The Resilient Gardener: Food Production and Self-Reliance in Uncertain Times

by Carol Deppe, 384 pages, 7½x9½, softcover. First published twelve years ago, the book’s subtitle was prescient. We all now know that climate change is making our growing seasons more unpredictable, and we’d be wise to reflect on the practical wisdom gained from Carol Deppe’s experience and heed at least some of her advice. Placing emphasis on those with special health and dietary needs, Deppe grounds us with her 33 Golden Rules of Gardening, then examines in depth five essential crops we will need to survive and thrive: potatoes, corn, beans, squash and eggs. Learn how to maintain your own potato seed stock, how to dry squash (spoiler alert: she recommends both Costata Romanesca and Sunshine), and how to cook with traditional open-pollinated flint corns. I’ve enjoyed a serving of her skillet bread, and in this book she shares both her recipe and her secret for caring for her skillets. If you care about either gardening or eating, there’s a lot to be learned here. -CR, NK