Urban and rural collide in this wry, inspiring memoir of a woman who turned a vacant lot in downtown Oakland into a thriving farm. When Novella Carpenter -- captivated by the idea of backyard self-sufficiency as the daughter of two back-to-the-earth hippies -- moves to a ramshackle house in inner-city Oakland and discovers a weed-choked, garbage-strewn abandoned lot next door, she closes her eyes and pictures heirloom tomatoes, a beehive, and a chicken...

Discusses agricultural technology in various cultures from the Stone Age to 476 A.D., including China, Egypt, Mesoamerica, and Greece.

Examines gardens in the city and other places to grow food, herbs and to raise animals.

"In this engaging call to action, Daron Joffe teaches us not only to create sustainable gardens but also to develop a more holistic, community-minded approach to how our food is grown and how to better live our lives in balance with nature. Here is an indispensable resource packed with advice on establishing a biodynamic garden, composting, soil composition and replenishment, controlling pests and disease, cooperative gardening practices, and even...

Introduces farms through high-quality photographs and brief text that uses one word relating to farms for each letter of the alphabet.

From the Publisher: Part memoir, nutritional primer, and political manifesto, this controversial examination exposes the destructive history of agriculture-causing the devastation of prairies and forests, driving countless species extinct, altering the climate, and destroying the topsoil-and asserts that, in order to save the planet, food must come from within living communities. In order for this to happen, the argument champions eating locally...