Farming Books

I've been putting off for some time buying the latest version ( I think I had 23 ) I needed some information so I finally broke down and got it, I'm glad I did, I also got the CD rom which comes in very handy if you use a computer at all. It's in pdf format which makes it text searchable, no more flipping through pages. Very nice.

Very happy with the book. The large print edition was a plus. It's small print to begin with so the large print is a must. The CD is a great companion and also a must. This book is a must for those who want to know everything about machining. Very happy with my purchase and the Amazon price was very reasonable. Thank you!

Industrial Press has a notice on their website that Acrobat 7 will now work as long as it is patched to version 7.0.5. Just an update from the earlier review which states that Acrobat 7 is not supported at all, which it probably wasn't when it was written.

The book is of course excellent. However the cd is anoying because the authors somehow did not make it upwardly compatable with the newest version of adobe reader (7.x). Therefore one needs to remove the latest version of adobe reader and install version 6.x . The two versions of adobe reader are not allowed to exist on a windows system at the same time.

This book is extremely helpful for mechanical design. It has all of the hard-to-find information needed for detailed part design, like screw thread specifications, gearing information, fastener dimensions and ratings...it even has charts describing necessary clearances for different kinds of wrenches. This is one of the most helpful books I have.

I highly recommend the large print version...I think they should call it the 'still-small-but-readable' version, and the regular one should be called the 'really-really tiny print' version. The CD is just a pdf of the book. It is handy because the pages are linked directly to the table of contents, so it is easy to find things. Also, it allows digital markup so you can highlight and makes notes. If you are involved anywhere in the process of design or machining you should own a copy of this book.

We're currently planning our retirement homestead so this seemed like a good book. It's a good starter. but lacks the detail in most places to really act on. I highly recommend this book for those considering setting up a homestead, but you'll need more details for most of the sections. As an aside, the slaughter of rabbits section is awesome. Read it before you decide whether or not you want to raise your own meat.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone thinking about getting some land and moving to the country. It covers all the basics of farming, raising livestock to building a farm pond.

It is written in a style that is conversational and his approach is "this is what has worked for me". Many books on the subject assume that you have some starter knowledge on the subject; this one covers the very basics for people that have grown up in the city or suburbs.

This writer captures the essence of homesteading in what is actually a rather short book. You don't need another reference if you want to be a homesteader.

Charles Sanders has created a good primer for self-reliant country living. His material covers everything from required tools to canning to fences to homemade gift ideas. The breadth of the text is truly amazing - in 295 pages of text Sanders covers just about every aspect of establishing a homestead.

However, such breadth in so relatively few pages practically guarantees that no one subject will get its due. Winemaking, for example, receives only 11 pages and raising various varieties of livestock is covered in just 26 pages. In other words, this is an excellent book with which to start the process of establishing a homestead, but anyone intending to actually follow through will want to move on to more comprehensive sources fairly quickly. (Sanders displays his seeming love of trivia in a five page discussion of land measurements that inexplicably includes information on a historical method of measuring invented in 1620 by an English mathematician.)

One very helpful feature is the book's appendix, which offers sections on weights and measures, methods of figuring a variety of volumes and weights, a chart of the reproductive expectations for various animals and more. These charts alone are worth the price of the book. A second appendix of recommended reading and/or websites to turn to when the material mastered within would have rendered the text even more valuable, but Sanders has inexplicably left such a resource out. To be fair, some recommendations are sprinkled throughout the text but they are not as easily found as if they were compiled all together.

I agree with the 1st reviewer...great book! What I find handy is that after most chapter, the author includes a list of resources for further reading, just in case (not likely!) you find his coverage of the topic lacking. This book is great not just for homesteaders, but for any one who lives, or aspires to live, in the country! It covers some topics not covered in most other books of this type, including attending an auction, Country games and pastimes, tractors, atvs, and firearms, in addition to the "usual" homestead topics of water, food preservation, etc.
Buy this book now if you want to live in the country!

I would ask that everyone interested in learning how our food supply and our seed stocks are being taken control of due to the actions of several large Agriculturally-focused corporations' and their abilities to utilize the World Trade Organization, International, and Country-of-Origin patent rights to hold-hostage the world's citizens in an attempt to covet the natural process for creating seed, to read this book.

