Canadian Garden Tips. Rev. ed.

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian Studies at
Concordia University. She is the author of several books, including The
Mountain Is Moving: Japanese Women’s Lives, Kurlek and Margaret
Laurence: The Long Journey Home.

Written by “Canada’s #1 Gardening Expert,” this fat little
pocketbook could fit in the generous hip pocket of any enthusiastic
gardening expert or non-expert. The back cover bills it as “The
Canadian Bestseller, Revised and Updated, A gardenful of A to Z tips,
Perfect for both the novice and experienced gardener, Economically and
ecologically friendly, Illustrated throughout.” What more could a
gardener possibly desire?

The drawings—numerous finely detailed drawings in ink or
graphite—are helpful and very charming. I like the one of a cold frame
where the text begins, “These gizmos can be wonderful if you want to
start seeds early,” and the one of lacewings (beneficial bugs that can
be attracted into the garden with judicious plantings of any member of
the carrot family). These include Queen Anne’s lace, coriander, and
fennel. Surprisingly, the bugs are sold by mail.

If you are uncertain as to the quality of your soil, Harris’s crisp
definitions will set you straight. Her remedies for overly sandy soil
include adding humous in the form of leaf mold, compost, or well-rotted
manure: “If you add peat moss, be sure to add it when wet. See Peat
Moss.” Harris is nothing if not specific. Her careful, technical
definitions are interspersed with surprising advice and often-humorous
touches. Santolina, lavender cotton, is called “kind of a boring
little yellow thing,” but is recommended as a good moth repellent, and
also useful “wherever you need silvery grey.” There is a three-page
bibliography that includes magazines and a 25-page index that includes
every imaginable problem, many with subheadings.

In her delightfully personal introduction, Harris calls gardening
“the great obsession” of her life. Tiny as it is, Canadian Garden
Tips is a one-book library on the topic. It holds an amazing amount of
information, along with very sound advice. It’s a treasure.