbers' new book is a way for gardeners to begin thinking about their own approaches. The Times Record, Brunswick, Maine

Now, it's our turn to be cultivated and nourished. Their beautifully designed hard cover book, printed on fine glossy paper, is a feast for the eyes and a banquet of northern gardening information..... [It] is not just another spectacular coffee table book, although, it is handsome enough for that purpose. Its garden how-to is as satisfying as its visual aspects.  Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

This it the Silbers third book, a compendium of their 25 years experience growing a wide range of plant species at Hedgehog Hill Farm in Sumner, ME. They begin with an exceptional section on where to find seeds and plants and how to evaluate seeds and plants and I agree wholeheartedly with their advice, and hope we measure up. They make a compelling case for interplanting herbs, flowers and vegetables into "one large tapestry of color, so as to make all of our garden spaces "as beautiful, as healthy and as informative as possible." As always, the Silbers bring to their work extraordinary record-keeping skills, a keen sense of design, refreshing lucidity, and their extensive teaching experience. Some of the information '-in their extraordinary tables I had never before seen in print. Where else will you find extensive information on saving herb seeds, including expected seed longevity The charts for indoor seeding of herbs and vegetables are equally impressive. We are blessed to have such skilled garden writers in Maine. Fedco Seeds

    The difference between this book and others on the subject is the depth of its content. It contains so much more than other gardening books that it is a true standout in that field… They relay their discoveries in great detail, yet none of it is excessive. They are skilled writers who easily draw you into their book, relaying their information in clear language… Pine Tree Seeds

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