Staying Alive

Janet Melrose is the co-author of the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series. She is a garden educator and consultant, and an advocate for Calgary’s Sustainable Local Food System. She is a life-long gardener and holds a Prairie Horticulture Certificate and Home Farm Horticultural Therapy Certificate. She has a passion for Horticultural Therapy and facilitates numerous programs designed to integrate people marginalized by various disabilities into the larger community. She is a regular contributor to The Gardener for Canadian Climates magazine. She lives in Calgary where she runs her education and consulting company, Calgary’s Cottage Gardener.Sheryl Normandeau is the co-author of the Guides for the Prairie Gardener series and author of The Little Prairie Book of Berries. A life-long gardener, she holds a Prairie Horticulture Certificate and a Sustainable Urban Agriculture Certificate and is a freelance writer specializing in gardening writing with hundreds of articles published. She is a regular contributor The Gardener for Canadian Climates, The Prairie Garden Annual, Herb Quarterly, and many more. She lives in Calgary.

• IntroductionRooms to Grow: Designing with HouseplantsHome, Sweet Home: Choosing the Right ContainersLight, Water, Action! Hold Me, Feed Me, Love Me: Growing Mediums and NutrientsPropagation PreparationRighting the Wrongs: Dealing with Pests, Diseases, and Environmental ProblemsLet’s Get Down to Specifics: More Tips for SuccessAcknowledgementsNotesSourcesIndex

Praise for Staying Alive"A practical and approachable resource for anyone struggling to keep houseplants healthy. In a conversational question-and-answer format reminiscent of an advice column, the book addresses common plant-care challenges with clarity, humor, and a reassuring tone. . . Special sections offer tips on kid- and pet-safe plant species, vacation-care strategies, and simple routines to make plant care less overwhelming." —BooklistPraise for Janet Melrose and Sheryl NormandeauHonorable Mention at the American Horticultural Society Book Awards"The Prairie Gardener's Go-To series comes in mighty yet digestible volumes covering popular topics like seeds, vegetables, and soil. . . Although each guide touches on regionally specific information, the wisdom of these seasoned gardeners applies to any garden, wherever it may be." —Acadia Tucker, author of Growing Perennial Foods"The books are a pleasure just to leaf through, but the accessible writing and level of expertise makes them essential to any gardener’s library... Well-indexed, to help you find solutions to elusive problems. Highly recommended!"—Diane Miessler, Certified Permaculture Designer and author of Grow Your Soil"Reading the Prairie Gardener's Go-To series is like sitting down with your friendly local master gardener. Delivers practice guidance that will leave you feeling confident and inspired." —Andrea Bellamy, author of Small-Space Vegetable Gardens“The Prairie Gardener’s Go-To series offers knowledgeable yet accessible answers to questions covering a broad range of topics to help you cultivate garden success. Get growing!” —Lorene Edwards Forkner, gardener, writer, author of Color In and Out of the Garden"The Prairie Gardener guides offer tips on planning, planting and growing gardens, and troubleshooting pests and diseases." —Calgary Herald"A great resource for gardeners everywhere." —Quill & Quire"In a digital world full of general information, their books provide specific knowledge for gardening in climates like Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Plus, everything they write about is based on their own experience." —Helpful Gardeners Podcast"Melrose and Normandeau answer all the questions that the two experts could think of when it came to horticulture on the prairies." —Edify Edmonton"Helping gardeners across the prairies succeed in growing food, flowers and everything in between." —Medicine Hat News"Herbs offers highly local advice on how to grow herbs for your kitchen in our climate." —Savour Calgary"With advice on which native grasses to use—and why—the book gives gardeners both inspiration and knowledge." —Alberta Views"This go-to paperback addresses many issues of perennial plants that will prove extremely useful to gardeners."—Calgary Horticultural Society"Advice on container gardens, raised beds, small plots and postage-stamp sized yards, and how to try your hand at vertical gardening." —Garden Making“Written with wit and charm, Janet and Sheryl have given us the comprehensive, gardener-friendly guide to soil science everyone who grows a garden needs to read.” —Daryl Beyers, gardening instructor and author of The New Gardener’s Handbook