Looking for the best books on traditional gardening? The advancement of humanity itself can be linked to the simple act of gardening. It was by learning how to grow our food instead of scavenging that early humans were able to obtain more calories for less effort. This allowed them to shift their focus onto things like art and innovation. But how many of these ancient agricultural practices do we still use today, and do they really work? Here are three books that explore traditional gardening and agriculture techniques around the world.
This book subverts the belief that North America was some untamed wilderness before the arrival of the European colonizers. Presenting instead the fact that the Sierra Miwok and Valley Yokuts indigenous people cared for their land, harvesting, tilling, sowing, pruning, and burning. This book explores the relationship of these peoples with their land, through interviews and correspondence, reflecting on the history passed down through their families.
How was food preserved before the invention of refrigeration, or canning? Translated into English, and with a new foreword by Deborah Madison, this book celebrates traditional but little-known French techniques for storing and preserving food in ways that maximize flavor and nutrition.
Available to read online at Project Gutenberg, this book is a compelling study of waste-free methods of cultivation. King provides glimpses of ancient farming methods that are still used after centuries in Japan, China, Manchuria, and Korea. The book studies topics like the utilization of waste: methods of irrigation, reforestation, and land reclamation; and the cultivation of rice, silk, and tea. We hope you enjoyed our recommendations for the best books on traditional gardening!