Reading List
Books
A Biodynamic Manual – Practical Instructions for Farmers and Gardeners, 2nd Edition, by Pierre Masson, Floris Books, 2014
All about tomatoes and potatoes, peppers and other relatives – Growing your own from seeds the corporates don’t own, The Diggers Club, 2011
Berry Bounty, by Allen Gilbert, Hyland House, 2011
Biodynamics for the Home Garden – Everything you needed to know to grow amazing food the biodynamic way, by Peter Proctor, Cloud South, 2011
Companion Gardening in Australia – Working with Mother Nature, by Judith Collins, Hachette Austalia, 2012
- Probably our most used book – very useful information on which plants grow well with which other plants, and which plants dislike each other. Listed alphabetically by plant common name.
Creating a Forest Garden – Working with Nature to Grow Edible Crops, by Martin Crawford, Green Books, 2010
- Basically a blueprint for Dreamland – really good strategy, approach and plant listings for an edible forest garden.
Edible Forest Gardens (Vol 1 and 2), by David Jacke with Eric Toensmeier, Chelsea Green publishing, 2005
- An amazing in-depth set. Volume 1 covers the theory of forest gardening, which volume 2 is a hands-on “how to” manual.
Grasp the Nettle – Making Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Work, by the late Peter Proctor with Gillian Cole, Random House, 2004
- An concise (180 page) but in-depth manual of biodynamics – history, how-to, etc.
Heritage & Dwarf fruit trees for Urban backyards and small orchards, 3rd edition, by Peter Allen, Telopeea Mtn Permacuture & Nursery, 2014
The Biodynamic Orchard Book, by Ehrenfried Pfeiffer and Michael Maltas, Floris Books, 2013
The Market Gardener – A successful grower’s handbook for small-scale organic farming, by Jean-Martin Fortier, New Society Publishers, 2014
- A must read for anyone wanted to make a sustainable living off a small property. Hints, tips, lessons learnt, approaches, etc. – one of the books that inspired us to go on a Market Gardening course.
The New Organic Gardener, by Tim Marshall, Harper Collins, 2011
The Small-Scale Poultry Flock, by Harvey Ussery, Chelsea Green Publishing, 2011
- Another must-read for anyone interested in all-natural free-range backyard chicken breeding and keeping.
Weeds and what they tell us, by Ehrenfried Pfeiffer, Floris Books, 2013
- Very useful little booklet on how to manage and use weeds.
What Garden Pest or Disease is that? Organic and Chemical Solutions for Every Garden Problem, by Judy McMauch, New Holland, 2000
Websites
A guide to some edible and useful native plants, detailed listings of native plants, growing conditions, edible and medicinal use
A permaculture design course handbook, good reference of permaculture design with commentary
An introduction to growing native plants, site managed by The Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), including the Australian National Herbarium – detailed listings and descriptions of native plants.
Biodynamic Research References Portal, hosted by the Biodynamic Association
Natural medicinal herbs, detailed listings of natural and medicinal herbs (separately) and their usage
Orange Pippin, detailed listings of apple varieties, pears, cherries or plums, and orchards where these fruits are grown.
Organic Edible Gardening, based in Geelong, Victoria
Permaculture fundamentals, thorough reference of Bill Mollison’s work
Permaculture principles, books, DVDs and teaching aids
Plants for a future – detailed listings of edible and medicinal plants
Videos
The Power of Community – How Cuba Survived Peak Oil
Miracle Farms, a 5-acre commercial permaculture orchard in Southern Quebec, Canada