This is the most important fight for our collective futures that we can involve ourselves in.

this is a great book, i highly recomend it. i must warn you its not for the weak stomached, this book will CHANGE your view on the food you eat. i didnt eat for a week after reading this.

I'm afraid I must dissent from the rave reviews this book has gotten. It's a good book, but it's not wonderful. It's very strong at presenting the ways that the corporatization of food production is destructive of human health, the environment, and the livelihood of poor farmers, fisher folk and the like. There's lots of examples, lots of strong empirical data to back up Shiva's claims. Her analysis about why all this is going on is lacking though. It's not that I disagree with her critique of the WTO, multinational corporations, monoculture and her affirmation of the need for humanity to live in harmony with nature. It's just that she barely does more than sketch these arguments out. I understand that this is not meant to be an academic book, but she could have developed her points in much more depth, while still using accessible language and ideas. This book has potential it didn't achieve.

In Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking Of The Global Food Supply, renowned environmental activist Vandana Shiva charts the impacts of globalized, corporate agriculture on small farmers, the environment, and the quality of the food we eat. Shiva writes about genetically engineered seeds, patents on life, mad cows (and sacred cows), shrimp farming, and more. Stolen Harvest is a passionate, articulate, highly recommended "wake up" call to the public regarding the role of genetic engineering in commercial agriculture, the growing domination of agribusiness with respect to world food supplies, and the need for sound environmental thinking with respect to feeding the burgeoning populations of the world.

In this remarkable book, Vandana Shiva effectively contrasts corporate command-and-control methods of food production with the small farmer economy that predominates in the third world (especially in her native India). In contast to what many here in the U.S. might perceive as the conventional wisdom, Shiva makes a strong argument that local, small scale agriculture is superior to the agribusiness model for a number of reasons.

First, Shiva points out that many of the productivity gains attributable to the Green Revolution were achieved by dramatically increased inputs of fertilizer, seed and water. When one compares units of input with units of output, however, native practices produce higher yields -- especially when one takes into account the multiple uses derived from a single product.

For example, mustard oil is a vital product used by many of India's poor for cooking, seasoning, medicine and other uses. But it has been banned by the Indian government (under highly suspicious circumstances) in order to allow imports of soybean oil products. While giant corporations benefit from expanded sales, native industries have been destroyed, contibuting to poverty and malnourishment.

Shiva discusses the commercial fishing and aquaculture (shrimp farming) practices that inevitably result in environmental destruction and reduced catches. She compares this short-sighted approach with traditional Indian fishing techniques that have successfully sustained themselves for generations while protecting important ecosystems such as mangrove forests.

Shiva discusses corporate patenting of seeds, which insidiously transforms the cooperative ethic of seed sharing into a criminal offense. The author supports a non-cooperation movement in India that is resisting corporate attempts to claim ownership of seeds that have been cultivated by countless generations of farmers.

Shiva's sacred cow / mad cow metaphor effectively and appropriately contrasts agribusiness with small farming. India's sacred cows live in harmony with the environment, performing multiple services and producing multiple products for the community; whereas mad cows are a grotesque manifestation of an industrial system obsessed with uniformity, technology and profit.

Shiva also touches on the topic of genetic engineering (GE) and discusses the threat it poses to biodiversity, food safety and human health.

The Afterword to the book alludes to the WTO protests in Seattle. Shiva believes this watershed event proves that people are becoming more aware of the dangers of unaccountable corporate power, yet she believes that positive change is possible. This opening of consciousness to new possibilities may be attributable to the extraordinary work of people like Vandana Shiva, whose intelligence and compassion is abundantly evident in this book. Highly recommended!

This is a very interesting book for grade school children and also for
young adults. I think that the Amish people would love having this book
"The Time Cavern" in their library. Especially for their children to
read. I thought it was very well written.

The Time Cavern by Todd A. Fonseca was a well written informative book for both adults and teens. I even learned a few things (heaven forbid) reading about the adventures of Aaron and Jake. The two new friends try to solve a mystery with a few clues left in the loft of the barn where Aaron has just moved. Their unquenchable curiosity provides the reader with an enchanting adventure, new insights into the world, and a chance to relive the growing experiences of a 10 year old. The wonderful world of The Time Cavern creates a step back in time for adults and a whole new world to discover for teens.

