Cover Image: Edible Houseplants

Edible Houseplants

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me preview this book for an honest review.

This book provided some great knowledge about what could be grown in ones home and home best to grow the plants. I found encouragement in finding more plants that I could cultivate and actually eat. Thank you for the research, ideas, and suggestions. A great resource for indoor gardeners.

Was this review helpful?

Absolute coolest book ever! Teach me how to grow my own coffee and chocolate at home? I'm sold! ❤️❤️❤️

Okay, other than my two favorite things on earth (besides my family, of course!), this book is full of great information on how to grow citrus fruits, many other tropical fruits, tea, sugar and spices in the comfort of your own home, even if you live in a cold climate! They explain how to get started from the bottom up, maintaining and taking care of your plants, and taking care of pests and other problems. The pictures and images are beautiful. Definitely a must-have if you are interested in any type of house plants and/or gardening!

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this advanced review copy (ARC) in exchange for my honest review on the book!

Was this review helpful?

A cool and informative read that really explains the possibilities for edible houseplants and how you can grow them. I found it to be full of helpful how-tos and recipes for the prospective fruit you will grow. The best part is that the information is broken down clearly and concisely, while making you excited for all the options available to you.

Was this review helpful?

I received a free review copy of this on NetGalley. It is already on my book wish list. I very much need a copy of this to keep long term. This is a glorious reference book for how to properly care for fruiting tropical plants as container/porch plants. You get a discussion of varietals, feeding schedules, pruning instructions, and recipes for each plant. Honestly, if you can look through this and not want to have lemons and guavas in your living room, I don't think we can be friends, because I already got my lemon tree.

Was this review helpful?

This is such an interesting book with lots of useful and interesting information about growing edible plants indoors.
I was amazed to see the array of plant options to grow in your house, I am not the best plant owner, but I am feeling inspired to try a coffee plant or how cool would it be to have a cinnamon plant which the book reassuringly tells me is easy to grow!

Was this review helpful?

Lots of good information, but growing conditions differ from place to place. I wish they had addressed the zones more.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. A very informative and useful book about edible houseplants

Was this review helpful?

My review: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Edible Houseplants is a guide for growing edible Houseplants or with amazing flowers.

There are suggestions for beginners, hints and tips on what to grown where and information on pests, how to grow them and potential problems 

There are lots of photos of the plants, the fruit and the flowers. 

This is a lovely book if you want to work out how to grow things like citrus, coffee plants, avocado and many more!

I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Storey Publishing.

Was this review helpful?

I always wanted an Orange tree in my house but never knew how to make it possible, but knowing the pruning technique here I realize I was wrong at some place there.

I really loved the 'Tropical Fruit Basket'. I wonder how come there is a pineapple guava? But I have eaten most of the mentioned fruits here. I must go with avocado too as it is so much expensive compared to other fruits available in market.

This is a lovely guide on the edible plants and how to nurture them and what else we could have/made from fruits if not just to eat. I believe I must spread words, now when I have read it all, to make me a proven horticulturist. LOL.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy of Edible Houseplants by Laurelynn G. Martin and Byron E. Martin. All opinions are my own.

This lovely book covers different houseplants and the different fruits possible. Such a fun read and the photos are beautiful. This would make a great gift too!

Was this review helpful?

The author, who is the co-owner of Logee's Plants in Connecticut, describes plants which produce edible fruit and can be grown indoors. They vary from the familiar lemons and limes, to the unfamiliar Buddha’s Fingers and Acerola Cherry. There are both color illustrations and photographs accompanying each description, and warnings of what problems might arise, such as mealybugs or scale, and how best to address them. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Was this review helpful?

I love the idea of having houseplants that help to fuel your kitchen! One of my favorite houseplants is my lime tree! Watching it grow is my favorite thing, that’s increased by using the limes for cocktails and recipes! Edible Houseplants is a great guide to growing houseplants that seconds as gardens! I loved this book and found it incredibly informative and interesting!

Was this review helpful?

I never knew about most of the plants I read about. So interesting read. A lot of helpful information and some that you would not think would be.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for the eGalley to review!

