#31 LIZ ZORAB with her book THE SEASONED GARDENER

Liz Zorab is author of the bestselling 'Grounded – A Gardener's Journey to Abundance and Self-Sufficiency'. She spent more than 20 years working with specialist housing charities and in community development, with an emphasis on innovative volunteering practices. An award-winning gardener, she gained an RHS Silver Medal for a community-led garden featured on BBC's 'Gardeners World Live' in 2002. A health crisis led Liz to turn to her life-long passion for gardening and growing food as a career. Liz spent several years transforming her 0.8 acre plot in Monmouthshire into an abundant smallholding. She is now regenerating a tired and over-grazed 4.5 acre site using permaculture practices. On less than an acre, she grows most of the food and drink her family enjoy each year, giving them food security, resilience and increased self-reliance. She enjoys spending time with Mr J (her husband) and her family, watching rugby and creative handicrafts, and has a distinct dislike of housework. Liz regularly writes for Permaculture Magazine, teaches gardening and self-sufficiency skills and encourages thousands of people to take up their trowels and live their dreams through a vibrant YouTube Channel, Liz Zorab – Byther Farm. If you want to dig deeper into the processes of growing your own organic food, self-sufficiency practitioner, Liz Zorab, offers insights to the rhythm and patterns of her gardening year. In this personal gardening journey, she explores seasonal harvests and how the vegetable garden sits within the wider context of the gardening landscape – including weather, microclimates, water cycles, light levels, seasons and the gardener’s personal tastes and preferences. Liz’s salt of the earth approach to life and to the garden and her gentle humour makes The Seasoned Gardener an easily digestible read. She provides hundreds of practical tips, including how-to guides, observations and inspiration for both the beginner and practiced gardener alike. Unlike many gardening books that run from January to December, this book starts in the autumn when harvesting is at its peak. Most of the fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers highlighted in this book are grouped according to when we enjoy them most – at the point of harvest. The Seasoned Gardener will show you how to: Enjoy the abundance of each month of the year Decide which plants are best to grow in your garden Find pleasure in your growing space year-round Avoid the pitfalls of doing too much at once Be creative with your garden resources Make the most of your time and energy Celebrate nature’s productivity as much as your own. This is a journey of experiment and learning that will inspire you to grow tastier food and savour the experience.