I even learned what Google means. Read the book and find out.
The Time Cavern is a great adventure for all.
Sondi

I really enjoyed the Time Cavern! I thought the characters came to life and I felt like I was in the story myself. The descriptive story line captivates not only children, but adults as well.
Aaron, the main character in the story, has a very creative and active imagination. His new friend, Jake, and Aaron explore the farm that Aaron and his family just moved to. A piece of paper leads them to an adventure that any child would like to experience.
I liked the way the author incorporated imagination of a 10 year old as well as family values of today.

Written from a 10yr olds point of view, "Time Cavern" tells the adventures of two friends trying to unravel the mystery of a boy who went missing 100 years past. How they go about it, and what they learn along the way makes the story move right along.
Mr. Fonseca throws in a LOT of information about different cultures, (Amish), science (gasses and what they do) responsibility, even astronomy, weaving it all seamlessly into an interesting story that should hold the interest of any young science fiction fan. I guess thats what I like best about this book. By the time a young person has finished it, he'll come away with more than just a good read. He'll come away knowing a little more about the real world. And thanks to the great ending, he'll be looking forward to more adventures with Aaron and Jake. Looking forward to the next installment myself.....

When Aaron moves into an old Amish farm in the country, he's surprised at all the things that he discovers--a new friend named Jake, who is actually a girl, a mysterious secret surrounding his house, and an old chest containing a diary, a map, and odd mechanisms. These things all lead Aaron and Jake to a time machine in a secluded part of the forest and on an adventure they won't forget.

The Time Cavern is a great adventure for younger readers, with a unique setting that is at once interesting and educational, and not at all boring. Aaron is a well developed and lively character, and although his adventures are far fetched, many kids will be able to relate to his curiosity and his home life. Full of enough details to keep younger readers happily occupied, but not too many as to confuse them, The Time Cavern is well balanced. However, towards the end and during the climatic chapters, some kids may have a little bit of trouble keeping up, as it does get a little confusing, even for an older reader. But once they wade through those turbulent and fast paced chapters, they'll be begging for more adventures with Aaron and Jake.

Reading this book is like visiting the village of Dixon, NM, which has been Stan Crawford's home for many years. At first it doesn't look as if there's much of anything there: clusters of old adobe houses, small farms, a combination grocery/gas station, a few lowriders cruising the main drag, big old cottonwoods, willow thickets along the river, and fences festooned with Old Man's Beard. But if you stay a while and explore, you'll discover fascinating people, an amazing array of small businesses (from herbalists and food producers to weavers and fine jewelers), and a community lifestyle that hasn't entirely lost its connection with the rhythms of the seasons. Crawford is not only a dedicated farmer (and a pillar of the Santa Fe Farmer's Market), but a fine writer and a clear-eyed observer; the various chapters of the book present a vividly described, thoughtful picture of his life and his surroundings. I found the chapter on Los Alamos rather weak (it's just the usual "ain't bombs awful" arm-waving), but the rest of the book is an unmitigated pleasure. Forget the Hollywood version of New Mexico; this is the real thing.

Anyone who enjoys whole foods cookery, herbal healing, and organic gardening will appreciate Crawford's observations. Those with a philosophical bent will appreciate them even more. His reflections on a life lived close to nature are a bit like those of Thoreau or Jefferson, but Crawford appears to also be very much the guy who brings fresh produce to your local farmer's market.

Few of us have probably given much thought to the growing of garlic bulbs, which really consist of "cloves" that can be divided and planted or used to season everything from marinara sauce to stir fries. You might have noticed the green sprouts that begin to emerge from cloves of garlic kept too long in your refrigerator, but Crawford suggests garlic plants are difficult to grow because their life course is different from that of many other plants. Garlics have adapted to life in stressful places where rainfall is not always forthcoming but when they need moisture, they need moisture. To avoid death, the bulbs spend a good part of the year "resting" or dormant. In a chapter called "Waiting" Crawford says that's exactly what the garlic farmer does. Much of the year, garlic like other bulbed plants are in hiding, and the farmer must be patient and wait until they are ready for the harvest.

But Crawford's interaction with plants isn't only about garlic. He relates how he "tasted the landscape" as a child in his native California-peeling and chewing the white pulp of anise growing by the side of the road in winter; sucked the syrup of nasturtiums, smelled the pepper tree berries, and searched the orchids for loquats, limes, and mandarin oranges. Today, children are not so fortunate. Pollution, chemicals, other noxious matter have made much of the landscape dangerous. Crawford toyed with both conventional and organic farming. He says he wishes to ask those who enquire whether his products for sell at the weekly market are "organic" if they lead organic lives. Do they earn their money in organic ways. He says, "Perhaps in the poisonous desert of the city there is little else you can do besides seek out what you hope is "pure" food. In addition to being informative and philosophical, Crawford's book is provocative.

