On the Plot with Dirty Nails: A Practical Guide to Fruit and Vegetable Gardening - in Words and Pictures [Paperback]

'This is more than a informational gardening book. The information is clearly there but it is also presented in an amusing and truly inspirational style. Top this off with excellent photography which is practical as well as looking good.' --gardenaction.co.uk.

'Jam-packed with handy hints.' --miss-thrifty.co.uk.

'Will keep you and your family inspired and motivated to grow your own forever.'
--mygeenlifestyle.co.uk.

If you have ever dreamed about growing and cooking your own food, living the good life and getting close to nature, then this is the book for you! Gardening and natural history enthusiast Joe Hashman (alias 'Dirty Nails' of the Blackmore Vale Magazine) serves up another absorbing helping of practical tips, advice, observations and recipes from his vegetable plot and kitchen. In this week-by-week account of the fruit and vegetable gardener's year, you are invited to join Joe on the plot and get stuck in to the important jobs of the day. The finer points of crop husbandry are beautifully and clearly presented using simple step-by-step colour photographs. With poetic licence in his writing, the author takes readers on a wonderful journey of discovery through the changing seasons. A wealth of easy to follow but unusual recipes will keep the chef in you busy and satisfied too!

I wanted to write a cookery book with great recipes, to appeal to all levels of skill: but to write it in such a way that even the least confident would-be cook could pick it up and feel encouraged to have a go.

It's such a great thing to be able to cook and feed yourself and your family properly, to choose your own ingredients and know exactly what is in your food. It's something everybody ought to be able to do. Many of the present generation of parents have fond memories of their mum's, or maybe their grandmother's cooking, but don't feel confident of their ability to cook memorable meals for their own children.

Quite often, you haven't had the opportunity to learn as a child, and you can become an adult, maybe even living in your own home, and still not be entirely sure about certain of aspects of everyday cooking.

Traditionally, mums taught their children to cook, but in recent generations, many mums have been out at work and there has been no time to pass on skills. Cookery used to be taught more widely in schools, but now it is more likely to be taught in a block of a few weeks, as part of a combined course of practical lessons. The emphasis is often on catering as a career, rather than on actual home cooking.

I'd like this book to encourage novice cooks and help them on their way, and provide experienced cooks with a good collection of recipes and fresh ways of doing things.

Joe's first book, How to Grow Your Own Food, was published by How To Books in 2007 and received widespread critical acclaim. His down-to-earth style and quirky tales from the garden continued with the release of A Vegetable Gardener's Year (2008). This latest volume stands alone as a manual for both the first time grower or seasoned expert, and perfectly complements his earlier titles in the ongoing quest for success and satisfaction on the plot. Writing as 'Dirty Nails', Joe's popular weekly columns have been enjoyed by the readers of the Dorset-based Blackmore Vale Magazine since 2004. He now contributes to newspapers across England and Wales on a regular basis.