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Ball Home Canning Products are the gold standard in home preserving supplies, the trademark jars on display in stores every summer from coast to coast. Now the experts at Ball have written a book destined to become the bible of home preserving.

As nutrition and food quality has become more important, home canning and preserving have increased in popularity for the benefits they offer:

• Cooks gain control of the ingredients, including organic fruits and vegetables
• Preserving foods at their freshest point locks in nutrition
• The final product is free of chemical additives and preservatives
• Store-bought brands cannot match the wonderful flavor of homemade
• Only a few hours are needed to put up a batch of jam or relish
• Home preserves make a great personal gift any time of year

These 400 innovative and enticing recipes include everything from salsas and savory sauces to pickling, chutneys, relishes and, of course, jams, jellies, and fruit spreads, such as:

• Mango-Raspberry Jam, Damson Plum Jam
• Crab Apple Jelly, Green Pepper Jelly
• Spiced Red Cabbage, Pickled Asparagus
• Roasted Red Pepper Spread, Tomatillo Salsa
• Brandied Apple Rings, Apricot-Date Chutney

The book includes comprehensive directions on safe canning and preserving methods plus lists of required equipment and utensils. Specific instructions for first-timers and handy tips for the experienced make the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving a valuable addition to any kitchen library.

About the authors: Judi Kingry and Lauren Devine have between them 20 years of experience in the preserving industry. They are both employed by Jarden Home Brands.

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Transform your garden into a wildlife haven busting with life by learning how to provide supplementary nesting sites to a host of creatures. Bird, Bee and Bug Houses explains all you need to know about how to create the perfect nesting place for a wide variety of species including birds, bats, butterflies, lacewings, ladybugs and rare solitary bees.

Essential pollinators, predators and seed-spreaders, the habitats of many of these species are under threat from intensive farming and the spraying of harmful chemicals. But we can help them by building these safe havens in our gardens. Only a few basic woodworking skills are needed to create these unique and quirky houses. A range of materials (some recycled or scavenged) and finishes are used in order to make sure they are as attractive as they are practical. All the basic techniques, tools and materials needed to create your bird, bee or bug house are explained and each project has a detailed exploded diagram with cutting list. Each section of the book has detailed information on choosing locations, maintenance, species habits and nesting requirements.

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CLEARANCE ITEM. PREVIOUS RETAIL PRICE WAS $12.95 AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

Part of the NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association) Guides. Includes information on:

• Basic concepts of pest control (host susceptibility, soil health, genetic resistance, ecosystem factors)
• Practical approaches (crop cultural practices, rescue treatments, special section on mammals and birds, food safety)
• Farm design for pest reduction (diversity, crop rotation)
• Unorthodox approaches (farmers out of the box)
• Identifying pests
• Crop-by-crop pests and practices

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Part of the NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association) guides. Includes information on:

• Strengths and limitations of hybrid varieties
• Before you grow the seed (selecting varieties, saving seed and improving crops, intellectual property rights)
• Growing seed (pollination biology, harvesting, cleaning, storage, germination testing)
• Details on individual crops (amaranth, crucifers, beets and chard, lettuce, cucurbits, corn and small grains, nightshades, root veggies)

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Soil is a living organism that loves to cooperate with farmers and gardeners. A green thumb will appear on those who align themselves with its health and requirements. This book discusses:

• Soil habitat
• Sustaining soil fertility
• The soil food-web
• Nutrient availability and deficiency

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CLEARANCE ITEM. PREVIOUS RETAIL PRICE WAS $39.95 AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

A series of 4 guides originally published by NOFA (Northeast Organic Farming Association), on organic principles and practices for both the beginner farmer as well as established farmers looking to convert to organic, or deepen their practices. Each book is approximately 100 pages, but the information is weighty; the guides use a strong whole-systems farming theory behind their practical advice, as well as offer historical information, further resources, detailed appendices, and profiles of various organic farms across the Northeast. Titles include:

Growing Healthy Vegetable Crops written by Brian Caldwell.