This is one of the best-written books that I have ever read. Each word is well-chosen, effective, and yet easy to read. At one point in the book, he alludes that he has written poetry previously. Each of the 39 chapters is a few pages long, presenting a brief essay on something related to garlic farming in New Mexico. There's an obvious love and care that he gives to his work (both garlic farming and writing), and he's able to show respect for others who have not chosen this path. The book also presents some information about how garlic is grown, but it's by no means a gardening book. It's a descriptive story of the cycles of the growing season. Like in his other excellent book, Mayordomo, the author also shares his community with us - talking about how farming, farmers markets, irrigation, and such intertwine a community, even one that contains members who originally went there to "get away from it all."

When Henry David Thoreau left the comforts of civilization to build his own house with his own hands and deliberately live close to nature, his experience at Walden Pond became a classic in American literature. Even today, many of us trapped in the mundane horrors of urban life long to escape, as he did, to a small plot of land somewhere outside the realms of commerce, overcommercialization, and petty-minded consumerism.

Novelist Stanley Crawford had the courage to do more than dream about it. He left California for the rigorous, simple life of a New Mexico garlic farmer and, like Thoreau, has written a wise and thought-provoking book about his experiences. His account spans a year in the life of garlic, tying topics as diverse as the nuclear bomb and the challenge of maintaining community to the rhythms of building one's own house from adobe and learning to plant and harvest responsibly.

After closing the cover of this book, I was ready to drive to New Mexico and seek out Crawford in the Farmer's Market, to buy my own bulbs of top-setting garlic and somehow bring some of the beauty of his life into my own. I may never stand in Santa Fe behind his pickup, buying a woven garland of organic garlic to hang in my kitchen, or perhaps I will travel there and stammer some foolish words about his writing as I hand him a handful of crumbled dollar bills. In some sense, the physical journey has become irrelevant: Crawford's New Mexico has already illumined my heart and wakened me to the rhythms of my own life. I don't have the strength or the patience to tend a field or a garden, manufacture adobe or create a home, brick by brick. But I, too, have a place in the world, and eyes to see--A Garlic Testament is one of those books that wakes us from habitual slumber and reminds us, as Thoreau so aptly put it, to advance confidently in the directions of our dreams, and to put the foundations under our castles in the air.

I've enjoyed this book for several years and often suggest it to people wanting to grow garlic or sell at farmers' markets. It is an excellent resource, providing a first-hand experience in both garlic, small-scale farming, and direct marketing in an easy-to-read format. For people who enjoy plants, this book reads like a novel as we follow the author and his thoughts through the season. I find it quite representative of life on a small farm, with interesting philosophical perspectives on life, family values, farming, and relationship between the farm and the community. It is easy to identify with the grower and I eagerly looked forward to the next chapter. Each chapter captures the picture and thoughts of a particular time, yet the growth of the crop and its place in the larger picture provides continuity between chapters. Highly recommended and enjoyable. Technically accurate regarding garlic cultivation. Good insight into small-scale farming in New Mexico.

Well written, and easy to read,. The historical data is incredible and more than I learned in school, but written to make one want to learn more and ask questions at the end.

Truly insighful book written with compassion and caring of the Delta people .

I read every word of this interesting and timely book, which was chock full of information and history. I was excited to see the book come out as I believe our country is hurt by losing touch with its agrarian roots, and agricultural policy is being made now by people disconnected from production. Before I read it I had visions of sending it to policy makers and New Yorkers and others who need to know. I still may do that, but I was a bit disappointed that the author makes the farmer look like a bit of dolt.

Farmers who survive today, and there are far fewer then there were a generation ago, need to be among the shrewdest, most technologically and scientifically savvy managers of assets in the world, adept at managing people, machines, technology, balance sheets, politics, community relations, and the weather. This book goes a long way to showing the truth of that, but in my view falls short of its promise by making farmers look more stoic than smart.

"High Cotton" follows a Mississippi cotton farmer through a year of planting, growing, and harvesting cotton. Along the way readers learn of how new technology is used, decisions made about seed choices, herbicides and pesticides, etc., as well as considerable background about cotton in the U.S.

