Charlie Nardozzi - The Ultimate Gardener: The Best Experts Advice for Cultivating a Magnificent Garden with Photos and Stories

THE
ULTIMATE
GARDENER

The Best Experts Advice for
Cultivating a Magnificent Garden
with Photos and Stories

Charlie Nardozzi
of the National Garden Association

Health Communications, Inc.
HCI Books, the Life Issues Publisher
Deerfield Beach, Florida

www.hcibooks.com
www.ultimatehcibooks.com

Library in Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
is available through the Library of Congress.

2009 Charlie Nardozzi
eISBN-13: 978-0-7573-9764-6 (ebook) eISBN-10: 0-7573-9764-6 (ebook)

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher.

HCI, its logos, and its marks are trademarks of Health Communications, Inc.

Publisher: Health Communications, Inc.
3201 S.W. 15th Street
Deerfield Beach, FL 33442-8190

Cover Design: Larissa Hise Henoch
Cover Photo: Purestock
Photo Editor: Justin Rotkowitz
Interior Design: Lawna Patterson Oldfield

To Leslie Goldman,
The Enchanted Gardener,
for planting dreams and
seeds of inspiration.

To all those who garden
and for those who dream to
have a garden one day.

Is something Ultimately important to you?
Then we want to know about it....

We hope you enjoyed The Ultimate Gardener.We are planning many more books in the Ultimate series, each filled with entertaining stories, must-know facts, and captivating photos. Were always looking for talented writers to share slice-of-life true stories, creative photographers to capture images that a story cant tell, as well as top experts to offer their unique insights on a given topic.

For more information on submission guidelines, or to suggest a topic for an upcoming book, please visit the Ultimate website at www.ultimatehcibooks.com, or write to: Submission Guidelines, Ultimate Series, HCI Books, 3201 SW15th St., Deerfield Beach, FL 33442.

For more information about other books by
Health Communications, Inc., please visit www.hcibooks.com.

Contents

Linda Kaullen Perkins

Christine E. Collier

Sally Clark

Susan Sundwall

Christy Lowman

Christy Lowman

Joyce Stark

Nancy Baker

Nancy Edwards Johnson

Nancy Gibbs

Anita E. Machek

Michelle Close Mills

Janie Dempsey Watts

Harriet Cooper

Felice Prager

Juliana Harris

Barbara Blossom Ashmun

Melanie L. McCree

Veronica Cullinan Lake

Lisa Scott

Lola Di Giulio De Maci

Annmarie B. Tait

Cookie Curci

Janice A. Farringer

Cathy Slovensky

Danita Cahill

Mustard GreensMore Than a Pretty Almaden
Valley Flower Cookie Curci

Christine E. Collier

Nancy Edwards Johnson

Shirley Dunn Perry

Linda OConnell

Marilyn K. Eudaly

Linda E. Allen

Jean Matthew Hall

Maureen Helms Blake

Loree Lough

Jo Rae Johnson

Ferida Wolff

Lisa Scott

Michele Ivy Davis

Suzan Davis

Roberta Beach Jacobson

Bobbe White

Nancy Edwards Johnson

Robyn Kurth

Cathy Slovensky

Suzanne Beetsch

Jean M. Fogle

Cathy Slovensky

Barbara E. Richardson

Suzanne Beetsch

Sarah Chase Shaw

Jean M. Fogle

Linda E. Allen

Danita Cahill

Larissa Hise Henoch

G ardening is an activity everyone, from all walks of life, can enjoy. From kids planting their first bean to senior citizens growing heirloom flowers in containers, gardening is a lifelong hobby that fulfills many needs.We all know gardens are beautiful to look at and the food they produce tasty to eat, but consider other ways they enhance our lives. Gardens are a great way to reduce our energy consumption, reduce pollution, and provide more green space in our communities.

Gardens provide habitat for animals, birds, bees, and a whole host of other creatures. Perhaps most important, gardens provide a respite from our busy days. You cant put a price tag on the peace and serenity puttering in a garden at the end of the day can bring.

Gardens also bring people together. Its common ground. As a writer for the National Gardening Association, Ive traveled across the country visiting gardeners from all walks of life. Regardless of our political, religious, or personal differences, whenever we started to talk gardening, we came together in the simple love of growing plants.

Gardening is also a way to teach kids about the environment, our culture, and academic subjects such as math and science. Kids light up when they grow plants for themselves. In the process of hands-on learning in the garden, kids are taught the personal and academic skills that will help them throughout their lives. At National Gardening we have found that when kids participate in gardening programs, they score better on academic tests, develop better team and interpersonal skills, and have healthier attitudes about exercise and nutritious eating. Plus, theres nothing like the expression on a kids face when they realize that carrots grow underground, when they pick their first bean from a plant they grew from seed, or when they chomp into a vine-ripened cherry tomato for the first time. All the classroom teaching in the world on nutrition and ecology cant substitute for the real-world experience of growing and eating your own food or seeing a butterfly sip nectar from a flower.