2024 the best fruits review

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In this updated 2nd edition of Texas Fruit & Vegetable Gardening, you'll find much-needed advice and practical tips on growing an edible garden, no matter which part of The Lone Star State you call home.

Growing in Texas isn’t easy. It’s either too hot, too cold, too wet, or too dry. The state ranges from a cold winter climate in the north to an almost tropical one in the south. And it goes from very alkaline limestone soils in the Hill Country to extremely acidic soils in East Texas. That's why this region-specific garden guide is a must-have for every Texas gardener!

Seasoned horticulturist, conservationist, garden writer, and seventh-generation Texan Greg Grant simplifies the ins and outs of Texas gardening and serves as your guide to success. Regardless of whether you're tending an in-ground plot, a small container garden, or a series of raised beds,Texas Fruits & Vegetable Gardening is an invaluable resource. From soil preparation and starting seeds to fertilizer tips and techniques for safely managing Texas's most troublesome vegetable garden pests, you'll find all the answers you're looking for.

Inside, you'll find detailed profiles of over 60 edible plants that thrive in Texas's distinctive growing conditions, including favorites like cantaloupe, tomatoes, collards, summer squash, okra, and pomegranates. In addition to vegetables and fruits, also featured are popular herbs and even edible nuts. Helpful charts and planting graphs keep you on track, while the garden maintenance tips found throughout ensure a lush, productive, and high-yielding garden.

Regardless of whether you're a first-time grower or an experienced Master Gardener, the modern varieties and well-researched gardening information found here will have you going from seed to harvest with confidence and know-how.

Texas Fruit & Vegetable Gardening is part of the regional Fruit & Vegetable Gardening series from Cool Springs Press. Other books in the series include CaliforniaFruit & Vegetable Gardening, Mid-Atlantic Fruit & Vegetable Gardening, Carolinas Fruit & Vegetable Gardening, and many others.

From the Publisher

How to Get Started

My first suggestion for you to get started producing edible crops is to visit somebody in your area who is doing it. As a matter of fact, visit as many as you can. I’ve always loved learning from older gardeners who have lived a life producing fruits, nuts, and vegetables. They’ve tried it all and can save you lots of trouble. I’m very thankful my grandfather showed me how to run a tiller, plow a straight line, open a furrow, use a hoe, pick corn, and numerous other gardening skills. If there’s a botanical garden in your area or a Master Gardener group, check to see if they have a demonstration vegetable garden or an orchard that’s open to the public. Also, ask if they have continuing education classes that cover growing your own edibles. The whole concept is very popular these days, and generally a number of classes and seminars are available.

Starting at the Beginning with Seeds

Seeds are amazing little parcels that basically contain miniature plants carrying big sack lunches, all packaged in protective wrappers. They have everything they need to grow, including genetic instructions for how big to get, what color to be, and how much to produce. They even remember who their parents were and where they came from! If you are going to be a gardener, you need to know how to grow plants—the easier ones, at least—from seed. Many vegetables are sown directly into the garden from seed. Others that are more difficult to germinate (sprout) or have slow-growing seedlings are most often grown in a greenhouse and stepped up into small pots, generally by professional nursery workers. These are sold as transplants that make it easier and faster for you to produce a crop without all the babysitting.

Vegetables and Herbs

Growing your own produce is fulfilling and rewarding. There’s nothing so gratifying as growing your own food from seeds or transplants. Not only does it feel better than purchasing produce from the grocery store, but as all home gardeners know, it tastes better as well. It also saves you money and fuel costs. More important, you know exactly where it’s been, who has handled it, what fertilizer was used on it, and what pesticides have been sprayed on it. And because you only have to haul it to your kitchen, you are able to let the produce mature until the peak of full-flavored ripeness. Commercial vendors have to pick their tender crops, such as tomatoes, before they are ripe so they can be shipped and handled. Thanks to home gardening, your taste buds will rejoice.

Fruits

Everybody likes sugar. Heck, I’m part hummingbird. But we all know that refined sugars aren’t good for us. Overdosing on sugar is a recipe for obesity and diabetes. Luckily, nature provides us her own candy in the form of fruits. Homegrown fruit can give us our sugar fix, plus antioxidants, fiber, and exercise while producing it. Fruits are also a good way to introduce vegetable-hating youngsters to the world of nutritious produce.

