Sustainable gardening made easy

ABOUT THE BOOKWelcome to a gardening world where everything grows and thrives!Here no one needs to do the weeding or watering, and neither chemicals nor human-made fertilizers are needed. Because when nature itself gets to decide, everything is perfect. We need to return to the basics: How nature's ecosystems work and how we can use them to start growing more locally, on a small scale, and without toxins.In this book, you'll get insight into how everything works and how you imitate nature's methods to succeed with your organic gardening endeavours! This way, we start a positive spiral towards a healthier life - both for us and nature. Growing stuff the natural way does not have to be time-consuming, cumbersome, or even expensive!Learn everything about how to do. 138 illustrations to your help. Appendix of 30 pages of growing facts.TESTIMONIALS“For those who want to see their garden from new perspectives. Common sense on steroids.” - Petter Bergström, Homesteader & editor for the magazine Åter“This is a book that everyone who eats should read. Above all, it is an almost comprehensive handbook for those who grow for self-sufficiency or small-scale business. Everything is presented in a very easy to understand and educational way. I get insight, inspiration and gardening joy.” - - Jonas WangstenPresident of Förbundet Sveriges Småbrukare“Homo Sapiens are a unique species that can build personal fantasy worlds and live their lives inside them, without being significantly disturbed by the annoying reality outside. But here comes a book about daring to stop, and train our ability to observe reality, as it is before we more carefully give shape to our little world. Because what if it is possible to fit the whole reality on the inside? It is no coincidence that the ways we cultivate our garden are so often compared to how we live our lives. In the long run, the choice is between being one with nature or not at all.” “Homo Sapiens are a unique species that can build personal fantasy worlds and live their lives inside them, without being significantly disturbed by the annoying reality outside. But here comes a book about daring to stop, and train our ability to observe reality, as it is before we more carefully give shape to our little world. Because what if it is possible to fit the whole reality on the inside? It is no coincidence that the ways we cultivate our garden are so often compared to how we live our lives. In the long run, the choice is between being one with nature or not at all.” “Homo Sapiens are a unique species that can build personal fantasy worlds and live their lives inside them, without being significantly disturbed by the annoying reality outside. But here comes a book about daring to stop, and train our ability to observe reality, as it is before we more carefully give shape to our little world. Because what if it is possible to fit the whole reality on the inside? It is no coincidence that the ways we cultivate our garden are so often compared to how we live our lives. In the long run, the choice is between being one with nature or not at all.” - Jonas WangstenOriginator of Fjällbete & leader of Savory Institutes Nordic hub“Permaculture is the best method for success with their crops; man has always cared for his crops with nature’s growth and diversity as a model. The methodology works just as well for large-scale agriculture as for the small allotment, the ecological principle nurtures your soil and gives you rich harvests. Permaculture is the right path for the future that benefits both vegetation and animals.” - Hannu Sarenström“In Sustainable Gardening Made Easy, Eva Pettersson gives us lots of patterns, tools and perspectives for how we can combine nature’s processes with our human needs and desires. The book inspires and at the same time has lots of facts and can therefore be useful during the long journey of discovery that it is to develop a garden or farm.” - Gunnar RundgrenAuthor & agricultural consultantABOUT THE AUTHORRaised on a farm on the island of Gotland, Sweden, where her family grew potatoes, strawberries, and other vegetables by hand - led to Eva being very tired of farming when she moved away from home at 18.The farmer in Eva never gave upEva then proclaimed that she would never live in the countryside again! But at 25, her attitude had already softened. The lack of fresh produce right outside the door made itself known. So in the muddy lawn of her terraced house, Eva planted the first potato. And at 30, Eva left the city and has since lived in the countryside in different places, with varying amounts of gardening space. Just past 40, Eva got her first greenhouse. And not a small one either - a whooping 40 square meters. It was joy, pure joy; now she could grow more produce, with an extended growing season.Her interest in food and the quality of it awakened as Eva and her family started a restaurant in 1998. The guests would be offered the best ingredients available, some home-grown, others from local farmers. What could not be obtained locally would at least be Swedish in origin. Eva remembers that they wrote in their menu that “We serve food from Gotland, and in the worst-case - Swedish”.Some tourists probably thought it was a bit cooky, but not the Gotlanders. Another memory from that time is the numerous discussions had with the meat wholesaler, who for a long time insisted on delivering Danish pork when the Swedish was out of stock. Each time Eva pushed back; she only wanted Swedish meat, so the Danish meat had to go back. Nobody understood what she was on about. It is only now in recent years that more and more people are beginning to understand what Eva meant back then.A few years ago, Eva came into contact with something called “permaculture” and became curious. The more she read about, the more interested she became. So much so that Eva studied to become a Certified Permaculture Designer. Once she started the course, her view of nature and cultivation changed forever. To think how much easier everything is when people take a step back and learn from nature - and not only when it comes to gardening!In the beginning, not many people knew what Eva was talking about when she began to talk about permaculture in a garden setting. Still, over time, more and more curious questions started to pop up.Several of her friends asked if she knew of any courses for someone who wanted to learn how to use a permacultural approach in their gardens. She did not, and it turned out that there were none anywhere close-by. So Eva thought, how hard can it be... and promised her friends to arrange a course.Then reality hit - when you want to teach, you need course material! Once she started writing, Eva soon realized how much knowledge she wanted to convey. Knowledge which, if you only know about it, makes growing so much easier. The result of all that writing eventually became the book you hold in your hands.THANKS FROM THE AUTHORI want to thank my family and friends who have supported and believed in me throughout the process of writing this book. In particular, a big thank you to Madelene Dahlberg for doing the layout, cover, and the translation from Swedish to English.