Three Free Ebooks from SOUL

We have published three incredible ebooks absolutely free! They can be downloaded in pdf format.

Brewing a Different Cup of Tea for the Garden - (pdf) - Apr 2007

One thing that has kept me a keen gardener for many years is the wealth of new information emerging about ways to enhance plant health. I have learned to discard practices I have followed for years as science shows me a better way. I worked for several years at the GVRD Compost Demonstration Garden where part of our job was to make and manage composts. Little did we know that the batches of “compost teas” we made by soaking compost in stagnant water were actually harming the soil environment we were trying to enrich.

Organic Gardening - Smiling Gardener

Phil is a former SOUL Director who has has an amazing website with a free series of lessons you should check out entitled "15 Vital Lessons For Becoming A Better Gardener": Organic Home Gardening Lessons.

Veganic Agriculture Network

Animal-based fertilizers, like manure and blood meal, often come from animals that were not raised organically. They may have been exposed to chemicals, GMO feed, hormones, and antibiotics. Veganic growers can maintain fertility on their own holding using completely organic plant-based techniques, ensuring that the entire cycle of agriculture is 100% organic.

Clay soil or sandy soil?

A wealth of information, including soil distribution maps, to help you determine the native soil in your area.

Turf Wars - Organic turf management in the United Kingdom and North America (pdf) - Jun 2004

As Canadian groundskeepers wage a verbal war about the pros and cons of organic turf management, the final has already been lost – or reconciled – in other parts of the world.

Give your lawn an organic makeover(pdf 1.7MB)

Now that most of summer’s long, hot days are past for another year, it’s a good time to start thinking about the lawn once again, but that doesn’t necessarily mean lime, weed-killing chemicals and synthetic fertilizers, says Christina Nikolic.

Canadian Organic Growers (COG) Reference Series (pdf files)

Organic gardening - the first steps
Improving soil fertility and organic amendments
Composting for gardeners

Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects

Insects require nectar and undisturbed soil habitat. The adults of many predatory insects must sip nectar or feed on pollen to have the energy to lay eggs. The larvae (in the case of ladybugs the adults also) feed on aphids, caterpillars, thrips, mites, scales, mealybugs and other insects.

Drought tolerant plants for city boulevards (pdf) - Jun 2003

List compiled by volunteer Master Gardeners from VanDusen Botanical Garden for the Prince Edward Street Waterwise Blooming Boulevard Project.

Irrigation Scheduling Tutorial and On-Line Calculator

As a service to our communities we [Gaia College] have made our irrigation calculator available free of charge. This calculator is of direct benefit to anyone who designs, installs or uses irrigation systems.

Poisonous plants and plant parts

Many ornamental plants - and non-edible parts of common food plants - are highly poisonous. In most ornamental gardens this does not present a problem, but you would probably not want these plants in your childrens' gardens or in other situations where they could be mistaken for edible plants / plant parts.

Effects of synthetic fertilizers on the soil ecosystem (pdf) - Mar 2007

Schematic representations of the nitrogen cycle often make it look as if the nitrogen undergoes simple chemical reactions to change from one form to another. However, while many chemical reactions do take place in the soil, the nitrogen conversions occur primarily through the action of soil organisms.

Cyber-Help for Organic Farmers

Our objective is to encourage organic and alternative food production in Canada by improving accessibility to quality organic farming content online, while upgrading farmers' capacities to access that information.