GARDEN ALCHEMY, 80 Recipes and concoctions for organic fertilizers, plant elixirs, potting mixes, pest deterrents and more, (Cool Springs Press, is a hands-on guide for do-it-yourself gardneers who want to turn their garden into gold using natural recipes and herbal blends while saving both time and money. Award-winning author Stephanie Rose gives her valuable advice on composting, soil tests, seed-starting, growth-boosting sprays. She deciphers and combines natural ingredients to make the best quality amendments and demystifies common ingredients to make best use of what you have available to yield the finest, most healthy garden possible.

MASTERING THE ART OF FLOWER GARDENING by Matt Mattus, Cool Springs Press, is a valuable gardener's guide to growing flowers from today's favorites to unusual varieties. This is a comprehensive and highly practical study of the gentle art of growing flowers with expert tips on both annuals and biennials (including native and heirloom species alongside hundreds of lush photographs. There is nothing ordinary about this book; it is packed with details and cultural facts designed to set every gardener up for success by providing everthing one needs to know about starting seeds, soil, sowing, hardening off, transplanting and growing. 100 different annuals from seedand 12 types of spring and summer bulbs—all based on his hands-on experience, going beyond the information available on the seed packet. Every one of the hundreds of stunning photographs is taken personally by Mattus from the flowers growing on his own farm in Massachusetts. Just a small selection of the annuals covered: aster, cornflower, chrysanthemum, impatiens, larkspur, California poppy, delphiniums, sunflowers, morning glory, kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate, salvia, and zinnia. The bulbs are allium, anemone, ranunculus, fritillaria, freesia, tulips, lily of the valley, true lilies, canna, calla, gladiolus, and dahlia.