How to Create a New Vegetable Garden ― Producing a Beautiful and Fruitful Garden from Scratch

Drawing on his years of experience as an expert gardener, Charles Dowding illustrates the simplicity of starting a new vegetable garden with tales and pictures from his first year on his latest plot of land. Filled with insights into the processes that Charles uses to garden so successfully, this practical book is a must-read for anyone who has unused land and doesn’t know where to start. The book will take you through starting points, stages of clearing ground, mulch, comparing techniques, early sowings and plantings, and growing in polytunnels and greenhouses. This book is invaluable for realizing the full potential of any plot of land—no matter its previous uses.

Charles Dowding is a veteran organic grower, having practiced no-dig gardening for 30 years. In his first commercial vegetable garden, he ran an experiment for six years to compare vegetables on dug and undug soil. He discovered different patterns of growth in most seasons, with slightly lower yields and more weeds and slugs on the dug beds.

Charles has written four books on vegetable growing, contributes articles to many magazines, including Gardeners’ World, Gardens Illustrated and Grow It!, gives regular talks and runs gardening courses. He has appeared on radio and television, including BBC TV’s Gardeners’ World.