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The Garden Jungle: or Gardening to Save the Planet
The Garden Jungle is a wonderful introduction to the hundreds of small creatures with whom we live cheek-by-jowl and of the myriad ways that we can encourage them to thrive.
The Garden Jungle is about the wildlife that lives right under our noses, in our gardens and parks, between the gaps in the pavement, and in the soil beneath our feet. Wherever you are right now, the chances are that there are worms, woodlice, centipedes, flies, silverfish, wasps, beetles, mice, shrews and much, much more, quietly living within just a few paces of you.
Dave Goulson gives us an insight into the fascinating and sometimes weird lives of these creatures, taking us burrowing into the compost heap, digging under the lawn and diving into the garden pond. He explains how our lives and ultimately the fate of humankind are inextricably intertwined with that of earwigs, bees, lacewings and hoverflies, unappreciated heroes of the natural world.
The Garden Jungle is at times an immensely serious book, exploring the environmental harm inadvertently done by gardeners who buy intensively reared plants in disposable plastic pots, sprayed with pesticides and grown in peat cut from the ground. Goulson argues that gardens could become places where we can reconnect with nature and rediscover where food comes from. With just a few small changes, our gardens could become a vast network of tiny nature reserves, where humans and wildlife can thrive together in harmony rather than conflict.
For anyone who has a garden, and cares about our planet, this book is essential reading.
The Garden Jungle is about the wildlife that lives right under our noses, in our gardens and parks, between the gaps in the pavement, and in the soil beneath our feet. Wherever you are right now, the chances are that there are worms, woodlice, centipedes, flies, silverfish, wasps, beetles, mice, shrews and much, much more, quietly living within just a few paces of you.
Dave Goulson gives us an insight into the fascinating and sometimes weird lives of these creatures, taking us burrowing into the compost heap, digging under the lawn and diving into the garden pond. He explains how our lives and ultimately the fate of humankind are inextricably intertwined with that of earwigs, bees, lacewings and hoverflies, unappreciated heroes of the natural world.
The Garden Jungle is at times an immensely serious book, exploring the environmental harm inadvertently done by gardeners who buy intensively reared plants in disposable plastic pots, sprayed with pesticides and grown in peat cut from the ground. Goulson argues that gardens could become places where we can reconnect with nature and rediscover where food comes from. With just a few small changes, our gardens could become a vast network of tiny nature reserves, where humans and wildlife can thrive together in harmony rather than conflict.
For anyone who has a garden, and cares about our planet, this book is essential reading.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2019
173 people are currently reading
3198 people want to read
About the author
Dave Goulson
20 books345 followersAfter a childhood chasing butterflies and collecting bird’s eggs, I studied Biology at Oxford University, and then did a PhD on butterfly ecology at Oxford Brookes University. Shortly afterwards I got a lectureship at University of Southampton, where I stayed for 11 years. It was there that I began to specialize in bumblebee ecology and conservation. In 2006 I became Professor of Biology and Stirling University. In 2006 I also founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, a charity devoted to reversing bumblebee declines. In 2013 I moved to Sussex University.
I have published over 200 scientific articles on the ecology of bees and other insects, and am author of Bumblebees: Behaviour, Ecology and Conservation (2010, Oxford University Press) and A Sting in the Tale (2013, Jonathan Cape), a popular science book about bumblebees. A Buzz in the Meadow (Jonathon Cape) is due to be published in September 2014.
I am a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 2010 I was BBSRC "Social Innovator of the Year" and in 2013 I won the Marsh Award for Conservation Biology from the Zoological Society of London.
I have published over 200 scientific articles on the ecology of bees and other insects, and am author of Bumblebees: Behaviour, Ecology and Conservation (2010, Oxford University Press) and A Sting in the Tale (2013, Jonathan Cape), a popular science book about bumblebees. A Buzz in the Meadow (Jonathon Cape) is due to be published in September 2014.
I am a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 2010 I was BBSRC "Social Innovator of the Year" and in 2013 I won the Marsh Award for Conservation Biology from the Zoological Society of London.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 224 reviews
September 19, 2019
Hij geeft de mensheid een pandoering. Een lijvig boek lang passeren hele bijen- en vlinderfamilies de revue, hommels, wormen, motten, mierenkolonies. Over al dat gekrieuwel krijg je van Dave Goulson te horen wat ze zoeken, waar je ze vindt, hoe ze zich gedragen. En dat het eigenlijk niet goed met ze gaat. Sterker nog: Goulson stelt aan de kaak dat het ronduit slecht met ze afloopt, als de mens zijn gewoonten niet verandert.
Of het nu om onze achtertuintjes gaat, of om de koffieteelt in Zuid-Amerika, we zijn blijkbaar meesters in het verknoeien van de natuur. We grijpen te snel en te vaak naar onkruidverdelgers en pesticiden, en staan niet stil bij de verstrekkende gevolgen. De schrijver brengt je aan de hand van sprekende voorbeelden aan het verstand hoe de natuur verknoeid wordt.
Een fun read lijkt ‘De tuinjungle’ tot hiertoe niet, ik kan me voorstellen dat je dat denkt (en heel vrolijk word je er af en toe inderdaad niet van), maar toch kun je dit boek geen deprimerende aanklacht noemen. Goulson verstaat de kunst om de lezer met hier en daar een vleugje humor heel degelijk te informeren én tegelijkertijd te motiveren om het anders te gaan doen.
Je blijft niet bij de pakken zitten. Integendeel: als je ook maar over een beetje potgrond beschikt, ga je anders naar de flora en fauna kijken, in het bijzonder dan naar het gekrieuwel. Ik hoop dat nog veel meer mensen dit boek gaan lezen, ook als ze niet tuinieren in potten of bakken, in een sier-, moes- of volkstuin. Ook als je geen groene vingers hebt, gaan je handen jeuken. Je denkt: hoe zal ik het ánders doen, béter, en waar zal ik eens beginnen?
