Book title:
“The Suburban Micro-Farm: Modern Solutions for Busy People”
Author(s): Amy Stross
Photographer(s) / Illustrator: Amy Stross
Type of book: gardening planning, food production, edible landscaping, permaculture, urban gardening
Publisher: Twisted Creek Press (Milford, OH)
Year: 2017
Length: 347 pages
quick thoughts
A thorough guide on permaculture for a home garden, with photos and anecdotes from the author’s own garden and journey with growing her own food.
gardening content
amount of information: There is so much information here. Very detailed sections about soil, vegetables, fruit, herbs, layout, daily maintenance, and more advanced techniques like edible landscaping and selling your crops.
I personally would have liked to see this offered in several volumes. That would have felt more digestible and you can give all the information room to breathe with different layouts (which I’ll go over in the design section).
quality of info: Solid, quality information on how to make your soil healthy (which is even more important when you’re growing things you will be eating), using in-ground vs raised beds vs containers, growing needs for vegetables, fruit, and herbs – all of which take up over half of the book.
citations: Stross gives us many anecdotes about her journey on creating her own edible landscape. She also has certificates in both Permaculture Design and Community Garden Development. She’s actively blogging (as of May 2026) at https://www.tenthacrefarm.com
book presentation
cover: The cover is a lovely illustration by Becky Bayne, and the vegetables are used throughout the book.
The back cover is a lot and could have been pared down.
layout – sections, chapters: I love the incorporation of illustrations throughout the book, and all the photos (most taken by the author).
I would have suggested the more information heavy sections, like the vegetable guide, have a table layout. Currently, it’s alphabetical with a paragraph of info. A grid with name, season, soil requirements, sun requirements, seed starting, and harvesting.
The pages can sometimes be very text heavy – paragraphs that take up the whole width. Incorporating photos, drawings, garden plans, and the illustrations along the sides of the page instead of just between paragraphs and sections would lighten up the page.
With so much valuable information, I want that to shine with some changes to the layout.
photos, infographics: Photos staged from Stross’ backyard and garden are the perfect complement to all her information. The only thing I would add are a few more photos of the larger space, seeing how all the plants interact with each other.
appendix / index / sources: A very robust bibliography, page of books recommended by the author, websites for more information, and comprehensive index. I appreciate an author who loves to share information as much as I do.
check out my video walk through on YouTube!
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