Every now and then it’s fun to look at what kind of gardening books are selling at Amazon. Gives a bit of insight into what people are looking for when it comes to their gardens. The last time we did this was September 2011. Let’s look at the top ten sellers and see if there is a theme (there is).
#1 Home Preserving
#2 Mini-farms, Self sufficiency on a ¼ acre
#3 The Foragers Harvest
#4 Marijuana Horticulutre
#5 Back to Basics
#6 The Farmers Almanac
#7 The Encyclopedia of Country Living
#8 All New Square Foot Gardening
#9 Nature's Garden: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants
# 10 Sunset Western Garden Book
Looks to me like it’s all about using the garden to feed, and sustain. The appearance of the two foraging books is an interesting addition. The marijuana book shows up perennially on the top 10 list. Number 11 is Aquaponics, a method for raising fish and plants together. We talked about in my last post.
Take away what you will from this. If you’re a garden center, it’s this kind of knowledge that can help you better understand your customer’s needs. Maybe landscaping books and other ornamental books will one day return to the list, but for now it’s all about “growing you own”.