‘De tuinjungle’ van Dave Goulson is uit het Engels vertaald door Nico Groen.
Of het nu om onze achtertuintjes gaat, of om de koffieteelt in Zuid-Amerika, we zijn blijkbaar meesters in het verknoeien van de natuur. We grijpen te snel en te vaak naar onkruidverdelgers en pesticiden, en staan niet stil bij de verstrekkende gevolgen. De schrijver brengt je aan de hand van sprekende voorbeelden aan het verstand hoe de natuur verknoeid wordt.
Een fun read lijkt ‘De tuinjungle’ tot hiertoe niet, ik kan me voorstellen dat je dat denkt (en heel vrolijk word je er af en toe inderdaad niet van), maar toch kun je dit boek geen deprimerende aanklacht noemen. Goulson verstaat de kunst om de lezer met hier en daar een vleugje humor heel degelijk te informeren én tegelijkertijd te motiveren om het anders te gaan doen.
Je blijft niet bij de pakken zitten. Integendeel: als je ook maar over een beetje potgrond beschikt, ga je anders naar de flora en fauna kijken, in het bijzonder dan naar het gekrieuwel. Ik hoop dat nog veel meer mensen dit boek gaan lezen, ook als ze niet tuinieren in potten of bakken, in een sier-, moes- of volkstuin. Ook als je geen groene vingers hebt, gaan je handen jeuken. Je denkt: hoe zal ik het ánders doen, béter, en waar zal ik eens beginnen?
‘De tuinjungle’ van Dave Goulson is uit het Engels vertaald door Nico Groen.
June 8, 2019
Dave Goulson has changed the lives of thousands of insects in my neighborhood. He has inspired me to let the lawn grow, to grow bee friendly flowers from seed, to only buy peat free earth for my pots. He has opened my eyes to the ecological collapse happening right before our eyes.
Intensive agricultural farming has had devastating effect on earth worms, insects and birds. In this book he shows how effective growing your own vegetables can be. There are plenty of tips on how to make the world a better and more sustainable place to be, starting in your own backyard.
Fun fact: in the land of the free, many states fine homeowners who do not keep their lawn short. The zica epidemic meant that many towns were sprayed with insecticides - killing everything, but not many mosquitoes.
The problem with pesticides is that they kill the insects you need for a balanced ecosystem as well as the harmful ones. The pests recover much more quickly, meaning that the problem exacerbates.
I read about cecidomyiidae mosquitoes in this book. They lay eggs in aphids, the larvae eat themselves out and proceed to munch through up to sixty aphids a day. I found these larvae on two aphid infested plants a week ago. I’ve watched in fascination how the aphids were being eaten. There aren’t any left now.
A few words on peat: it’s not a renewable resource! It binds carbon and using it for garden center earth is harmful to the environment. So if there is one take away from this review it is this: buy only peat free earth for your garden!
If you want to leave a planet for your grand children and want some concrete tips on what you can do to help: read this book! It will be released in English on July 11, it’s already released in German.
Intensive agricultural farming has had devastating effect on earth worms, insects and birds. In this book he shows how effective growing your own vegetables can be. There are plenty of tips on how to make the world a better and more sustainable place to be, starting in your own backyard.
Fun fact: in the land of the free, many states fine homeowners who do not keep their lawn short. The zica epidemic meant that many towns were sprayed with insecticides - killing everything, but not many mosquitoes.
The problem with pesticides is that they kill the insects you need for a balanced ecosystem as well as the harmful ones. The pests recover much more quickly, meaning that the problem exacerbates.
I read about cecidomyiidae mosquitoes in this book. They lay eggs in aphids, the larvae eat themselves out and proceed to munch through up to sixty aphids a day. I found these larvae on two aphid infested plants a week ago. I’ve watched in fascination how the aphids were being eaten. There aren’t any left now.
A few words on peat: it’s not a renewable resource! It binds carbon and using it for garden center earth is harmful to the environment. So if there is one take away from this review it is this: buy only peat free earth for your garden!
If you want to leave a planet for your grand children and want some concrete tips on what you can do to help: read this book! It will be released in English on July 11, it’s already released in German.
Read
May 3, 2022A useful and entertaining non fiction read for the British gardener, talking about the wildlife we have and need to support, along with the best ways to support them--what to plant, how to buy/get hold of the right things, stuff on managing the garden ("don't be too tidy" is great advice that I've been following avidly for many years, ahaha). Your rewilding journey starts here.
August 27, 2019
Goulson’s books are all great, but also all of a piece, such that you could pick just one to read (and it might as well be A Sting in the Tale) and don’t necessarily need to follow it with the rest. His focus in all his books is on insect life, what it says about the state of the environment in general, and what we can do to protect and encourage wildlife in the places where we live. Here, he exposes the damage done by gardening and farming as usual, and suggests what and how regular people can grow in their backyards and allotments.
The most valuable chapter is on pesticides – it’s truly alarming how widespread they are, and how difficult to avoid. He describes organic food / growing your own in the language of Pascal’s wager: along the lines of ‘you might as well avoid pesticides; even if we one day find out that they weren’t so bad after all, you would have lived a pretty healthy and environmentally low-impact life’ (pp. 89–90).
There are even recipes! Amusingly, the mulberry muffin recipe begins “Grow mulberry tree. It may take ten years or more to fruit…” (I had never heard of jam being made in a microwave, and though I’m not completely convinced about it I will at least look into that technique some more.)
