You Grow Girl

August 3, 2012

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Notes on Drinking the Summer Garden

Thanks so much for your support as we launch our new endeavour, “You Grow Guides” this week. It’s been a whirlwind, but a very exciting one.

Just a quick post to update you on a few things pertaining to our first volume, “Drinking the Summer Garden.” The pocketbook has its own permanent page now. You can go there to find out about ordering info and we’ll be rolling out a few FAQs as questions develop.

Now on Amazon

A Kindle edition is now available on Amazon if you’d prefer to go that route. Purchasing the bundle is a VERY good deal, especially if you own multiple devices. However, we realize that some people may prefer the Amazon route if they have gift cards, etc.

$9.99 Kindle edition

Buying the Bundle

Update: We have changed the service we were using to host our digital downloads and now each purchase allows direct linking to each document type from the initial download email you’ll receive. This means better access to the files from mobile email clients. You will still be given a link to the full ZIP bundle for convenience.

Please note that the file size of the ZIP bundle is approximately 25Mb. If you are using mobile data you should consider the download size before downloading on-the-go. Your best option is to wait until you are on a computer or laptop to download the zip, decompress, and then distribute the files to the appropriate devices. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please let us know.

$9.99 eBook Bundle $19.99 Paperback

Media and Reviews

Thanks so much to Victoria at SF Girl by Bay for the lovely profile of the book.

If you’d like to review the book or conduct an interview with Davin or I, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

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August 1, 2012

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Out Now: Drinking the Summer Garden

Hooray! Our first volume in the You Grow Guides series is out today.

$9.99 eBook Bundle $19.99 Paperback

I am so happy with the way this pocketbook has turned out and I can’t wait for you to start using it. Here are some images and details to give you an idea of what is inside:

[portfolio_slideshow id=8642]

Celebrating summertime fun, play, and homegrown abundance is the inspiration behind DRINKING THE SUMMER GARDEN, a lushly photographed, 80-page, full-color collection of cool seasonal drinks and accompanying treats and nibbles. Using a wide range of ingredients and flavors available fresh from summer gardens and farmers markets, Gayla Trail shows you how to concoct seasonal drinks that you can’t buy in a bottle.

From frosty, low-sugar thirst quenchers that will keep the kids hydrated and happy, to fun and unusual twists on classic grown up libations, DRINKING THE SUMMER GARDEN is packed with more than 40 recipes to satisfy every taste. Featuring instruction on syrup-making, pickling, homegrown garnishes, fermenting, handcrafting liqueurs, as well as handy how-to techniques written and presented in Trail’s irreverent, friendly style, this volume will encourage and inspire further explorations in the kitchen and the garden.

$9.99 eBook Bundle

We are offering the booklet as a digital bundle. What this means is that for the price of one format, you get three files that will work on multiple devices:

The MOBI file is designed to work with all Kindle models
The EPUB file is an ebook format used by a variety of other devices and software (i.e. iPad, iPhone, Aldiko, KOBO)
The PDF is the closest approximation to the printed look-and-feel of the guide and can be used on the iPad, Nook, Sony Reader, KOBO, or on your computer using Preview or Acrobat.

Upon payment you will automatically be sent an email with a download links for the individual files and the full eBook bundle delivered as a single ZIP file (must be decompressed before you can add the book to your device. A Read Me file is attached that explains the formats. This is by far the best deal, plus there is no additional shipping cost!

$19.99 Paperback

We are also offering a printed version. It is a full-color, 5 x 8″ softcover pocketbook printed on matte paper. I love the way the photos look on this paper and you can draw or write notes right on it if you like. A preview of the book is available here. Please view full screen as I find that the small preview is rather poor.

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July 27, 2012

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Herbaria (July 27, 2012)

The theme for this week, Purple/Red/Burgundy, is an intentional one. It started when I chose a few plants that were all the same hue and then I figured, Why not? Let’s go with a theme. Turns out I could do this theme for weeks. It’s a popular colour in my garden.

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July 22, 2012

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Banking the Bounty Workshop in New York

It has already been an exciting week full of new prospects and events (there are more to come), but to add to that I am thrilled to announce that in early September I will be traveling to the Berkshires in New York State to conduct a full-day workshop on saving seed and preserving garden bounty in Margaret Roach’s [of Awaytogarden.com] garden.

Over the years, Margaret’s property has taken on near-mythical qualities in my mind’s eye and I am absolutely giddy with the prospect of having it blown apart by all that I imagine there is to discover in a well-loved and established garden built and tended by a creative force like Margaret.

I hope you will be able to join us for a day of fun, sharing, discovery, and learning, but since we know that not everyone can make the journey, Margaret is offering a giveaway of two copies of my most recent book, “Easy Growing: Organic Herbs and Edible Flowers from Small Spaces.” Please head over to her site to enter to win.

Banking the Bounty Workshop
Saving Seed and Preserving the Harvest
Saturday, Sept. 8, 2012
A Way to Garden HQ (Margaret Roach): Copake Falls, NY

Description:

Join me for a full day of hands-on learning in an inspiring indoor/outdoor space, the garden of host Margaret Roach of A Way to Garden. The focus is on preserving the garden’s bounty for the future, and our day will be broken up into two, 2½-hour workshops, plus light breakfast and full lunch:

9:30 to 10:00 – greeting and light breakfast
10-12:30 – first session: Seed Saving
12:30-1:30 – lunch with Q&A/discussion
1:30 to 4 – second workshop: Preserving Garden Bounty
4:00 – book signing, etc. (departure by 4:30)

Each jam-packed, 2½-hour learning session will cover everything you need to know with lots of thrifty tips and inspiring ideas pertinent to both large and small-scale gardens.

$165 for the day, including breakfast and lunch; limited to 15 students. Tickets can be purchased here, but will sell out fast as space is very limited.

Event details:

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July 20, 2012

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Herbaria (July 20, 2012)

The theme for this week is fruit. Fruit as a plant part as opposed to fruits such as strawberries and bananas, although you’ll notice some of those, too. It seems that fruit — some edible and some not — is forming in every corner of the garden. Flower diversity is still high, it’s just that many of the flowers are there in the service of forming fruit and are not there to be pretty in their own right.

The Scorched Earth. This is also the first week that marked significant loss and suffering as a result of the intense heat and drought we are experiencing. There are going to be some significant holes in the garden by the time the summer is out. I don’t think I am going to have extra ‘Hahms Gelbe Topftomate’ seeds as a result. I inexplicably gave all of my seedlings away but one and that one was in a pot that was cooked during this week’s heat emergency. Drat. The plant went from green and lush to yellow within the span of a single day. It is holding on and could recover if things stay as cooled off as they are now. It’s amazing what one bad day can bring. It’s a good lesson and reminder in how much we should respect our farmers who are at the mercy of whatever insanity the season brings. Amazingly, all of my other tomatoes are perfectly fine.