I'm honestly in love with this book. It's exquisitely comprehensive compared to other books on the market (and even the Internet) and has everything you need to know about the plants in it, like common name(s), scientific name (and pronunciation), history, place of origin and other particulars like average growth size and growing season(s), growing conditions and care, potential problems, and even recipes! I also love love love that it has different photos (and lovely illustrations) so you can recognize the plant, its blossoms, and its fruit. The layout of each entry is so good, consistent, and easy to follow. The entire book is also split by category, with each plant entry going in alphabetical order, so it's easy to find the plant you're looking for. It even tells you which plants are good for beginners!

I absolutely want it not just for our library because our patrons just adore growing their own food, but for myself, because I've been considering growing some of these plants for a while and this is simply the most perfect guide I've come across. 100% a recommend.

Was this review helpful?

The cover initially caught my interest but I was surprised to find the content to be focused primarily on fruit-bearing plants, mainly citrus and exotic types. The cover and title sort of through me off. For instance I thought based on the title and imagery that I would be learning about common edible plants like herbs, leafy greens, and flowers. The subtext font and size below the title gets lost in the mix. The title should read “Edible Tropical Houseplants”.

This book is full color with lots of imagery. I do not recommend reading it on the Paperwhite Kindle as it does not translate well for black/white. This would be a great book for someone interested in exotic/tropical plants that live in an area that doesn’t require excess heating/cooling during the winter or summer. Most, if not all plants featured in the book require a temperature-controlled environment. Also, it would have been great to see a map for the zones for each plant or a guided instruction blurb on how to best locate zones based on readers' location. With that said, I think this is a good coffee table read with some fun recipes and interesting facts about each plant.

Thank you, NetGalley and Storey Publishing for the advanced ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

I loved this book. Its great for beginners. I have a few of the plants in this this book and it was good read about them and learn more about them.

Was this review helpful?

Beautifully set out with stunning images, this is a great beginner's guide to growing your own edible, tropical plants, especially for people who don't have much space. It's not for herbs and veggies as such, so if that's what you are looking for, this isn't the book for you.

4 stars

Was this review helpful?

An excellent reference book. Helpful in an age where tiktok has a class of influencers who are showing people there are different edible plants in the the world than what is found in our grocery stores. This updated reference guide is sure to appeal to younger generations with it's useful, user friendly information and layout.

Was this review helpful?

Edible Houseplants by Laurelynn G. Martin is an excellent reference book for anyone who wants to grow their own citrus, coffee, vanilla, and other tropical plants indoors. It is particularly useful for beginners who may not have outdoor space to garden in. The book provides complete care guidelines and colorful photos for 46 food-bearing plants, including lemons, limes, grapefruit, cherries, olives, passion fruit, and papaya. Each fruit receives a two-page spread, with information that is broken down into easily consumable pieces.

The book is broken down into five parts, with Part 1 (Citrus Fruits) and Part 2 (The Rest of the Tropical Fruit Basket) making up the bulk of the book. In fact, 80% of the fruits listed in the book are covered in these two sections. Part 3 (Coffee, Tea, and Chocolate), Part 4 (Sugar and Spices), and Part 5 (Plant Care) are smaller portions of the book, and I was a bit disappointed with this because not everyone wants to grow entire citrus trees in their home. However, there are many books that already discuss what herbs can be grown indoors, so I don't blame the Martins for leaving those out.

While this book covers a wide variety of edible house plants, there are many that are left out. The book heavily features citrus and tropical fruits. This book is best suited for beginners. it's a great starting point for those interested in indoor gardening and will provide a solid foundation of knowledge. The information is presented in a clear and concise manner that won't overwhelm those just starting their gardening journey. However, experts or those studying botany or similar subjects may find that this book does not offer much new information. Also, this book probably isn't the best for those in growing zones 9 and 10, as there will likely be a lot of overlap between the plants in this book and outdoor gardening books for those zones.

It's worth noting that Laurelynn and Byron Martin are the owners of Logee's Plants for Home & Garden. This store is pretty well-known within the plant community and has a positive reputation and reliable quality of plants and information.

If I were to suggest any changes, I would've loved for the watercolor-style artwork of each fruit to be bigger on their respective page.

Overall, I would recommend Edible Houseplants to beginning hobbyists, public libraries, and those in larger city areas where typical outdoor gardening space may not be available.

Was this review helpful?

This book was a reissue of an earlier publication. Unfortunately the electronic version was not readable, as the digital conversion scrambled the text.

Was this review helpful?