I like this idea: “what if we had another ‘dig for victory’ style campaign, supported by the government” as during WWII.
A convincing last line: “If you really want to leave your grandchildren a healthy planet to live on [fat chance], it’s time to get out in the garden and dig.”
The most valuable chapter is on pesticides – it’s truly alarming how widespread they are, and how difficult to avoid. He describes organic food / growing your own in the language of Pascal’s wager: along the lines of ‘you might as well avoid pesticides; even if we one day find out that they weren’t so bad after all, you would have lived a pretty healthy and environmentally low-impact life’ (pp. 89–90).
There are even recipes! Amusingly, the mulberry muffin recipe begins “Grow mulberry tree. It may take ten years or more to fruit…” (I had never heard of jam being made in a microwave, and though I’m not completely convinced about it I will at least look into that technique some more.)
I like this idea: “what if we had another ‘dig for victory’ style campaign, supported by the government” as during WWII.
A convincing last line: “If you really want to leave your grandchildren a healthy planet to live on [fat chance], it’s time to get out in the garden and dig.”
October 15, 2019
If you are fortunate to have a garden but don’t really pay it much attention, then you might not be aware of the insects and other wildlife that inhabit it at the moment. It is a jungle out there, but one that you need to get down on your hands and knees to see properly. Everything from the microbes, worms and ants in the soil, to the insects that pollinate and right up to the small mammals and birds that prey on all of these creatures lower down the food chain.
If you can tear your attention away from the screen and take a few moments to go out into the garden, then we need to understand what makes them tick and some of their lifecycle to help these creatures. For a lot of them, their lives are short, sharp and very often brutal. Oh and weird, very weird. Goulson ventures beneath the soil, into the compost heap and rootles around at the bottom of the pond to find out more about their lives and just how intertwined all layers of life are on this planet.
Insects are the bottom in a very long food chain, if they collapse in numbers then everything further up will suffer and the current evidence is suggesting that that collapse has already started. A garden that is sensitively planted can bring a huge number of insects in and will help all types of wildlife. Some insect-friendly’ plants that are available from garden centres but a crowd-funded PHD project found a cocktail of insecticides, in particular, neonicotinoids, fungicides and other pesticides on them. When Goulson raised this publicly, some organisation have made steps to do something about this, but other organisations who really should know better have maintained a worrying silence about this.
Didn’t feel that this was as good as his previous books, but it is still as well written with the occasional humorous moment. You also get a sense of his anger over the way that some things are continuing with the overwhelming evidence that drenching our land in chemicals, is doing far more harm than companies would have you believe. His greatest ire is for the insect-friendly plants that are being marketed, his advice, don’t look for the label, look at the plants that have lots of insects gathering around them and buy those instead and don’t use chemicals on them when you do get them home. He has a strong message that we would be wise to heed. It is worth reading alongside The Bumble Bee Flies Anyway by Kate Bradbury and her account of changing a garden from a wildlife blackhole to a place full of life. 3.5 stars
If you can tear your attention away from the screen and take a few moments to go out into the garden, then we need to understand what makes them tick and some of their lifecycle to help these creatures. For a lot of them, their lives are short, sharp and very often brutal. Oh and weird, very weird. Goulson ventures beneath the soil, into the compost heap and rootles around at the bottom of the pond to find out more about their lives and just how intertwined all layers of life are on this planet.
Insects are the bottom in a very long food chain, if they collapse in numbers then everything further up will suffer and the current evidence is suggesting that that collapse has already started. A garden that is sensitively planted can bring a huge number of insects in and will help all types of wildlife. Some insect-friendly’ plants that are available from garden centres but a crowd-funded PHD project found a cocktail of insecticides, in particular, neonicotinoids, fungicides and other pesticides on them. When Goulson raised this publicly, some organisation have made steps to do something about this, but other organisations who really should know better have maintained a worrying silence about this.
Didn’t feel that this was as good as his previous books, but it is still as well written with the occasional humorous moment. You also get a sense of his anger over the way that some things are continuing with the overwhelming evidence that drenching our land in chemicals, is doing far more harm than companies would have you believe. His greatest ire is for the insect-friendly plants that are being marketed, his advice, don’t look for the label, look at the plants that have lots of insects gathering around them and buy those instead and don’t use chemicals on them when you do get them home. He has a strong message that we would be wise to heed. It is worth reading alongside The Bumble Bee Flies Anyway by Kate Bradbury and her account of changing a garden from a wildlife blackhole to a place full of life. 3.5 stars
April 30, 2020
I bought this book for its title: Gardening to save the planet, and the blurb promised a discussion of the kind of re-wilding I had learned about from Isabella Tree‘s Wilding as applied to a smaller-size garden. I‘d already stopped mowing and weeding, and this seemed to furnish the scientific justification for it. The author is a professor of biology.
And indeed, I learned a number of interesting and entertaining things about my garden: its earwigs, its ants (very militant!), its worms and how little we know about them, its bees and its pond life. Each chapter is preceded by a useless recipe (I get irritated with books that can‘t decide what they want to do: gardening? cookbook? Cobbler, stick to your last!). I was appalled to discover how many pesticides the plants I buy at garden centres are treated with, and how bee-attracting garden centre plants can actually be toxic to bees. It was salutary to be reminded that 76% of the world‘s arable land is being used for meat production.
Then the author described how he likes to collect, skin, chop up, freeze and cook roadkill. This was one eccentricity too far for me (and also, like the recipes, only tenuously related to gardening — it seemed more like proselytising).
Still, I would have given this 4 stars for readability, usefulness and heart in the right place. However, this one sentence on the very last page caused my rating to tumble:
“Whatever your view on Brexit, it frees us from the Common Agricultural Policy and provides a golden opportunity to turn farming on its head, to make the radical changes that are urgently needed before most of our wildlife and our soils have gone.”
