The New Seed Starter's Handbook [Paperback]

Nancy Bubel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 15, 1988 | ISBN-10: 0878577521 | ISBN-13: 978-0878577521

The New Seed-Starter's Handbook

Why start plants from seed?

* Earlier harvests
* Greater variety
* Heathier seedlings
* Lower costs
* Satisfaction

For the most complete, up-to-date information on starting plants from seed, turn to The New Seed-Starter's Handbook. Written by a gardener with 30 years of experience, this easy-to-use reference explains everything you need to know to start seeds and raise healthy seedlings successfully. You'll find:

* The latest research in seed starting
* The best growing media
* The newest gardening materials
* Solutions to seed-starting problems
* Source lists for seeds and hard-to-find gardening supplies

And! An encyclopedia section lists more than 200 plants--including vegetables and fruits, garden flowers, wildflowers, herbs, trees, and shrubs--with details on how to start each from seed.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this revised and expanded version of The Seed-Starter's Handbook, gardening writer Bubel discusses starting seeds indoors, moving plants outdoors and saving seeds, then presents a lengthy "encyclopedia of plants to grow from seed" that describes the characteristics of dozens of flowers, vegetables and herbs. Bubel gives advice on the time-consuming process of growing plants from seeds in a writing style that is chatty and accessible. The reader will enjoy her enthusiasm and benefit from her thoroughness. But Bubel can be overly cute, as when she relates how she once "tried planting melon seeds in cast-off shoes." She also tends to repeat herself, and her presentation of technical information on the germination of seeds is difficult to follow. Illustrations not seen by PW.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"The reader will enjoy [Nancy's] enthusiasm and benefit from her thoroughness."--Publishers Week
-- Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 385 pages
• Publisher: Rodale Books (February 15, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878577521
• ISBN-13: 978-0878577521
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 0.9 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,309 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

131 of 135 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book on seeds I've seen! May 25, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

If you want to learn how to start your own plants from seed, this is the book to own! The author covers all the variables of seed culture. I had tried to grow plants from seed before and failed. With this book I have had success after success. There is also a good section on saving your own seeds. If you're a do-it-yourselfer who is less than thrilled with the variety of plant choices available at the local nursery, this is the book for you!

88 of 90 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great All-Around Gardening Book May 6, 2005

By Erika Mitchell TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

This book is an introduction and reference for people who want to grow plants from seeds. The book is organized into 5 main sections: starting seeds indoors, preparing outdoor beds to receive transplants or seeds, detailed instructions for growing individual vegetables from seed, saving seeds, and record keeping and exchanging seeds. Bubel integrates the results of scientific studies and her own growing experience in her advice to novice gardeners. In striving for completeness, she even includes a chapter with folk wisdom about planting, noting which moon phases are thought to be best for planting and which are not. The book is amply illustrated with black-and-white photographs and drawings. End material includes a glossary, a bibliography, a list of suggested readings, lists of seed and equipment suppliers, and an index.

Although the book is written for people with very limited gardening experience, it is so full of information that even experienced gardeners are bound to learn something through reading it. Bubel's approach to gardening very much follows organic practices. The section on individual vegetables is a very valuable reference, with its details on when to plant, when to fertilize and how much to use of what, and when and where to transplant in the garden. Interspersed with the text are charts summarizing information such as germination rates for different vegetable seeds at different soil temperatures, or viability of vegetable seeds over varying storage times. The sections on preparing the soil for planting or transplanting and on saving seeds at the end of the season round out the book quite well, making this an excellent general gardening book, and not just a book about starting seeds.

93 of 96 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The New Seed-Starter's Handbook July 17, 2000

By James Robert Pattillo

Format:Paperback

What a wonderful book! A wealth of information covering not only seed-starting, but all you need to know to be successful: some basic botany (how seeds germinate, the parts of a plant, and how they grow)proper seed-starting mediums, lighting, fertilizing,transplanting, moving your seedlings outdoors, pests...you name it! I do a great deal of seed-starting each year and wondered how much new information I could glean from this book..it didn't disappoint one bit. Highly recommended!

