100 books like Passalong Plants

By Steve Bender, Felder Rushing,

Here are 100 books that Passalong Plants fans have personally recommended if you like Passalong Plants. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Epic Tomatoes: How to Select and Grow the Best Varieties of All Time

Lynn Coulter Author Of Gardening with Heirloom Seeds: Tried-and-True Flowers, Fruits, and Vegetables for a New Generation

From my list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved gardening ever since I was five years old, when I followed my grandmother around her yard as she watered her dinner plate-sized dahlias. As a college student, I rode a bus to school each day and read every gardening book and magazine I could get my hands on. After I graduated with a degree in Journalism, I realized I wanted to write about flowers and veggies and show other people how beautiful and bountiful a garden could be. My first book, Gardening with Heirloom Seeds, led to a wonderful speaking experience in Orlando at Epcot’s International Flower and Garden Festival, and to contracts for two more books in the spiritual living genre.

Lynn's book list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas

Lynn Coulter Why did Lynn love this book?

There’s one thing most gardeners agree on: you simply can’t beat the taste of a homegrown tomato. Supermarket tomatoes have been bred to withstand shipping and stacking, so they look like perfect, red globes, but unfortunately, many have lost their old-fashioned flavor along the way. Author Craig LeHoullier is a tomato connoisseur who tells you how to grow over 200 varieties, from planting to harvesting and saving their seeds for another season. The photos in this beautifully illustrated book will make your mouth water—just like the tomatoes he recommends.

By Craig LeHoullier,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Epic Tomatoes as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This book contains everything a tomato-growing enthusiast needs to know about growing over 200 varieties of tomatoes - how to sow seeds, plant, cultivate, and collect seeds. It also offers a comprehensive guide to pests and diseases of tomatoes. No other book offers such a detailed look at the specifics of growing tomatoes, from the point of view of a true expert, with beautiful photographs and tomato profiles throughout.


Book cover of Heirloom Vegetable Gardening: A Master Gardener's Guide to Planting, Seed Saving, and Cultural History

Lynn Coulter Author Of Gardening with Heirloom Seeds: Tried-and-True Flowers, Fruits, and Vegetables for a New Generation

From my list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved gardening ever since I was five years old, when I followed my grandmother around her yard as she watered her dinner plate-sized dahlias. As a college student, I rode a bus to school each day and read every gardening book and magazine I could get my hands on. After I graduated with a degree in Journalism, I realized I wanted to write about flowers and veggies and show other people how beautiful and bountiful a garden could be. My first book, Gardening with Heirloom Seeds, led to a wonderful speaking experience in Orlando at Epcot’s International Flower and Garden Festival, and to contracts for two more books in the spiritual living genre.

Lynn's book list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas

Lynn Coulter Why did Lynn love this book?

Have you ever wished you could grow those nutritious, meaty peas and beans your granddaddy used to grow? Some had cool names, like Rattlesnake Beans, Big Red Ripper, or Blue Podded Shelling. They were probably heirloom varieties, plants that have been around for 50 years or more. While heirlooms are harder to find than they used to be, and nurseries and garden centers don’t often sell them as young plants, you can still grow these varieties from seeds (tip: look for them online or search for “seed swaps” in your area). Weaver is an organic gardener and food historian who discusses the old-timey veggies our forebears ate and where their seeds came from. You’ll want to plant your own kitchen garden with many of the varieties he covers.

By William Woys Weaver,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Heirloom Vegetable Gardening as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"This book is sure to be a modern classic and is one of the most important books on gardening in the current century."
—Jere Gettle, founder, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Heirloom Vegetable Gardening has always been a book for gardeners and cooks interested in unique flavors, colors, and history in their produce. This updated edition has been improved throughout with growing zones, advice, and new plant entries. Line art has been replaced with lush, full-color photography. Yet at the core, this book delivers on the same promise it made two decades ago: It’s a comprehensive guide based on meticulous first-person…


Book cover of Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners

Lynn Coulter Author Of Gardening with Heirloom Seeds: Tried-and-True Flowers, Fruits, and Vegetables for a New Generation

From my list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved gardening ever since I was five years old, when I followed my grandmother around her yard as she watered her dinner plate-sized dahlias. As a college student, I rode a bus to school each day and read every gardening book and magazine I could get my hands on. After I graduated with a degree in Journalism, I realized I wanted to write about flowers and veggies and show other people how beautiful and bountiful a garden could be. My first book, Gardening with Heirloom Seeds, led to a wonderful speaking experience in Orlando at Epcot’s International Flower and Garden Festival, and to contracts for two more books in the spiritual living genre.