In your dreams, Dave.
Firstly, Goulson displays astounding political naivety if he believes that the politicians driving Brexit are in any way interested in saving the planet and turning farming on its head to fund small holders and allotments (Goulson’s dream: we all become self-sufficient food growing allotmenteers, as in the “Dig for Victory” war years).
Secondly, Goulson does not know whereof he speaks. Here again Isabella Tree is much more knowledgeable, even-handed and nuanced: she has trodden the paths of bureaucracy; she knows that it takes perseverance and international co-operation to make a difference to nature preservation; she notes how industrial mono-cultural farming began way before Britain joined the Common Market.
I begrudge the second star but I did think the book was worth reading. Just don’t spend any money on it. I regret any royalties going to a Brexiteer.
Format: handsomely produced hardback with a lovely cover drawn by Lesley Buckingham; smooth floppy paper; clear font typeset in Adobe Caslon (I always appreciate a publisher — in this case, Jonathan Cape — telling me the type).
And indeed, I learned a number of interesting and entertaining things about my garden: its earwigs, its ants (very militant!), its worms and how little we know about them, its bees and its pond life. Each chapter is preceded by a useless recipe (I get irritated with books that can‘t decide what they want to do: gardening? cookbook? Cobbler, stick to your last!). I was appalled to discover how many pesticides the plants I buy at garden centres are treated with, and how bee-attracting garden centre plants can actually be toxic to bees. It was salutary to be reminded that 76% of the world‘s arable land is being used for meat production.
Then the author described how he likes to collect, skin, chop up, freeze and cook roadkill. This was one eccentricity too far for me (and also, like the recipes, only tenuously related to gardening — it seemed more like proselytising).
Still, I would have given this 4 stars for readability, usefulness and heart in the right place. However, this one sentence on the very last page caused my rating to tumble:
“Whatever your view on Brexit, it frees us from the Common Agricultural Policy and provides a golden opportunity to turn farming on its head, to make the radical changes that are urgently needed before most of our wildlife and our soils have gone.”
In your dreams, Dave.
Firstly, Goulson displays astounding political naivety if he believes that the politicians driving Brexit are in any way interested in saving the planet and turning farming on its head to fund small holders and allotments (Goulson’s dream: we all become self-sufficient food growing allotmenteers, as in the “Dig for Victory” war years).
Secondly, Goulson does not know whereof he speaks. Here again Isabella Tree is much more knowledgeable, even-handed and nuanced: she has trodden the paths of bureaucracy; she knows that it takes perseverance and international co-operation to make a difference to nature preservation; she notes how industrial mono-cultural farming began way before Britain joined the Common Market.
I begrudge the second star but I did think the book was worth reading. Just don’t spend any money on it. I regret any royalties going to a Brexiteer.
Format: handsomely produced hardback with a lovely cover drawn by Lesley Buckingham; smooth floppy paper; clear font typeset in Adobe Caslon (I always appreciate a publisher — in this case, Jonathan Cape — telling me the type).
June 20, 2021
I saw this in my local library and have to admit it was the cover that drew me in. In this case it was perfectly safe to judge a book by its cover as this book was fantastic.
In some ways it reminded me of a novel in the structure. Firstly Goulson sets out the wildlife in our gardens (or potential wildlife in the garden), taking about their skills, characteristics and the ecosystem they are part of with real enthusiasm that means before you know it, you the reader, are suddenly enthralled by worms, bees and ants and seeing them as hero’s of the world not pests. Then comes the plot twist with all the damage that is being done to the planet and how. Finally the book shows how we can return to a natural equilibrium with ways that we can proactively help wildlife and practical steps we can take. Of course the ending is left to humanity and what we decide to do.
What I especially liked about this book is there is real solid advice that any person can follow to make changes. Goulson backs up all his arguments with sound evidence and when data is scarce is honest about this and why the information is missing. I felt he really took a reader on the journey. The other thing I appreciated about this book was its laugh out loud moments. You don’t expect a book like this to be funny but the image of a deer wearing a seatbelt and peering out a car window as well as the tale of his relative ‘accidentally’ taking cuttings from the garden of stately home were brilliant.
A book everyone really should read to either develop an interest in wildlife or find practical things they can do.
In some ways it reminded me of a novel in the structure. Firstly Goulson sets out the wildlife in our gardens (or potential wildlife in the garden), taking about their skills, characteristics and the ecosystem they are part of with real enthusiasm that means before you know it, you the reader, are suddenly enthralled by worms, bees and ants and seeing them as hero’s of the world not pests. Then comes the plot twist with all the damage that is being done to the planet and how. Finally the book shows how we can return to a natural equilibrium with ways that we can proactively help wildlife and practical steps we can take. Of course the ending is left to humanity and what we decide to do.
What I especially liked about this book is there is real solid advice that any person can follow to make changes. Goulson backs up all his arguments with sound evidence and when data is scarce is honest about this and why the information is missing. I felt he really took a reader on the journey. The other thing I appreciated about this book was its laugh out loud moments. You don’t expect a book like this to be funny but the image of a deer wearing a seatbelt and peering out a car window as well as the tale of his relative ‘accidentally’ taking cuttings from the garden of stately home were brilliant.
A book everyone really should read to either develop an interest in wildlife or find practical things they can do.
August 29, 2021
Interessant informatief boek over behoud van de natuur. Maakt je bewust van wat je zelf als (kleine) tuinier kunt bijdragen. Met humor geschreven.