Includes information on:

• Basic concepts of pest control (host susceptibility, soil health, genetic resistance, ecosystem factors)
• Practical approaches (crop cultural practices, rescue treatments, special section on mammals and birds, food safety))
• Farm design for pest reduction (diversity, crop rotation))
• Unorthodox approaches (farmers out of the box))
• Identifying pests)
• Crop-by-crop pests and practices)

• Soil habitat)
• Sustaining soil fertility)
• The soil food-web)
• Nutrient availability and deficiency)

• Strengths and limitations of hybrid varieties)
• Before you grow the seed (selecting varieties, saving seed and improving crops, intellectual property rights))
• Growing seed (pollination biology, harvesting, cleaning, storage, germination testing))
• Details on individual crops (amaranth, crucifers, beets and chard, lettuce, cucurbits, corn and small grains, nightshades, root veggies))

• Soils, the foundation of health (manure managament))
• Crop production and grazing management (forage species, pasture management, setting up a grazing system))
• Livestock (selection, nutrition, winter and summer feed considerations, seasonal milking, habitat, herd health, milk quality))
• Marketing (selling fluid milk, regulations, facility and equipment, selling raw milk))
• Recordkeeping)
• The transition to organic)

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Using inexpensive, often recycled, materials and easy techniques, this lively collection of garden projects and practices will delight beginner and experienced green thumbs alike. Whether you have just five minutes or an entire weekend, this full-colour book is designed to delight and inspire. Here are step-by-step instructions and beautiful photography for lovely gifts from the garden, delightful recipes and cocktails and inspiring weekend garden projects, plus fun things especially for children to make and grow like flowerpot cupcakes and personalized pumpkins. With ideas on everything from gorgeous succulent sculptures and living willow fences to fresh ways to arrange flowers and plan stylish garden soirées, Everyday Eden maximizes enjoyment of outdoor spaces—from balcony-sized urban green spaces to rural acreages.

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You can transform your garden into a handmade, personality-infused oasis. Author Lorene Edwards Forkner — part eco-friendly non-traditionalist, part crafty creative — will show you how.

Projects run the gamut from eye-catching structures, like a pergola made from plumbing pipes, to imaginative details, like a tree-hung chandelier for nighttime ambiance. You'll also find helpful plant guides to accompany projects: delectable herbs to fill a stacking container tower, stellar succulents for a vertical gutter garden, glorious flowering vines to climb a bamboo obelisk, and so much more.

Ready to get started? All you need are refreshingly simple, inexpensive materials — hardware store basics, salvaged goods, repurposed castoffs from cluttered basements — along with a little do-it-yourself spirit. With clear instructions and inspiring variations on every theme, this book is easy to follow and easy to love. Your journey to a made-from-scratch outdoor space starts here.

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Local songbird populations are rapidly declining, and food, shelter and safe nesting areas are urgently needed. This remarkable book is packed with great ideas plus all the woodworking drawings and howto information needed for hobbyists and birders who want to build attractive birdhouses, feeders and nesting boxes that will attract birds.

Build Your Own Birdhouses and Feeders features a wide range of designs suitable for all skill levels and space limitations, from a very easy box feeder for a small balcony to the challenge of a magnificent bird mansion for a large garden. The 25 projects appeal to a variety of tastes, ranging from a traditional Victorian townhouse, to a tonguein-cheek Wild West saloon, to a medieval tournament tent.

Each project includes:

• 
  Detailed designs with acolor photo of the finished item
• Easy-to-follow instructions and step-by-step illustrations
• Enlarged and technical diagrams in color
• List of recommended materials
• Advice on choosing a location for best results

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If you like making things for your garden, you'll love concrete. Durable, beautiful, and inexpensive, it's also surprisingly simple to work with. Best of all, it weathers elegantly, softening around the edges to become more picturesque with age.

Concrete Garden Projects offers up an inspiring array of creative projects that can be made for next to nothing. Follow the easy, step-by-step instructions to make containers of all sizes, benches and stools, ponds and birdbaths, pavers and stepping stones — and even a barbecue.

At pennies per pound, you can't beat concrete's price. And the molds for the projects (like bowls and baking pans) can often already be found in your house.

For elegant, individual, garden décor, don't spend a fortune, just mix and pour.