Lynn's book list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas

Lynn Coulter Why did Lynn love this book?

This is a guide to saving and growing 160 different vegetables, and you must know how to harvest, save, and store their seeds if you want to plant some of the harder-to-find varieties. Co-author Kent Whealy was one of the founders of Iowa-based Seed Savers Exchange, a nonprofit organization and seed bank that has a collection of over 20,000 varieties of heirloom flower, vegetable, fruit, berry, grain, and herb seeds. He and his former wife, Diane Ott Whealy, are credited with sparking the heirloom seed movement in the 1970s. 

By Suzanne Ashworth, David Cavagnaro (photographer),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Seed to Seed as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Seed to Seed is a complete seed-saving guide that describes specific techniques for saving the seeds of 160 different vegetables. This book contains detailed information about each vegetable, including its botanical classification, flower structure and means of pollination, required population size, isolation distance, techniques for caging or hand-pollination, and also the proper methods for harvesting, drying, cleaning, and storing the seeds.Seed to Seed is widely acknowledged as the best guide available for home gardeners to learn effective ways to produce and store seeds on a small scale. The author has grown seed crops of every vegetable featured in the book,…


Book cover of The Heirloom Gardener: Traditional Plants and Skills for the Modern World

Lynn Coulter Author Of Gardening with Heirloom Seeds: Tried-and-True Flowers, Fruits, and Vegetables for a New Generation

From my list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve loved gardening ever since I was five years old, when I followed my grandmother around her yard as she watered her dinner plate-sized dahlias. As a college student, I rode a bus to school each day and read every gardening book and magazine I could get my hands on. After I graduated with a degree in Journalism, I realized I wanted to write about flowers and veggies and show other people how beautiful and bountiful a garden could be. My first book, Gardening with Heirloom Seeds, led to a wonderful speaking experience in Orlando at Epcot’s International Flower and Garden Festival, and to contracts for two more books in the spiritual living genre.

Lynn's book list on why we love old-fashioned tomatoes, beans, peas

Lynn Coulter Why did Lynn love this book?

Author John Forti’s book combines personal essays and gardening info on traditional/ heirloom plants. He encourages readers to slow down and reconnect with the land (he’s one of the founders of the Slow Food movement) and learn or re-learn sustainable, traditional gardening skills. He describes herbs like angelica, pre-industrial agricultural practices (I wish I had goats, so they could eat all the poison ivy around my house), and much more. I enjoyed the beautiful woodblock print images throughout the book. They help remind me that I don’t have to depend on all the modern “stuff,” like technology, chemicals, and modern hybrids, to have a successful and satisfying garden.

By John Forti,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Heirloom Gardener as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An A-to-Z compilation of traditional gardening skills and heirloom plants, nostalgically illustrated with wood block art. Modern life is a cornucopia of technological wonders. But when we spend so much time glued to our phones and computer screens, something precious is lost: a sense of connection to the generations that have preceded us. John Forti is acutely aware of this loss, and his mission is to heal it. In The Heirloom Gardener, he celebrates and shares the lore and traditional practices that link us with the natural world and with each other. Arranged alphabetically, entries include heirloom flowers like beebalm,…


Book cover of A Way to Garden: A Hands-On Primer for Every Season

Mary-Kate Mackey Author Of The Healthy Garden: Simple Steps for a Greener World

From my list on garden books to save the planet.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a person who thinks gardening could be one of the most important endeavors anyone can do. I’m a writer, a speaker, and the recipient of eight Garden Communicators International media awards, including a Gold in 2021 for my column, “Rooting for You,” on the Hartley-Botanic Greenhouse website. My byline has appeared in numerous magazines such as Fine Gardening, Horticulture, Sunset, and This Old House. I’m always interested in great ideas for problem-solving in the garden.

Mary-Kate's book list on garden books to save the planet

Mary-Kate Mackey Why did Mary-Kate love this book?

Many garden books are structured in a classic four-seasons pattern, but this one goes beyond, by delineating the gardening year as steps in the essence of all living beings—from conception in January, adulthood in July and August, to death in December. This clever and thoughtful approach celebrates the fact that we are all woven into the fabric of the natural world. Add to that the author’s lifetime of good gardening experience and advice, and this book shows readers in intimate detail how to work with nature, not against her. 

