THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 10, 1996 TAG: 9603080112
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ROBERT STIFFLER, GARDENING COLUMNIST
LENGTH: Short : 42 lines
THE TREND in garden books is toward humor and reminiscing. Here are three recently published in that vein:
``White Trash Gardening,'' by Rufus T. Firefly, as told to Mike Benton (Taylor Publishing, $14.95 paperback). The tongue-in-cheek rules of white trash gardening include: ``Don't buy anything you can borrow''; ``Don't haul off anything you can hide''; ``Every weed has a right to live''; ``Do yard work tomorrow''; ``Never transplant anything bigger than your fist''; ``No job should take longer than a six pack''; ``Never call a plant by its Latin name unless you happen to be the pope.''
``The Gardener's Gripe Book,'' by Abby Adams (Workman Publishing, $10.95 paperback). Adams, a life-long gardener, tends more than 10 acres in upstate New York. The book is written for people who find gardening a fascinating, maddening, frustrating and absorbing endeavor. Adams shares her favorite lessons and pet peeves, including, ``Good soil is like good looks - something you're born with.'' She concludes, ``You would do as well to skip buying Meadow in a Can seed mixes and simply tear your money into little pieces and scatter them into the wind.''
``People With Dirty Hands: The Passion for Gardening,'' by Robin Chotzinoff (Macmillan Publishing, $22 hardcover). Chotzinoff traveled cross-country, visiting lakeside towns, out-of-the-way farms, decaying cities and backwood bayous to decipher the magic of gardening. Her story, says the publisher, rings true with local charm and enthusiasm. You cheer for 63-year-old Minnie Zacaria, Long Branch, N.J., who produced a 4 1/2-pound tomato in 1994. She's won the New Jersey Tomato Championship for more than 10 years but won't rest until she wins the Miracle-Gro title.
All of these books can be ordered by your favorite bookstore or garden center.
KEYWORDS: WEEDER'S DIGEST by CNB