Even today, without slavery, the U.S. remains the world's leading exporter of cotton, claiming 40% of the world's market. Absent this single crop and its demand for slave labor, the past 200 years of American life would have been unimaginably different.

Today's growers no longer face the frequent threat of raging flood waters, and the federal government assumes much of the risk in growing cotton. Sophisticated machinery and potent chemicals perform work once done by humans - as a result, the Delta has been losing population for nearly a century. Even the cotton plant itself has been genetically modified to resist pests and herbicides.

In the Mississippi Delta (a misnomer - actually located in the state's Northwest corner), topsoil deposited over the millennia ranges up to 350 feet deep. The river itself descends an average 3" per mile, is over a mile wide in places, and up to 100 feet deep. The Mississippi carries 5 tons of silt per second to the Gulf of Mexico.

Helferich follows a relative (Zach) for a year as he cultivates 1,000 acres of cotton. Two bales/acre is the average in the Delta; Zach got 3 last year (1,250 lbs.) Some years suffer from too much rain, lowering the quality to a level where the cotton is only suitable for stuffing furniture. The average farm in the area now grows 4,000 acres. Prices are lower than 25 years ago, while costs have risen (land rents for an average of $100/acre). Cotton farmers are aided by $4 billion/year in federal subsidies - money that h as become the target of those wanting to reduce federal spending as well as foreign cotton sources.

"High Cotton" tells us that Zach can work his land now with 2 full-time and 2 part-time employees, instead of the dozens that would have been needed 100 years ago. His tractors provide 250 h.p., cost $125,000, weigh up to 10 tons, and have 15 forward gears. Zach's prior experience as a John Deere mechanic is invaluable in getting through a typical day.

A slave could pick an average of 200 lbs. of cotton/day, or alternatively provide 1 pound of cleaned cotton (seeds represent 2/3 of its initial weight). Then the new cotton gins with three workers and a horse could process 1,000 lbs./day, creating 300 lbs. of usable fiber. (Patent disputes left little net gain for inventor Eli Whitney; he later achieved economic success through standardizing and simplifying the manufacture of muskets - possibly an even greater long-term contribution to the U.S.)

Genetically-modified seed costs about $72/acre, and Zach can plant 150 acres/day, the depth depending on the type of soil and its moisture content.

Slaves generally represented the bulk of antebellum plantation-owners' wealth. "Roundup" replaces manual hoeing for weeds, and adds about $2/lb. to seed costs; while effective now, users worry about weed mutation rendering it increasingly ineffective. Today's herbicides break down faster and are applied at much lower rates - 1-2 ounces/acre, vs. a former 1-2 lbs.

Aerial spraying service costs $3/acre, and is used when the ground is waterlogged. The planes costs about $650,000, with $350,000 of that for its light, reliable turboprop engine. GPS systems are used to remember where they've already sprayed. Power lines are the greatest danger - pilots therefore stay close to home (familiar areas) and keep maps taped in the cockpit with power lines clearly marked. A plane can spray 2,000 acres/day.

Pivot irrigation systems cost up to $100,000 each; their diesel pump motors use about 5 gallons fuel/your, and the arms can take up to 100 hours to complete a circuit. These are used when a field doesn't have enough grade to use pipe irrigation.

About 15 different insects attack cotton, creating a need for $75-$100/acre in spraying and extra-cost bollworm resistant seeds. (Organic cotton produces only about half the yield.) DDT had been used to kill bollworms, but they evolved an immunity and required increasingly heavy doses - up to 2 lbs./week. Malathion now has proven effective and less dangerous, without an immunity developing (so far). Cotton farmers also spray their fields to reduce growth beyond a certain point, thereby limiting boll rot and bringing faster ripening.

Zach pays about $30/acre for an outside combine harvesting service - a month is required to finish Zach's fields. Each cotton module that is set out on a field weighs about 8,000 lbs. Cotton is graded prior to being sold. Most employees at the gin Zach uses are Mexicans - employers see them as more reliable and better workers.

"High Cotton" reports that more American textile jobs have been lost to automation than exported, but fails to also realize that if the automation had not occurred the jobs would have been exported anyway.

Only about 1/3 the 1929 U.S. land planted in cotton is still used for cotton today; however, the total production is about the same.

