Here is the definitive guide to growing healthy organic vegetables without wasting our precious water resources This incredibly timely book will give dedicated home gardeners the know-how to grow delicious produce in dry times, focusing on four different low-water conditions in the western United States: voluntary water conservation, drought, and both high and low desert. Using modern techniques, as well as tips and stories from native traditions ranging from the southwestern United States to the Middle East, this guide offers the best of ancient wisdom and the newest innovations in conservation, and includes varietal recommendations and a seasonal crop guide. ..

A design-focused, easy-to-use guide to colorful, eye-catching foliage and flowers for your whole yard, from the ground plane to the canopy, for homeowners and landscapers faced with replacing thirsty gardens in California and other dry regions in the Western US. If readers must reluctantly remove water-guzzling favorites from the garden, they need equally beautiful substitutes This book is a visual treat that supports the transition to dry gardening by proving that gardeners can have all the gorgeous color and flowers they had in the past using just a fraction of the water. Maureen Gilmer provides chapters on design categories of plants--flowering shrubs, ..

If you live on a flood plain or wetland, you know the potential dangers--to you, your family, and your home. A major flood could strike at any time and you need to be prepared. But of even more immediate concern is the tiresome battle to keep your property free of minor floods and water seepage, which can be just as destructive--and costly--as a major flood. This all-purpose book guides you through the range of options you have to protect your property. And if a problem already exists, it shows you how to tackle the trouble and put your house back in order. This updated edition includes new information about flood plain laws and insurance as well as changes in g ..

In Living with Wildfire (first published as The Wildfire Survival Guide), gardening expert Maureen Gilmer shares proven ways to save your home, property, and life with wildfire-resistant landscaping and fire-prevention techniques. Discover how to create bands of protection by choosing fire-resistant plants, manage native vegetation, prevent erosion and mudslides, and learn about: -Wildfire dynamics and safeguarding your home against them -Water storage and delivery in any emergency -Creating a defensible space for you and firefighters Included is updated information on insuring your property, selecting your home site, packing an emergency kit, and getting public ..

Redwoods and Roses explores the special relationship California's diverse peoples have shared with nature and the unique gardens and landscapes they have created over the years to nurture and enhance those bonds. From pre-colonial times to the Victorian era, California gardening expert Maureen Gilmer brings this garden history to life, showing how the gardens and landscapes were created and profiling the heirloom plants within them. But Redwoods and Roses is more than a book on gardening history. Here, the reader will discover how to recreate period designs in her own garden, from making a no-fuss adobe-look wall from the Mission era to finding heirloom plants f ..