By Margaret Roach,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Way to Garden as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

For Margaret Roach gardening is more than a hobby, it's a calling. Her unique approach, which she refers to as "horticultural how-to and woo-hoo," is a blend of vital information to memorise (like how to plant a bulb) and intuitive steps gardeners must simply feel and surrender to. For more than twenty years Roach has shared her deep garden knowledge with an appreciative audience, first at Martha Stewart Living and now on her popular website and podcast. Now, with A Way to Garden, she explores how she and her way of gardening have changed over the years. Throughout, she shares…


Book cover of Plant-Driven Design: Creating Gardens That Honor Plants, Place, and Spirit

John Greenlee Author Of The American Meadow Garden: Creating a Natural Alternative to the Traditional Lawn

From my list on creating successful meadow and grass garden ecology.

Why am I passionate about this?

As an expert in grass ecology and champion of sustainable design, John Greenlee has created meadows not only in the United States, but throughout the world for over 30 years. Some of his most notable gardens include the Getty Museum, the Norton Simon Museum in Los Angeles, and the savannas at Walt Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida. In addition to his consulting and design work for commercial and residential clients, John Greenlee enjoys sharing his knowledge by giving several presentations and lectures throughout the year on the use of natural lawns, native grasses, and meadow restoration.

John's book list on creating successful meadow and grass garden ecology

John Greenlee Why did John love this book?

This book is perhaps the most important garden book of the last twenty years and one of my favorites.

The main premise is that plants matter and that the key to successful gardening and garden design is to know your plants and I could not agree more! I love the gorgeous photography and all the information by two of America's greatest horticulturalists.

By Scott Ogden, Lauren Springer Ogden,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Plant-Driven Design as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

For too long, garden design has given pride of place to architecture, artifice, and arbitrary principles. The results? Soulless landscapes where plants play subordinate roles.

With passion and eloquence, Scott Ogden and Lauren Springer Ogden argue that only when plants are given the respect they deserve does a garden become emotionally resonant. Plant-Driven Design shows designers how to work more confidently with plants, and gives gardeners more confidence to design. The Ogdens boldly challenge design orthodoxy and current trends by examining how to marry plantsmanship and design without sacrificing one to the other.

Supported by extensive lists of plants adapted…


Book cover of The New Sunset Western Garden Book: The Ultimate Gardening Guide

Ann Ralph Author Of Grow a Little Fruit Tree: Simple Pruning Techniques for Small-Space, Easy-Harvest Fruit Trees

From my list on garden books to revisit again and again.

Why am I passionate about this?

California’s San Joaquin Valley is so congenial to plants I thought it made me a gardener. When I got my first job in a retail nursery I quickly realized how little I knew. Twenty years in the nursery trade expanded the depth and breadth of my garden skills. I owe my horticultural education to knowledgeable colleagues, an unending stream of interesting questions from nursery customers, and especially to Ed Laivo who introduced me to an ArcticGlo nectarine that commanded my attention.

Ann's book list on garden books to revisit again and again

Ann Ralph Why did Ann love this book?

For more than half a century the Sunset Western Garden Book was the first and last word for Western gardeners. This compendium established a zonal system specifically for the nuanced West, and provided exhaustive, accurate, updated, and unbiased information, plant by plant, variety by variety, from A to Z. It offered a selection guide for specific situations suited to inland heat and the temperate coast. It provided basic information about planting, pests, soils, pruning, and weeds. I sold hundreds of copies of this indispensable volume to nursery customers. My co-workers did the same. That the sun has set on this essential field guide to gardening in the West is a bitter pill. Our Western gardens are diminished without it.

By The Editors of Sunset,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The New Sunset Western Garden Book as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

As surely as gardens change with the seasons, gardening is ever changing. New plants, techniques, materials, and lifestyles are constantly broadening the choices you have and reshaping the way you garden in the West. In response to this natural evolution, the editors of Sunset-the West's most trusted source of gardening information for more than 80 years-have completely redesigned and updated The Western Garden Book in this new 2012 Ninth Edition. Following the best-selling success of the previous editions of The Western Garden Book, this edition includes a fresh new look, thousands of color photographs, fresh illustrations, and an easy-to-follow format.…


Book cover of Backyard Foraging: 65 Familiar Plants You Didn't Know You Could Eat

Leda Meredith Author Of The Skillful Forager: Essential Techniques for Responsible Foraging and Making the Most of Your Wild Edibles

From my list on foraging free wild edible plants and mushrooms.

Why am I passionate about this?

I started foraging when I was a toddler and my Greek great-grandmother took me to a park to gather dandelion leaves. I read foraging field guides almost incessantly (still do). Eventually, I got a certification in Ethnobotany and went professional. I love teaching and sharing my passion for wild foods through my books, workshops, and videos. One of the most rewarding moments for me is when a student realizes that something I’ve just identified as a safe and delicious edible is a plant that grows all around them. It’s a game-changer. They can’t go back to seeing any plant as “just a weed."

