No-Dig, No-Weed Gardening

Digging and weeding are two chores any gardener would happily abandon. A plant biochemist and horticulturist, Poincelot contends that digging is not only unnecessary but damaging to the soil, and encourages weeds by bringing dormant seeds to the surface. One of his favorite weapons in the weed war is black plastic mulch. Yet, for organic mulchers and even non-mulchers, he has a number of unusual ideas: Hang up your shovel and trowel in favor of a bulb planter, a dibble and a furrower; foliage feeding is more efficient than root feeding; fish emulsion and seaweed extract can fertilize an entire garden. This clear, comprehensive, step-by-step approach is based on the author's experiments, in collaboration with his 80-year-old friend, Bill Loefstedt, in his Connecticut garden. (One of their discoveries, an inexpensive method of producing better transplants, may alone be worth the price of the book.) His attention to cost and a list of suppliers are helpful extras from one gardener to another. Photos. (April 23)