Food gardening is becoming increasingly popular, as people look for new ways to live more sustainably and minimize harm to the environment. This book addresses the most pressing challenges facing food gardening in the 21st century - worldwide changes in climate, the environment, natural resources, and communities - and the basic biological, ecological and social concepts which influence our understanding. Examples throughout the text demonstrate how gardeners can use these theories to their advantage.Table of Contents: PART I: Starting at the beginning: gardens and the big picture Chapter 1: What can Food Gardens Contribute? Gardens and Wellbeing Chapter 2: Changes coming to your garden Chapter 3: Responding to change as a food gardening strategy. Appendix - Worked formal garden experiments PART II: Starting the garden Chapter 4: Garden placement Chapter 5: How plants live and grow Chapter 6: Starting and caring for garden plants PART III: Garden management Chapter 7: Soil, nutrients, and organic matter Chapter 8: Water, soils, and plants Chapter 9: Managing pests, pathogens, and beneficial organisms Chapter 10: Saving seeds for planting and sharing