Leda's book list on foraging free wild edible plants and mushrooms

Leda Meredith Why did Leda love this book?

Every forager I know (myself included) doesn’t just gather truly wild plants. We also harvest neglected fallen fruits and cultivated plants that were planted as ornamentals but are also great food. In this book Ellen focuses on the latter, introducing us to the tastiness of hostas, daylilies, and many other garden plants that most people think are just eye candy.

By Ellen Zachos,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Backyard Foraging as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Foraged food is surprising in its flavour, unusual texture, fresh colour and nutritional value. As more people become familiar with the idea of finding food in the woods, lakeside, or on their favorite hiking trail, they begin to notice the world around them in a new way. Now it's time to discover the many surprisingly edible plants found in backyards, lawns and parks. Foraging doesn't have to be hard or scary. Backyard Foraging brings foraging home to the neighbourhood. There's the lawn full of sheep sorrel, chickweed, dandelion and pineapple weed. Vacant lots host edibles like sumac, purslane, or Japanese…


Book cover of The Plant Propagator's Bible: A Step-By-Step Guide to Propagating Every Plant in Your Garden

Daryl Beyers Author Of The New Gardener's Handbook: Everything You Need to Know to Grow a Beautiful and Bountiful Garden

From my list on for new gardeners.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a gardening instructor and designer, I've been recommending these five books for years. They were the core texts of the Fundamentals of Gardening course I've been teaching at the New York Botanical Garden for over a decade. Since the publication of The New Gardener’s Handbook, which covers all these topics in a more abbreviated way, I still recommend these five books to my students if they want to dig deeper. These books are what I call “keeper texts.” I own fewer and fewer actual gardening books these days, but it's a fact that a copy of each of these excellent resources resides on my office bookshelf where I refer to them frequently. 

Daryl's book list on for new gardeners

Daryl Beyers Why did Daryl love this book?

One of the most exciting things new gardeners learn is how to make more plants, either by collecting seeds from the plants in their garden or learning how to clone the plants they own. Plant propagation is part science, part faith, and part plant wizardry, and Smith’s step-by-step presentation is the best I have found. With a recently published new edition, it’s easier than ever to have an illustrated guide at your side, showing you how to start seeds, take cuttings, or make grafts of all your favorite plants. 

By Miranda Smith,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Plant Propagator's Bible as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

With easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions, veteran horticulture teacher Miranda Smith provides a complete reference showing every step for cultivating new plants—whether from seed or cuttings or with techniques such as layering, grafting, and budding.

Propagating new plants from existing ones is not only sustainable but also rewarding for gardeners of all skill levels. The Plant Propagator’s Bible offers a solid and complete, go-to reference for expert gardeners but is also a perfect primer for the novice plant lover and horticulturalist.

Smith teaches readers, with the support of hundreds of 4-color photos and detailed illustrations, the natural process and conditions in which…


Book cover of Roots Demystified: Change Your Gardening Habits to Help Roots Thrive

Pam Peirce Author Of Golden Gate Gardening,  The Complete Guide to Year-Round Food Gardening in the San Francisco Bay Area & Coastal California

From my list on gaining garden know-how.

Why am I passionate about this?

When I was studying plant science in graduate school, I realized that what I really wanted to do was not lab research but to help people understand plants better so they could grow more beautiful and bountiful gardens. To this end, I have written several books, founded the San Francisco League of Urban Gardeners (SLUG), taught horticulture at City College of San Francisco for several decades, and, since 2006, written a column on gardening for the SF Chronicle. My list of books about gardening know-how will painlessly prepare you to grow plants well.

Pam's book list on gaining garden know-how

Pam Peirce Why did Pam love this book?

Once you have looked at the root drawings of common garden edible and ornamental plants in this book, you will become able to imagine what is going on in the underground part of plants. This ability will help you water by hand or set up a drip system. It will also help you to plant successfully, mulch well, and use the best weeding methods for different plants. The book includes text and diagrams that teach how to set up a drip irrigation system. 

By Robert Kourik,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Roots Demystified as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This comprehensive book explains how plants grow based on the scientific evidence. It reveals the complex lives of root systems, debunking outworn gardening myths, providing advice on root- efficient planting and cultivation methods.


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in the South, tomatoes, and pea?

The South 189 books
Tomatoes 14 books
Pea 12 books