Jennifer Bartley's "Designing the New Kitchen Garden: An American Potager Handbook" is a wonderful book, especially if you're interested in the history and layout of potagers. Sally Jean Cunningham's "Great Garden Companions" is my go to book, when it comes to companion planting and beneficial insects. Ann Reilly's "Gardening Naturally: Getting the Most From Your Organic Garden" is another favorite. I check this out from the library all the time, but should try to find my own copy :) Jennifer Bartley is supposed to have a new book coming out, so I'll be going to the bookstore soon!

My favorite herbals are always written by practicing herbalists rather than academic researchers (who are more likely to be alarmist and also more likely to present inaccurate information). That said, my favorites are: The Book of Herbal Wisdom by Matthew Wood - a fabulous herbalist with an amazing understanding of the plants. The Complete Floral Healer by Anne McIntyre - An English herbalist with Ayurvedic leanings, this book is gorgeous, full of color pictures, covering lots of common plants with unusual information (including flower essences and homeopathy) The Complete Women's Herbal by Anne McIntyre - Also beautifully done, with lots of monograms on specific herbs along with the female body systems including nutritional information. Medicinal Plants of the Mountain West by Michael Moore - Moore is the grandfather of modern herbalism, he knows his plants better than just about anyone, thorough and down to earth. You don't need to live in the West to benefit from his books. Healing Wise by Susun Weed - Simple, down to earth, focusing on a few common weeds with great depth. Common Herbs for Natural Health by Juliette Levy - Juliette was one of Rosemary Gladstar's great inspirations, she has much folk knowledge from the world over that still isn't commonly known. A Modern Herbal by Maude Grieve - A classic, still very accurate with tons of herbal history and solid information. The Physiomedical Dispensatory - An invaluable classic for the herbal practitioner. Clear, concise and accurate. I'll also strongly second the vote for Rosemary Gladstar's Family Herbal, well done and very accessible. Here is a link that might be useful: A Medicine Woman's Roots: Wild Plants of the Gila

The last thing I read was The Modern Home Book. Very useful book, as I learned a lot about interior design, as well as home improvement, such as how to choose the right colors, or write about what types of designs there are and how they could be seamlessly combined into one style. All in all, I didn't regret downloading it from the torrent and reading it. If you still think that downloading for free is bad, then I advise you to find more info about The Pirate Bay, where you can see the reliability and benefits of these sites.

Hmm, I've never thought of using wood fibers. I usually use peat moss. My local Lowes doesn't have any fibers, like fiberglass to add unless you cut up insulation or something like that, which I won't be trying. I may try the liquid stuff sold in big box stores. I wish I could find a recipe for the Elmer's glue version. By "liquid stuff" I mean polymers. I have made pieces that have cracked before, so my curing must've been bad, or not long enough. They were kinda thick though. I want to make a trough of medium size, maybe 16 inches by 25 inches and at least 8 inches deep. This is approximate size. I know that I would likely make a block those demensions and carve out the insides after it sets up. So what would you do different?