January 28, 2021
I really loved this. I'm not even a gardener, do have an allotment but have not been able to get there much during the pandemic, generally don't know much about gardening. But it made no difference to enjoying this. It's so interesting, and I learnt so much about the wildlife in gardens .Worms, wasps and ants are so much more fascinating than you would think! Really eye opening on biodiversity and environmental impacts of agriculture and gardening too. And beautifully written as well.
January 20, 2021
3,5. Läsvärt, engagerat och torrt humoristiskt som vanligt, även om jag inte lärde mig riktigt lika mycket som vanligt. Älskar de passionerade utsvävningarna om tvestjärtar, murarbin och jättedaggmaskar 🐝
February 12, 2020
Dave, please never stop!
***
I have just put my name on the list for allotment :)
***
I have just put my name on the list for allotment :)
August 5, 2023
Irgendwo zwischen gut und humorvoll, etwas utopisch und in seinen informativsten Abschnitten seelenzerschmetternd Nihilistisch.
July 24, 2024
Reading this while knowing we have a whole garden out there to plant has me itching to do some work, even though I know I can't. I love Goulson's voice in all his books and I realised he strikes the balance between humourous and informative that I want to achieve with our Bird Blog. I can't say I necessarily agree with all his opinions (namely around eating roadkill) but I can't fault his arguments so I'm happy to agree to disagree. This is a lovely book! Every chapter starts off with a recipe and I adore that. And now I have a handy list of plants to plant in our own garden to attract pollinators
Edited to add: Dave Goulson is not a brexiteer, one line about making the most of the situation Britain is in doesn't make him so. Jeez
Edited to add: Dave Goulson is not a brexiteer, one line about making the most of the situation Britain is in doesn't make him so. Jeez
September 6, 2021
On the last page of his book Dave Goulson expresses the hope that Brexit ‘frees Britain from the Common Agricultural Policy’. I am afraid Dave is in for a surprise. If there are people in today’s British government who have big plans on the introduction of small-scale sustainable agriculture, I sure have not yet heard them. A massive attack on what is left of the English countryside looks more realistic when the ‘real estate wolves move in for the kill’, and the rich get richer.
But that is maybe not really our problem, so let’s look at the book and the message itself…and these are very clear. That we have to do something is today obvious for most people, certainly after this year of heatwaves, wildfires and excessive rainfall. That we can do something is a lot less clear to many, and this is a valiant effort to make a change. To my wonderment I found Dave’s book on the shelf of a good friend working in the automobile industry, and he talked to me how he planned to rewild his (rather big) garden, to change a big part of his impeccable lawn into a meadow and to plant trees that made sense. All because of Dave !
If we would all do an effort like this it would make an immense difference for the insects and the myriad of small creatures that live in a wild or semi-wild garden. I have been trying for three years now and have been rewarded by countless visits by bees and butterflies, the most visible of our new wildlife. I am still not there, but at least it is a good start and it makes me happy.
This is a wonderful book that makes you open your eyes to the life in your own backyard and your own environment, and it makes you feel like seeing your garden as it is, or as it should be: a part of nature. And that there are so many fascinating creatures in it was for me a source of wonder and joy. This alone is a very good reason to read this book. But you can skip the last page…
But that is maybe not really our problem, so let’s look at the book and the message itself…and these are very clear. That we have to do something is today obvious for most people, certainly after this year of heatwaves, wildfires and excessive rainfall. That we can do something is a lot less clear to many, and this is a valiant effort to make a change. To my wonderment I found Dave’s book on the shelf of a good friend working in the automobile industry, and he talked to me how he planned to rewild his (rather big) garden, to change a big part of his impeccable lawn into a meadow and to plant trees that made sense. All because of Dave !
If we would all do an effort like this it would make an immense difference for the insects and the myriad of small creatures that live in a wild or semi-wild garden. I have been trying for three years now and have been rewarded by countless visits by bees and butterflies, the most visible of our new wildlife. I am still not there, but at least it is a good start and it makes me happy.
This is a wonderful book that makes you open your eyes to the life in your own backyard and your own environment, and it makes you feel like seeing your garden as it is, or as it should be: a part of nature. And that there are so many fascinating creatures in it was for me a source of wonder and joy. This alone is a very good reason to read this book. But you can skip the last page…
May 2, 2020
I really enjoyed this book, it taught me a lot and has me inspired and excited about my family garden
This ecological education on a small scale is crucial to us reconnecting with nature on our doorstep rather than needing to travel to a tropical jungle... and the discussion of growing your own vegetables is incredible!
Would recommend
The loss of one star is a harsh criticism, mainly the the fact that I wanted photos of the bees described, some of the plants discussed. I guess a later book could give us some more in depth advice on how to garden well too?
This ecological education on a small scale is crucial to us reconnecting with nature on our doorstep rather than needing to travel to a tropical jungle... and the discussion of growing your own vegetables is incredible!
Would recommend
The loss of one star is a harsh criticism, mainly the the fact that I wanted photos of the bees described, some of the plants discussed. I guess a later book could give us some more in depth advice on how to garden well too?
April 8, 2021
uppskattade mask-kapitlet :D
June 27, 2021
We ontdekken en zien nu nog meer in de tuin, en tevens veel over na te denken. Een aanrader voor elke wildetuin - liefhebber!
October 12, 2024
This book should be an obligatory reading in school.
November 8, 2022
Lovely as an audiobook, Dave goulson reads it and he sounds like Hugh grant and it’s chefs kiss. I Recommend to everyone.
August 17, 2024
Meteen zin om wormen te zoeken
September 17, 2019
De tuinjungle. Tuinieren om de wereld te redden door Dave Goulson.
