Really interesting book. I’ve got cucamelons and ground cherries growing in the garden this year. Both recommendations from this book. Photos and format of the pages are wonderful.

#NetGalley #Garden #Harvest #Healthy #Summer #Summer2018

Niki's book is awesome. For any new gardeners, this is a 101 book with useful information to grown a large variety of veggies including the thai basil.

For anyone who would like to grow something different in their garden, entice their kids to try something new (because they grew it), or just loves plants, this is a fantastic book. I'm sure that not all of my forays into new plants will be successful, but it will be fun trying them....

What a fun and informative book on vegetables! Not just for gardening, but for learning about the varieties too. Lovely photographs and easy to folllow layout and text.

This is a great book for gardeners looking to be a bit adventurous. Take all your household staples and this book will give you new varieties and ideas to try! Loved the reading and now I have some new ideas to try this year!

Niki Jabbour's Veggie Garden Remix by Niki Jabbour shares 224 new plants to add to your garden. I am always on the lookout for something new - as in no one else I know is growing it - to include in my garden. I loved that the author took plants you probably already grow and gave you options related to them. I was happy to see some of my favorites included such as tomatillos, fish pepper, and cucamelons. I was excited to find some new varieties of eggplant and spinach to try. I got some good information on growing tomatillos which should increase my success. This is a wonderful book for any gardener that likes to grow outside the box.

Tired of planting the same old thing in your garden? You know, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, etc. It can get boring, year after year. The author identifies 238 new things to plant to "spice up" your garden. For example, instead of tomatoes, try cape gooseberries, or ground cherries. Instead of the same old spuds, try Jerusalem artichokes. She goes on to identify alternatives for tomatoes, cucumbers, summer squash, snap beans, arugula, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, potatoes, radishes, onions, and peppers.
The book has beautiful photographs. The writing is clear, and the descriptions can be mouth watering.
I, personally, have been gardening for 50 years, and am looking forward to attempting a good many of these this year, and in years to come.

Travel the world – without ever leaving your vegetable patch! Using a “Like this? Then Try this!” approach, Jabbour introduces over 200 edible plants and herbs from around the globe. Discussions cover both growing and ways to use each plant. A great addition to the veggie gardener’s bookshelf!

I really enjoyed this book – Nikki Jabour’s enthusiasm for growing vegetables is evident (and infectious!) on each page. I am a keen gardener and some of the varieties she mentioned I knew well, but others I am very keen to try.
The book was a delight to read as it included personal experiences, comments about feeding the family from the garden and was peppered with aspects of her family’s rich Lebanese heritage.
It is beautifully laid out in sections, challenging the reader to look beyond the common vegetables we tend to plant. Each one has details including various names, origin, days to maturity, and varieties to try. Detailed growing instructions are included too.
The layout of the book included lovely photos– I appreciated that they were not all “picture perfect” vegetables, but could have been the vegetables that came out of my garden.
I also liked her down to earth approach and the fact that she recognises that not all the vegetables are the type you would grow as a main crop – for example, she says “My main reason for growing sugar beets was so I could say “been there, done that” rather than hoping for a gourmet vegetable (which they are not) or the idea of producing our own sugar. Who has the time for that?” I have to say that I am still not convinced that I would try to eat my dahlia tubers!
As a European reader, I enjoyed searching online to find that the seeds of many of the unusual varieties she mentioned were available here.

Moms of fussy eaters, growing your own vegetables can help to get those picky eaters experience different vegetables. This book is a wealth of information and fun bits about vegetables and even gardeners will be amazed at the value and originality of this book’s contents.

A comprehensive guide to harvesting vegetables outside of your comfort zone. I really loved all the ideas and easy laid out steps in furthering my plant repertoire. With outstanding photographs and a detailed outline on pollination, this book covers all things gardening.

Niki Jabbour is a familiar name to people who love gardening (or reading about gardening). This is her newest book, which offers a fun and useful look at heirloom varieties and alternatives to classic garden crops such as potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, radishes, etc.

There's a whole literal world of heirloom and localized varieties which are mostly not known to American gardeners. Some of them are becoming more available via farmers' markets and CSAs as well as heirloom seed saving groups, many of whom have an almost zealous fervor about spreading and preserving the variety and heritage many of our great grandparents took for granted.

This book, 240 pages, due to be released 6th of February, 2018 from Storey publishing is written in Jabbour's informal, familiar, and informative style. It also has an unusual format. The chapters are arranged around garden standard plants and their lesser known (but often more delicious and nutritious) alternatives: 'if you like tomatoes---why not try this'. There are chapters for tomatoes, cucumbers, summer squash, snap beans, arugula, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, and several others. The 'alternatives' to the usual popular garden staples include information and many luscious full color photos of 238 new plants to try in your home garden.

The photography is straight up gardening heaven. Beautifully photographed and well explained, the photos support the text very well and give great depth to the book. There are also a fair number of pictures of (presumably) Niki's own family garden. I've yet to meet a gardener who doesn't like to see pictures of other people's gardens. (Hint: hers are well organized, healthy, and beautiful).

I like that she takes the time in several places to talk about pollinating insects and planting heirloom varieties for other reasons than just growing exactly the same thing as everyone else. Diversity is so incredibly important and she really 'gets it'.

One quibble I had with the book and text (and it's a small one) is that she generally doesn't talk about suitability for different zones. I get the feeling that was intentional, because it might have been beyond the scope of the book, and that gently forcing the readers to do more support is a good thing... but some broad general guidelines would have been useful, I think.

