Public Gardens and Livable Cities changes the paradigm for how we conceive of the role of urban public gardens. Donald A. Rakow, Meghan Z. Gough, and Sharon A. Lee advocate for public gardens as community outreach agents that can, and should, partner with local organizations to support positive local agendas. Safe neighborhoods, quality science education, access to fresh and healthy foods, substantial training opportunities, and environmental health are the key initiative areas the authors explore as they highlight model successes and instructive failures that can guide future practices. Public Gardens and Livable Cities uses a prescriptive approach to synthesize a range of public, private, and nonprofit initiatives from municipalities throughout the country. In doing so, the authors examine the initiatives from a practical perspective to identify how they were implemented, their sustainability, the obstacles they encountered, the impact of the initiatives on their populations, and how they dealt with the communities' underlying social problems. By emphasizing the knowledge and skills that public gardens can bring to partnerships seeking to improve the quality of life in cities, this book offers a deeper understanding of the urban public garden as a key resource for sustainable community development.

Turn over a new leaf with these nutritional powerhouses for your kitchen garden Our industrialized food system is failing us, and as individuals we must take more responsibility for our own health and food security. Leaf crops produce more nutrients per square foot of growing space and per day of growing season than any other crops and are especially high in vitamins and minerals commonly lacking in the North American diet. As hardy as they are versatile, these beautiful leafy vegetables range from the familiar to the exotic. Some part of this largely untapped food resource can thrive in almost any situation. Eat Your Greens provides complete instructions for incorporating these nutritional powerhouses into any kitchen garden. This innovative guide: Shows how familiar garden plants such as sweet potato, okra, beans, peas, and pumpkin can be grown to provide both nourishing leaves and other calorie- and protein-rich foods Introduces a variety of non-traditional, readily adaptable alternatives such as chaya, moringa, toon, and wolfberry Explains how to improve your soil while getting plenty of vegetables by growing edible cover crops Beginning with a comprehensive overview of modern commercial agriculture and rounded out by a selection of advanced techniques to maximize, preserve, and prepare your harvest, Eat Your Greens is an invaluable addition to the library of any gardening enthusiast. David Kennedy is the founder and director of Leaf for Life, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the elimination of global malnutrition through the optimum use of leaf crops, and is the author of 21st Century Greens and the Leaf for Life Handbook.