Wat een supermooie cover en wat een boeiend onderwerp, ook al heb ik geen echte tuin, alleen maar een koer vol potten. Ik kan alvast zeggen dat Goulson een geweldige man is. Dit is het eerste boek dat ik van hem lees, ik wil al jaren zijn bijenboek lezen maar dat blijft maar uitgeleend in de bib, zegt genoeg hé. Dave is slim, wijs, bevlogen, nieuwsgierig, een geweldig schrijver en enorm grappig. Vaak zat ik luidop te lachen met zijn boek (ik duidde de grappen aan, ze zijn niet te tellen), dat was wel nodig want De tuinjungle is best zwaar en soms heel wetenschappelijk én best deprimerend van tijd tot tijd maar de humor en vlotte pen van Goulson maken het vlot leesbaar.
Elk onderwerp/hoofdstuk is even boeiend; van de mieren die ‘wandelende honingbommen’ zijn, over de oorwormen ‘die in groepjes rondhangen als tieners op voorjaarsvakantie’, tot volkstuintjes die de wereld gaan redden. Echt. Zijn idee daarover is zo geweldig, het klinkt als een waterdicht plan en tevens als ‘het enige voordeel van de Brexit’.
Tuinieren kan écht de wereld verbeteren/redden, dat laat Goulson duidelijk zien. Er is al onherroepelijk veel schade toegebracht maar het is nog niet te laat: koop wat kippen, knutsel een wormerij in elkaar en sla je slag op de plaatselijke plantenruilbeurs (mijdt de grote tuicentra) terwijl je op de wachtlijst voor een volkstuintje staat.
Dave Goulson laat alles eenvoudig lijken, zelfs de recepten aan de begin van elk hoofdstuk (vlierbessenwijn: mmm!). Misschien omdat het ook eenvoudig is? “Verbeter de wereld, begin in je tuin.”
En koop eerst even dit boek, in de bib ga je het komende jaren toch nog niet kunnen ontlenen ;) Greta, Anuna, Jonathan en Dave. En jij en ik. Wij gaan de wereld redden! Begin met een boek.
Wat een supermooie cover en wat een boeiend onderwerp, ook al heb ik geen echte tuin, alleen maar een koer vol potten. Ik kan alvast zeggen dat Goulson een geweldige man is. Dit is het eerste boek dat ik van hem lees, ik wil al jaren zijn bijenboek lezen maar dat blijft maar uitgeleend in de bib, zegt genoeg hé. Dave is slim, wijs, bevlogen, nieuwsgierig, een geweldig schrijver en enorm grappig. Vaak zat ik luidop te lachen met zijn boek (ik duidde de grappen aan, ze zijn niet te tellen), dat was wel nodig want De tuinjungle is best zwaar en soms heel wetenschappelijk én best deprimerend van tijd tot tijd maar de humor en vlotte pen van Goulson maken het vlot leesbaar.
Elk onderwerp/hoofdstuk is even boeiend; van de mieren die ‘wandelende honingbommen’ zijn, over de oorwormen ‘die in groepjes rondhangen als tieners op voorjaarsvakantie’, tot volkstuintjes die de wereld gaan redden. Echt. Zijn idee daarover is zo geweldig, het klinkt als een waterdicht plan en tevens als ‘het enige voordeel van de Brexit’.
Tuinieren kan écht de wereld verbeteren/redden, dat laat Goulson duidelijk zien. Er is al onherroepelijk veel schade toegebracht maar het is nog niet te laat: koop wat kippen, knutsel een wormerij in elkaar en sla je slag op de plaatselijke plantenruilbeurs (mijdt de grote tuicentra) terwijl je op de wachtlijst voor een volkstuintje staat.
Dave Goulson laat alles eenvoudig lijken, zelfs de recepten aan de begin van elk hoofdstuk (vlierbessenwijn: mmm!). Misschien omdat het ook eenvoudig is? “Verbeter de wereld, begin in je tuin.”
En koop eerst even dit boek, in de bib ga je het komende jaren toch nog niet kunnen ontlenen ;) Greta, Anuna, Jonathan en Dave. En jij en ik. Wij gaan de wereld redden! Begin met een boek.
January 2, 2021
What a fantastic book.
As an agronomist and a farmer in the UK I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Very interesting information on our wildlife and how to look after it and also encourage their populations to thrive in your garden.
I really enjoyed reading about slightly alternative views to farming practices too, although slightly outdated (2018) which means some of the information on legislation in farming is now irrelevant.
It does a good job on showing how we as a global population do not appreciate food enough in order to reduce food waste (a third of all food bought is wasted) and also how these consumerist practices affect farming practices and in turn affect the environment. Because of this, the farmers tend to get blamed for any environmental wrongdoings but in reality we are producing food for what the consumer wants at a price they want to pay. If people were willing to buy more expensive, higher quality food then the farmers would be able to deploy more environmentally beneficial practices whilst still being able to afford to live.
A great book. We need to bring back more homegrown food, smaller farms growing a more diverse range of crops, reduction in pesticides and synthetic fertilisers. Everyone needs to read this book, it will inspire you to do more for our planet.
As an agronomist and a farmer in the UK I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Very interesting information on our wildlife and how to look after it and also encourage their populations to thrive in your garden.
I really enjoyed reading about slightly alternative views to farming practices too, although slightly outdated (2018) which means some of the information on legislation in farming is now irrelevant.
It does a good job on showing how we as a global population do not appreciate food enough in order to reduce food waste (a third of all food bought is wasted) and also how these consumerist practices affect farming practices and in turn affect the environment. Because of this, the farmers tend to get blamed for any environmental wrongdoings but in reality we are producing food for what the consumer wants at a price they want to pay. If people were willing to buy more expensive, higher quality food then the farmers would be able to deploy more environmentally beneficial practices whilst still being able to afford to live.