Anyhow, a beautifully written and photographed book which fills a definite need. I enjoyed the chatty style and the lovely photography.

Four stars.

Great boo k about gardening with colourful pictures........wonderful....

Are you getting a bit bored with the vegetables available, well this book has lots of products that challenge boring. There are some very interesting vegetables to try, good information on how to grow them and a little about their uses. Some I have grown before, but there are a few I have not seen before, and I would love to try.
This book is fabulous, the photography and presentation is really well done, as the information it is really interesting.

As the summer garden wanes and fall returns, my thoughts, once again turn to my garden plan for next year. I am sure I am not the only gardener who keeps a detailed journal, documenting each plants journey from seed to germination, to planting, to harvest. This helps me decide which vegetables will return for another season, which will not and how much room I will have for new varieties. At this point, I usually turn to garden forums, the cooperative extension and the influx of seed catalogs that arrive in conjunction with the New Year. Not much time to make decisions before the seed trays and grow lights are set up in February.
However, 2018 will be a bit different for me thanks to this fabulous book. The author used an "if you like this, try that" approach along with stories from her garden and glorious pictures of the plants and their harvests. I now have a very long list of new vegetables and varieties to try! After working my list, I have room for six that the author recommended that sound great and will work in the space I have. (I think I am most excited to try, cucamelon, ground cherry, and millionaire eggplant next year.)The best part though is the amount of time I have already saved deciding what to try and if I get lucky and find any more space in my yard for vegetables, I still have many more choices. I didn't know if I would be able to find all the seeds I wanted at my usual source, but they had them all, so I am ready to order. There was so much useful information and facts that you often only discover through trial and error. After finishing the book, I have gone back to each chapter again and really can see a little bit of Niki's beautiful garden in my future.
Thank you, Niki Jabbour, Storey Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I have marked the publication date in my calendar and can't wait to purchase this book. If you are looking for a book that you will go back to year after year, this is one you don't want to miss.

Oh my goodness, has this book given me so many ideas or what. I am a gardening in Cornwall UK and I think this book would be a very useful addition to my already large gardening reference collection. It is well laid out with some beautiful picture, great advice and tips. There is a vast array of of vegetables on the market but there are none that taste better than homegrown ones. This book will be invaluable to people who want to try something a little bit different, I know after reading this book, I will be one of them. I also really like the way Niki has included her own tips, from germinating, pollinating, growing and caring for this vast array of plants. Knowledge is something that is learnt or passed, so in sharing her own experiences it will help save time, extra hard work and disappointment.

A how-to book for gardeners that encourages people to chose a more diverse range of vegetables. Jabbour opens with a sweet story describing how she herself began to explore beyond 'traditional' veggies: she planted a snake gourd, believing it to be inedible but useful for decorating once dried. Instead her mother-in-law recognized the small, young version of the gourd as a vegetable she hadn't eaten since her childhood in Lebanon, and promptly cooked a long-lost stew.

The book is organized by chapters comparing each exotic to a more standard example. Enjoy growing tomatoes? Why not try a Cape gooseberry! Tired of snap beans? What about growing your own chickpeas or edamame! A fan of cucumbers? What about the cucamelon! Each plant or varietal gets its own section with lots of photos and Jabbour's tips from her own experience growing them.

My one complaint about the book is that Jabbour doesn't list preferred Garden Zones for any of the featured plants. She does give 'days to maturity', which is helpful, but I've got to assume climate also make a difference when choosing what to grow. But other than that it's a fun, useful book for anyone who likes trying new things.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2119297937

Ever thought about growing your own chickpeas, sugarbeet or eating freshly popped amaranth? No, me neither, but I am now.

What an utterly delightful book - thank you. Finally, inspiration for the veggie gardener who has grown the staples of gardening, maybe the odd heirloom variety, and ready to explore the global market a little more. This book is a delight to read, and provides useful information on the practicalities of growing, harvesting and storing the lesser grown world fruit and veg. The book is divided into useful chapters: like tomatoes (includes ground cherries, cape gooseberries and tomatillos, as well as rarer varieties of tomatoes to try), peppers, cucumbers, etc. There are also tasty alternatives to asparagus, lettuce, greens and cabbage to try. , as well as more unusual varieties of the garden staples such as carrots and potatoes. All supported by a great narrative and compelling photographs.

Publication date - just in time to start thinking about the 2018 planning and seed ordering.

Niki Jabbour's "Veggie Garden Remix" is a great find for anyone who's tired of the "same old, same old" vegetables. She's researched these interesting vegetables/fruits by interviewing immigrant gardeners and trying out the varieties in her own garden. The beautiful photographic presentation of each species in the book is the key that will convince the reader to try them! The author adds her own perspective and advice for growing each, as well as harvesting and even meal preparation with these gems. Each group of unique plants is presented using a "like that, try this" format. For instance, "...like peppers, try these." That works because one can imagine what one does with peppers, and it stimulates interest in trying the alternatives.
As I was perusing this book, I thought I'd be near the end, only to find that I was just halfway through. I can't believe how many alternatives to traditional veggies she has highlighted! Amazing! I love this book and will definitely purchase a copy for my own use.

A good book with loads of extra ideas of using different varieties of vegetables. As a veggie gardener this book helped me to give my garden a bit of an overhaul. A good addition.