At the end of the year Zach ends up losing money on his cotton crop despite his expertise, hard work, and investments (though he makes up at least some of this through subsidies), decides to partner with his sons, and sells most of his equipment. It's a hard life.

High Cotton is a fine book, enjoyable and interesting reading. It is hard to believe a non-fiction description of cotton planting could be recreational reading but the author pulls off the feat; blending descriptions of the actual farming activities, flash-backs to the role of cotton in American history, the financial pressure planters deal with, to the after-work social activities of the planter. You feel you know the people, feel the hot sun, hear the equipment, ride in the truck and taste the cold beer when the planters take a day off.

This is a powerful and moving book. Shallow people see it as a book about cotton farming or the tragedy of small farmers or as another opportunity to say stupid things about a place they have never
been. As a person who is offended by revisionist histories about the South, but who was deeply rooted in the Delta, I can tell you that if you think William Faulkner was a regional author, don't read it. It is gently written and tells a story of a good man in a struggle with fate and destiny. There is no villan, no antagonist to shoulder blame and guilt. This is not a story of Biblical Job or of virtue. It is however an account of people like anyone who run a small honest business, who strive and are defeated by circumstance. There is no one to hate and few to pity. I suppose some aberrant people will be offended by the racial issues they may read into it, but to assume there are any is a figment. Simply put, they aren't there unless not showing up for work after being stabbed with a pair of scissors is racist. Many people, liberal arts types, are not well enough educated to read this book with compassion. Pity them. The prose is relaxed, the historical facts well done and eclectic. The author has produced an American Classic comparable to Steinbeck and yes, Faulkner.

but Roger is such an interesting writer that anyone regardless of their life style will find this book entertaining..a book that is hard to walk away from..

Anyone that has ever read Roger's tractor books will love this. If you read his columns in Successful Farming, a lot of it will be familiar, but well worth re-reading. As has been the case with each of his tractor books that I have bought, it turns into a marathon cover-to-cover reading session. I have yet to be able to pace myself while reading one.

Yep, some folks may have seen this material before, since this book's a compilation of Welsch's enrapturing material written for Successful Farming magazine. I haven't, because I'm too cheap to subscribe, but I still got to enjoy all this hilarious writing because my wife bought me the book for Christmas. There's something genuinely funny about Roger Welsch, and whether the topic is tractors, love, or interior decoration, it shines through in his thoughtful and eloquent writing. Roger starts each essay with a topic related to tractors, tractor restoration, or tractor enthusiasts, and by applying his gentle humor and a creative logic that suggests a tenuous grasp of reality, crafts gem-like vignettes of modern rural life. This book is in a class with the author's LOVE, SEX, AND TRACTORS or Howard Mohr's HOW TO TALK MINNESOTAN ... it was so funny I had to take it out to the shed and read parts of it to my John Deere "A". We both had a good laugh.

Actually,the book was a compilation of articles that have appeared in Sucessfull Farming magazine over the years. His books are always funny to those who understand life on the farm and tractor restoration.

My first exposure to Roger Welsch came from his "Post Cards From Nebraska" as aired on CBS's "Sunday Morning". The folks at CBS, lost a viewer, now that the "Postcard" segments are rarely included.
The main result of the CBS error, was that I turned heavily to the reading of Roger's books, to maintain and increase my levels of socially acceptable gratification.
"Old Tractors Never Die...Roger's Guide to the Care and Feeding of Ageless Iron" is a collection of pieces that originally appeared in the Successful Farming magazine. If I had more time, I'd be a subscriber...if for no other reason then to show respect to the folks that grow and raise my food. In reading "Old Tractors..." I've gain years worth of Roger Welsch's insightful, humorous and unique perspectives on this boy's favorite pass time.
I love tools, machinery, rust and iron. The collection, restoration and maintenance of old tractors is touched on. The reasons a person would enjoy this pass-time are shared. A deeper meaning of gratitude came to me, for those that farmed with all that old iron. It's a people kind of book that will introduce you to folks you can call friend and hobby you might just pick up.

This book is a hoot! Maybe it won't be classified a great literature, but it is vastly enjoyable-- a fun read. In these times of stress, angst, anxiety, etc., emotions seemingly caused by the conditions of life these days, what is more valuable to any of us than to have our spirits lifted by a chuckle or outloud laugh? OSTRICH entertains and amuses while slipping in some astute observations about humans and their foibles. Almost as important here are the animals who the author seems to understand as kindred, not too different from the rest of us. If one can read this and not be charmed by all the characters, two-legged, four-legged, and one even feathered; that person must be beyond hope. Try it, you'll like it.