Before you get all excited about stocking your own home fruit stand, you must first realize that we are limited in what we can produce in Texas. Some fruits, such as apricots, black raspberries, and kiwis, are essentially impossible to produce here. Others, such as apples, plums, and peaches, require lots of preparation, maintenance, and tending. But just about anybody can grow blackberries, figs, and pears if they choose the right types.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Cool Springs Press; Updated edition (April 20, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0760370427
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0760370421
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.05 x 1.1 x 10 inches
Reviewer: S. Mason
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: The best gardening book in Texas
Review: We've attended a few master gardener classes (we're not master gardeners - the subjects interested us) with Greg and have been impressed with his easy ability to work with both novices and experts in all levels of horticulture. He is an excellent and interesting speaker and if you ever get a chance to attend one of his classes you'll be impressed with how he's balanced his down-to-earth learning experiences with an incredible breadth of knowledge.I stumbled across a reference to this book and just had to have it. We tried to put in our first garden a few years ago and managed to kill everything except the grass. We read lots of gardening books; however, none seemed to be at the very basic level we needed. General gardening books just don't cut it in Texas soil and temperature.The book starts out with "Growing fruits and vegetables in Texas isn't easy". No kidding. We managed to kill our first garden in record time.Greg takes the reader by the hand and walks through selecting seeds to healthy soil to watering to pests to harvesting. The first section also includes gardening with children. Greg keeps the learning interesting by weaving in short stories (primarily from his childhood) about how he learned to love the land and all that grows from it.There are sections on vegetables and herbs, fruits, nuts, and where to go if you need more help. Greg has made every topic not only easy to understand; but, also fun in learning the processes.Every vegetable/fruit/nut has two pages containing information on when to plant, where to plant, how to plant, care and maintenance, harvest, and where to get additional information along with pictures of the item. For instance, the section on broccoli explained why our plants always flowered (bad)along with how frequent to water (oops) and how and when to fertilize. Greg is very specific on when to pick the broccoli and when it's too late.One of Greg's gifts is he says what he has to say and then moves on - he doesn't beat a topic to death nor does he try to impress the reader with his intelligence (he's a nice guy who happens to be really smart). He's humble and thankful for all the people who took the time to teach him and loves passing that knowledge, and the love of the land, to other people.I've talked about the author and the book as if they were one and the same - in this situation the author is the heart of the book. The best learning comes from people who love what they do and have the gift to share it with others. You can tell Greg put a lot of thought into making this book something practical instead of just being a dust collector.The Texas Fruit and Vegetable Gardening book is a great gift for the novice gardener.

Reviewer: Amazon Customer
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Essential Texas Gardener Book!
Review: This book is fantastic at providing vital insight into the vast differences and challenges in Texas gardening from other areas, as well as within the state. Each fruit & veg has 2 pages dedicated to it. There are 60 covered of the most commonly successful crops to grow including when to plant, how to germinate, where to plant & how, care, harvest and recommended varieties. Charts and explanations of what not to grow and why, how to best procure seeds that thrive, and best promote a healthy soil throughout the growing period and between harvests. Also, it's written in a down to earth way that is enjoyable to read. The author is a well-established specialist speaker and educator in the field, as well as a regular contributor to Texas Gardener magazine and other regional articles. You can catch Greg Grant as a main speaker at all kinds of gardening events throughout Texas, especially in the NE. Suffice to say this read likely is the difference between success and failure.

Reviewer: mumsy
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Texas gardening book
Review: Fantastic book. Teaches how and what to grow in Texas climate. Also tells you when to plant and harvest.2thumbs high

Reviewer: K Larson
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: VERY HELPFUL INFORMATION
Review: As a new Texan I was struggling with when to plant veggies (it is warm here most of the time). This book is very clear on when to plant common vegetables and was a tremendous help. I am originally from the Northwest and there are distinct seasons there making a very different set of rules. The book is easy to read, concise and has specific recommendations for succeeding at vegetable gardening in SE Texas.

Reviewer: dancen1
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great book
Review: So helpful in my gardening pursuits.

Reviewer: Leighanne
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Good reference guide.
Review: I liked that it was specific to Texas and written by a Texan. I would recommend this book. As a used book, it looked new, as advertised. Pleased with this purchase.

Reviewer: Matt
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Very Informative for specific regions of Texas
Review: Starting my first garden in the Austin area and this book has great information to help get started in this climate. Originally from the midwest so this book is great for me to learn the seasons better and what to plant when.

Reviewer: sarabeth long
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Good info
Review: Love