Barefoot in the Backyard: Where It All Begins

I wrote Barefoot in the Backyard: Where It All Begins because I genuinely believe that once you understand what’s happening beneath your feet, the way you garden begins to change.

So many of the problems we battle above the ground — plants that struggle, water that seems to disappear, pests and disease, gardens that need constant feeding and fixing — often have their beginnings below it. And soil doesn’t need to be complicated or wrapped up in scientific language to understand it. Sometimes we just need someone to explain what’s actually going on down there, in a way that makes sense.

Across 196 beautifully illustrated pages, I’ll help you get to know your own patch of earth and understand how soil, compost, mulch, water, plant nutrition and all those wonderful little living things beneath our feet work together to grow a healthier, happier garden.

But this isn't a textbook.

It’s filled with fun little experiments you can try for yourself, practical garden recipes, beautiful illustrations, and warm stories from my own garden and from growing up with dirt under my fingernails. I want you to learn as you read, but I also want you to smile, reminisce, get curious, wander outside to investigate something — and perhaps begin looking at your own backyard a little differently.

Whether you're planting your very first garden or you've been gardening for decades, this is a book to keep close, scribble notes in, come back to, and hopefully treasure for years to come.

And Where It All Begins really is just that — the beginning.

There are more Barefoot in the Backyard books to come, taking us beyond the soil and further into creating, planting and enjoying the beautiful, living backyards we call our own.