A great comedy with a classic and predictable storyline. However, what makes the difference is that Thomas, in my mind, elevates the human and animal characters to the same level and as a result it is extremely entertaining to follow how animal logic manages and prevails over human ambition towards sorting things out.

Didn't think a book on this topic could tell such a great story. Funny, interesting, and an author with a talent for drawing up characters and developng them brilliantly.

Ostrich was a charming book. VJ and Ev, best friends with totally opposite views and energy levels, are such delightful characters. They play off one another in a way that lets the reader get to know them thoroughly. Sabine and Magda, husband and wife, interact in a truely remarkable and heart-warming way, giving and taking, balancing stubbornness with love. Their three daughters, especially Rosa, are well-drawn and vital characters. And the Colonel, he's a very funny piece of work. Put these interesting characters, and their relationships, into a mix of animals including donkeys, poodles, sheep, and a hair-raising baby ostrich and you'll find as much delight as I did. Michael Thomas has a winner here.

Because I'm usually not the the type of person that reads light-hearted books, I didn't know quite what to expect when I picked up "Ostrich." The book didn't let me down.

Mike Thomas does a good job of showing the reader the world through his characters' eyes, thus making even the repugnant personalaties in the book quite endearing. When I started the book, I wasn't sure that I would be able to read it through to the end, but by about a quarter of the way into it, I found myself hoping for the next chapter in order to find out how the characters would fare. In the meantime, interspersed throughout the book are nuggets of wisdom on topics that range from love to animal husbandry.

This is the kind of book that makes you want to dog-ear the pages containing these nuggets of wisdom, because you'll want to find them at a later time. If you're looking for an uplifting read, I don't think you can really go wrong with "Ostrich."

This book is available online for free at http://www.journeytoforever.org/farm_library/weeds/WeedsToC.html#contents

I just finished reading it and found it very interesting. I'm hoping to try out what he has to say. It's a bit circular, saying the same thing, but with different stories and situations, but I still found it fascinating to read about weeds in such a way.

Obsessive weeding is not only unnecessary, but counter-productive. Every gardener and turf manager needs to understand the positive as well as negative role of weeds in horticulture. Cocannouer's book is a true gardening classic, too long out of print, and too little-known. This book will change the way you look at weeds forever.

Weeds tend to balance soil deficiencies or surplusses, break up dense soils, provide soil organic matter, regulate soil moisture, contribute to biodiversity, and often provide habitat for beneficial organisms. Identifying the weeds in a given plot provides valuable clues to soil conditions once the preferences of a particular plant are understood. For example, lambs quarters grow in nitrogen-rich disturbed soils. If they appear after incorporating manure, it doesn't necessarily mean the seed was contained in the manure, but that your application has been a success.

You can read this book online at the Holistic Agriculture Library.

I got a copy form the ENMU library, with author as Cocannouer, published in 1950. If this is the same book, I recommend it for every gardner. He explains how to use weeds to bring trace minerals to the root zone of garden plants, including flowers.

The author information given is incorrect for the book: "Weeds: Guardians of the Soil" ISBN: 0815972059 This book was authored by Joseph Cocannouer.

Joyce Rebeta-Burditt is my mother and she did not write this book! Someone goofed!

The ideas in this book are most useable. Market Gardeners can get honest solutions to problems they are facing by reading this book.

After reading Mr. Whatley's book, I want to give up what I'm doing and starting up a clientele membership club farm. If more farmers would diversify in Whatley's style, I believe the state of America's farm community would be much better. Good practical advice, if a bit outdated, from all aspects of starting, running and capitalizing on a farm business

A must read for anyone thinking of making money on small acreage. Great detail and full of how to drawings and practical advise. As a small farmer I learned a lot from one of the gurus of small farming.

Mr. Whatley's book contains excellent, practical advice for starting a small-scale farm while stacking the odds in your favor. He correctly advocates that the future of farming isn't in the government, Del Monte (et al) or thousand-acre megafarms but in small operations providing specialized crops & meat to selective clientele. Though somewhat dated in pricing, the advice is still valid fourteen years after printing. Once I get mine up & running, I let you know more.