A great book. We need to bring back more homegrown food, smaller farms growing a more diverse range of crops, reduction in pesticides and synthetic fertilisers. Everyone needs to read this book, it will inspire you to do more for our planet.
January 10, 2020
I so enjoyed this book. It is not really about gardening at all but the author is passionate about insects and small animals. The book is full of the amazing and often funny habits of ants, ladybirds, earthworms and so on. But there is always a serious side. There is much to be said in praise of composting and digging. Dave Goulson goes overboard about the modern garden centre but he does admit it too! I learned a lot and started to look much more closely at my log pile.
December 11, 2019
Inspirational. So much of what I do in the garden will now change, including what I plant, how I feed those plants, and where I buy them. A whole new world of flora and fauna (under my nose all along) has been opened up for me by Dave Goulding. What a great book.
October 28, 2019
Dave blijft grappig en informatief.
June 25, 2020
"Jag menar inte att vi alla ska ta på tagelskjortan och leva på hemodlade rovor resten av våra dagar. Livet vore knappt värt att leva om vi inte kunde unna oss en bit morotskaka och en gojibärssmoothie innan vi köper lite djungelgurkfrön och en statyett av en miniatyrsamuraj på vårt lokala trädgårdscenter lite då och då, men vi bör alla vara medvetna om vad vi gör och om vår påverkan på planeten", skriver Dave Goulson i sin nya, inspirerande ode till trädgårdsmyllret.
Jag har läst (och recenserat) böcker om insekter i trädgården förr, men ingen som Goulsons en lika delar politiskt manifest som praktisk guide. Av honom lär jag mig om nyttan med tvestjärtar i fruktträdgården, hur man snabbt och enkelt blir av med äppelvecklaren, hur monokulturer blir känsliga för angrepp, att jag bör plantera växter som luktar om natten för nattfjärilarnas skull och att det finns ett överskott på bin i stan eftersom man inte sett till att ha mat så det räcker åt dem.
Men jag får också träffa trädgårdsägare som vill ha den typiskt brittiska "randiga" gräsmattan och de som anlitar kemikalieexperter och känner att de inte får valuta för pengarna om växterna inte dryper av gift efter besöket. Jag får läsa om hur flygplan i Kalifornien besprutar förorter och villakvarter för att bli av med den måttligt hotfulla japanska skalbaggen och på annat håll har ihjäl stora bipopulationer för att utrota Zikamyggan. Kanske känns en sådan åtgärd värd uppoffringen tills man får veta att myggan föredrar en lugn tillvaro under tak och alltså inte bekymrar sig över lite gift i folks trädgårdar.
En recensent skrev om Goulsons förra bok att det var längesedan hen såg så mycket fram emot en lässtund med en fackbok. I vår har jag läst många fantastiska fackböcker men jag förstår ändå vad hen menar. Goulson har lyckats skapa en gemytlig stämning. Att läsa hans bok känns lite som att slå sig ner i soffan och titta på Mandelmanns med en stor kopp myntate.
Om jag har något att invända är det att Goulson inte verkar förstå sig på begreppet permakultur. För mig är han permakulturist i hjärtat men beskriver begreppet med en oförklarlig okunskap. Jag bara hoppas att någon kan ta sig tid att förklara det bättre för honom!
Jag har läst (och recenserat) böcker om insekter i trädgården förr, men ingen som Goulsons en lika delar politiskt manifest som praktisk guide. Av honom lär jag mig om nyttan med tvestjärtar i fruktträdgården, hur man snabbt och enkelt blir av med äppelvecklaren, hur monokulturer blir känsliga för angrepp, att jag bör plantera växter som luktar om natten för nattfjärilarnas skull och att det finns ett överskott på bin i stan eftersom man inte sett till att ha mat så det räcker åt dem.
Men jag får också träffa trädgårdsägare som vill ha den typiskt brittiska "randiga" gräsmattan och de som anlitar kemikalieexperter och känner att de inte får valuta för pengarna om växterna inte dryper av gift efter besöket. Jag får läsa om hur flygplan i Kalifornien besprutar förorter och villakvarter för att bli av med den måttligt hotfulla japanska skalbaggen och på annat håll har ihjäl stora bipopulationer för att utrota Zikamyggan. Kanske känns en sådan åtgärd värd uppoffringen tills man får veta att myggan föredrar en lugn tillvaro under tak och alltså inte bekymrar sig över lite gift i folks trädgårdar.
En recensent skrev om Goulsons förra bok att det var längesedan hen såg så mycket fram emot en lässtund med en fackbok. I vår har jag läst många fantastiska fackböcker men jag förstår ändå vad hen menar. Goulson har lyckats skapa en gemytlig stämning. Att läsa hans bok känns lite som att slå sig ner i soffan och titta på Mandelmanns med en stor kopp myntate.
Om jag har något att invända är det att Goulson inte verkar förstå sig på begreppet permakultur. För mig är han permakulturist i hjärtat men beskriver begreppet med en oförklarlig okunskap. Jag bara hoppas att någon kan ta sig tid att förklara det bättre för honom!
March 25, 2020
This is a book that will make you look at your garden differently! It doesn't only focus on how it looks, but the goings on underneath the soil and the insects and wildlife that visits your little part of the earth daily, and as a keen gardener and fan of wildlife, I'm even more eager now to do more bit and take time out to notice the little things - and leave things a little more 'wild' to help do my bit!
This is a really relevant book for the times we are living in - and no more than now, with many people staying home due to the 'lockdown' and spending more time in their garden than they normally do! The only downside for me is that the people who need to read this the most are the ones who won't pick this up as it's not full of glossy photos, or quick fixes for a 'low maintenance' garden - the kind of people who revel in the throwaway society we find ourselves in, who want everything to be easy to look after and to keep all the creepy crawlies out! This books shows just how important all the wildlife is to the make-up of the garden, and doesn't preach at you but explains things brilliantly and shows just how simple it can be to get the balance in the garden just right.
