When Spring Warren told her husband and two teenage boys that she wanted to grow 75 percent of all the food they consumed for one year--and that she wanted to do it in their yard--they told her she was crazy.
She did it anyway.
"The Quarter-Acre Farm" is Warren's account of deciding--despite all resistance--to take control of her family's food choices, get her hands dirty, and create a garden in her suburban yard. It's a story of bugs, worms, rot, and failure; of learning, replanting, harvesting, and eating. The road is long and riddled with mistakes, but by the end of her yearlong experiment, Warren's sons and husband have become her biggest fans--in fact, they're even eager to help harvest (and eat) the beautiful bounty she brings in.
Full of tips and recipes to help anyone interested in growing and preparing at least a small part of their diet at home, "The Quarter-Acre Farm" is a warm, witty tale about family, food, and the incredible gratification that accompanies self-sufficiency.

Reviews

"Finally, a book about local eating that doesn't make me feel bad about myself! Warren entirely avoids the genre's stinky mire of holier than thou preaching, and instead tells the honest and informative story of her edible experiment. The recipes following each chapter are tasty, and the illustrations are stunningly beautiful."
--Novella Carpenter, author of "Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer"
"Reading Spring Warren's book is like chatting with a good friend over coffee as she relates her garden adventures (some hilarious) and muses on the meaning of almost everything. This is an instructive, useful book, based on sound garden experience and in-depth research, and it's an intimate tale of one woman's relationship to food and family."
--Georgeanne Brennan, author of "Potager: Fresh Garden Cooking in the French Style" and "A Pig in Provence"
"Spring Warren's memoir of a year feeding her family from her suburban garden resonates with the American dream of sel