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Manual for all Plants. Buy It! January 29, 2007

By B. Marold HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

`The New Seed Starters Handbook' by Nancy Bubel is a serious and superior manual on virtually all aspects of starting all different types of plants from seed. As with books on cooking, there are hundreds of books on gardening which are designed to go directly to the budget book pile and give relatively small value for the space they take up on your bookshelf. There are several obvious symptoms that this book is not to be dismissed as a lightweight. The first is the fact that Rodale Press publishes it, which may be the only publishing imprimatur which has a serious commitment to its particular speciality of organic gardening. The second is that this is a second edition of an already successful book. Unfortunately, a third easy sign of a book's quality is missing, as there is no thumbnail sketch of the author's biography and credentials.

Fortunately, a quick browse of this book quickly reveals that Ms. Bubel has got serious game when it comes to instructing us on how to raise plants from seed. I'm especially fond of the opening to her introduction where she says her first attempts were not immediately successful, setting a realistic tone that even with the best instruction, growing plants from seed is not easy. That is not to say it can't be simple! I'm often enchanted by the difference in the cooking world between `easy' and `simple'. While making a great soup is not easy, if you break it down into its various steps, it is really rather simple, if you have the patience and the time to carry out each step with care and love (that is, close attention to what you are doing). Ms. Bubel cuts no corners in covering all the details, but lays everything out with an affection for her subject which invariably draws one in to wanting to run right out and build some cold frames....

The author addresses all types of seed started plants, including vegetables, herbs, `domestic' flowers, wildflowers, trees and shrubs. However, I suspect her first love is in growing vegetables, as that seems to come first and occupies the most space. But, in most cases, what works for your carrots will probably also work well for your marigolds, with only a few variations.

My fondest feelings for the book arise when I see Ms. Bubel going far beyond the average suburban garden plants of tomatoes, zucchini, and sweet peppers. Her dictionary of planting techniques even includes entries for the relatively exotic artichoke, peanut, and salsify. This brings me to the most appealing reason for growing your own vegetables. There are many species that are simply not available in even the biggest megamart. This includes even relatively easy to grow varieties of salad greens. And, even if you do find a good `summer mix', it is probably outrageously expensive. The second most appealing thing about growing your own, even if you limit yourself to a very few species, is the fact that homegrown vegetables can taste so incredibly better than store-bought stuff. I was pleasantly surprised when I cooked with some Italian parsley which had grown up from self-seeding from the previous year, and the difference in taste between it and the local fare was simply amazing.

The book is amply stocked with great appendices on sources. The only annoyance is that this is a pre-internet publication, but no Internet jocky worth their salt will have any problem locating the sites for, fore example, `Johnny's Seeds' or `Charlie's Greenhouse Supplies'. Read more ›

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Indispensable for serious start from seed gardeners January 27, 2006

By R. M. L.

Format:Paperback

Nancy has researched and presented in simple and easy to use format the critical information needed for successful early season indoor gardening. If you want to save a ton of money and have great bedding plants you grow yourself, this book will give you invaluable assistance. I like her "down to earth" approach and clear explanations of her methods. If you're a serious gardener, you will seriously love this book!

65 of 78 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Vegetable Gardening in Northern Climates February 8, 2003

By "montarakeith"

Format:Paperback

This book should have a subtitle: Vegetable Gardening in Northern Climates. The author assumes that every reader has snowy winters and hot summers, and that every reader is a vegetable gardener. If I just described you, then without question, you should buy this book! I live in a cool coastal climate of California, where temperatures are generally between 50-65, regardless of season. I'm not trying to grow vegetables, simply trying to replace the weeds in my yard with no-watering-required wildflowers, herbs, etc. If this describes you, then I will say that the book is still good for basic seed-starting tips, fertilizing, etc., but that at least 70% of the book will not apply. FYI, here are a few of the things I've learned in the past several months: Birds eat seedlings/baby plants. Really. I've sat with coffee in hand watching them. Bird netting must be raised up at least six inches and stretched taught to keep them away, but then it is dangerous to wildlife. I took it out after I found a young possum caught in it, and had to cut him loose. He had badly wounded himself trying to get free. I've replaced it with basic clear plastic from the hardware store, the kind we californians all have around the house for flood control. So far, it is working great.