There are nods to using peat free compost, the benefits of being outdoors, the importance of allotments and growing your own, along with many other subjects such as the variety of animals that use our gardens daily, that shows that we can all do 'our bit' in a little way to help this planet of ours.
I really loved seeing a list of favourite plants he uses to attract different forms of wildlife, along with instructions on how to make your own wormery which has got me tempted to give it a go! I've learnt so much from this book and found it to be so informative and interesting, from a man who is clearly passionate about the subject he writes out! Highly recommended!!
This is a really relevant book for the times we are living in - and no more than now, with many people staying home due to the 'lockdown' and spending more time in their garden than they normally do! The only downside for me is that the people who need to read this the most are the ones who won't pick this up as it's not full of glossy photos, or quick fixes for a 'low maintenance' garden - the kind of people who revel in the throwaway society we find ourselves in, who want everything to be easy to look after and to keep all the creepy crawlies out! This books shows just how important all the wildlife is to the make-up of the garden, and doesn't preach at you but explains things brilliantly and shows just how simple it can be to get the balance in the garden just right.
There are nods to using peat free compost, the benefits of being outdoors, the importance of allotments and growing your own, along with many other subjects such as the variety of animals that use our gardens daily, that shows that we can all do 'our bit' in a little way to help this planet of ours.
I really loved seeing a list of favourite plants he uses to attract different forms of wildlife, along with instructions on how to make your own wormery which has got me tempted to give it a go! I've learnt so much from this book and found it to be so informative and interesting, from a man who is clearly passionate about the subject he writes out! Highly recommended!!
August 19, 2020
I was going to knock this book down a star because of the occasional unnecessary inflammatory comment (I came to learn about gardening, not to hear about your thoughts on the current American president) BUT I cannot, because overall this book was just too darn inspiring and interesting and I feel like it sort of changed my life. It's not a perfect book (I wish there were more references included for the studies he discussed, for example) but it gets five stars based on my emotional response.
Dave Goulson is definitely my favourite environmentalist after reading two of his books in the last couple months. He has two others and I can't wait to read them. His writing is so engaging and funny. Though he is a bee scientist this book is a broader summary of various gardening topics, with a large focus on insects and bug life. The book is his glorious manifesto on how backyard/allotment (a British thing) gardening could save the planet. While I'm sure there's a modern farmer or two that would be highly offended by some of his assertions, he makes a pretty compelling argument that large scale monoculture farming is not nearly as "efficient" as it is generally believed to be. At the same time he is quite realistic and measured in his arguments overall even when taking on controversial topics.
Reading a Dave Goulson book will make you want to tear up your lawn and plant a wildflower meadow, start growing all your own food, and butcher roadkill on your driveway (kidding, sort of, about the last one, but this man is a ridiculous hero of the environment and I love it). If you are a gardener and want to incorporate more sustainable practices into your growing, this book is necessary reading! If not, I'd recommend A Sting in the Tale over this one for more of a general interest/science memoir book that will make you obsessed with bees.
Dave Goulson is definitely my favourite environmentalist after reading two of his books in the last couple months. He has two others and I can't wait to read them. His writing is so engaging and funny. Though he is a bee scientist this book is a broader summary of various gardening topics, with a large focus on insects and bug life. The book is his glorious manifesto on how backyard/allotment (a British thing) gardening could save the planet. While I'm sure there's a modern farmer or two that would be highly offended by some of his assertions, he makes a pretty compelling argument that large scale monoculture farming is not nearly as "efficient" as it is generally believed to be. At the same time he is quite realistic and measured in his arguments overall even when taking on controversial topics.
Reading a Dave Goulson book will make you want to tear up your lawn and plant a wildflower meadow, start growing all your own food, and butcher roadkill on your driveway (kidding, sort of, about the last one, but this man is a ridiculous hero of the environment and I love it). If you are a gardener and want to incorporate more sustainable practices into your growing, this book is necessary reading! If not, I'd recommend A Sting in the Tale over this one for more of a general interest/science memoir book that will make you obsessed with bees.
April 12, 2020
The Garden Jungle by Dave Goulson was just what I was looking for in a garden read as we start our garden this year in earnest. It was full of interesting knowledge about apples, earwigs, worms, bees, bug hotels, moths, aquatic insects, and more. I honestly never knew how beneficial earwigs are but have loved worms and ladybirds for most of my life.
I loved reading about rewilding projects, taking farm land or even areas of lawn and letting nature take its course. How yellow rattle will kill off the surrounding grass and allow for more wildflowers to grow while also being polinator friendly. About the real dangers of spraying any pesticides and that many nursery plants often test positive for residue. Instead, insects can easily be controlled by enticing their natural predators into our gardens.
I now want to have a mini pond, put up bug hotels all over, and plant a few dwarf apple trees to try some of the 700+ varieties available, and plan to grow as much as I can from seeds, and as many different varieties as possible.
Also, did you know apples came from Kazakhstan?
I loved reading about rewilding projects, taking farm land or even areas of lawn and letting nature take its course. How yellow rattle will kill off the surrounding grass and allow for more wildflowers to grow while also being polinator friendly. About the real dangers of spraying any pesticides and that many nursery plants often test positive for residue. Instead, insects can easily be controlled by enticing their natural predators into our gardens.
I now want to have a mini pond, put up bug hotels all over, and plant a few dwarf apple trees to try some of the 700+ varieties available, and plan to grow as much as I can from seeds, and as many different varieties as possible.
Also, did you know apples came from Kazakhstan?
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