The Veganic Grower’s Handbook seeks to give the new, amateur, and professional gardening enthusiast all the tools and techniques to be successful in vegan-organic methods. Mirroring the gardening year, this manual delineates garden planning to seed-starting in the early season, to garden preparation and transplanting when the weather warms. Composting and maintenance of seedlings in the heat of summer are discussed, harvesting and post-harvest handling with the cool mornings prevail. Ideas are brought forth in long-term storage and closing down the gardens when the nights delve deep. In addition, The Veganic Grower’s Handbook includes six comprehensive annexes on crop profiles for over seventy different species of fruits, vegetables, and herbs, as well as plant spacing and yield charts, tools and other resources are included. This comprehensive guide is specifically geared to small-scale gardeners and farmers in North America from urban to rural environments that wish to cultivate mindfully and compassionately.
“Back in 2014, when Jimmy helped promote Cowspiracy’s eastern Canadian tour, I learned of the veganic farm project, La Ferme de l’Aube. It was my hope that an eventual book would transpire. By the grace of their (Mélanie and Jimmy’s) efforts, they are spreading the message of veganic growing, and shining the light on the suffering of the old ways of farming and transforming the evolution of small-scale compassionate farming. The Veganic Grower’s Handbook is a step-by-step guidebook to a multitude of tools anyone can use to shift to a completely 100% plant-based system.”—Kip Andersen, co-director of Cowspiracy and What the Health and founder of AUM Films
“Mindful gardening can save the world and the way we garden affects the healthfulness of our food. Jimmy Videle knows this! His book is a guide to feed ourselves in a gentle way that allows other organisms to simply live. It also helps us to be better humans, delve more deeply, and ask questions about even ‘natural’ and ‘organic’ gardening inputs and practices. He helps us understand that when looked at closely, many of the inputs and practices we take for granted actually have a huge impact on our planet. Jimmy shows us that we can eat well, connect with the natural world, and be kind to all living things. What a relief!”—Helen Atthowe, Woodleaf Farm, and author of Farming as If Ecological Relationships Mattered
“Although a great deal of the ink spilled on these pages deals with practices which are ‘merely organic,’ Jimmy Videle also makes convincing arguments for ‘veganic,’ the radical sub-cult of organic to which I belong and which gives the book its’ title. I was particularly interested in following his personal journey of discovery which led him through several tropical and arid environments, eventually landing in Quebec, and en route, documenting his own evolving perspective regarding livestock-based fertility. An especially inspiring (for me) and radical feature of his writing is the veganic approach to pest management. While I embrace the ‘harmless’ ethic, I have not practiced it to the extent he advocates (e.g. exclusionary row covers, etc.), partly due to laziness and lack of labor. Jimmy Videle is not against the idea of species being killed, he simply prefers the natural predators to eat them—after all, for them they are food, all we want is the crop plants and for all beings to thrive. Quite reasonable. I must re-think some things.”—Will Bonsall, Khadighar Farm and author of Essential Guide to Radical, Self-Reliant Gardening
“Is a world without animal exploitation possible? The Veganic Grower’s Handbook shows us that it is. From the first-time urban gardener to the seasoned farmer, this book provides the tools and advice needed to become truly self-sufficient in food . . . Jimmy Videle shows that veganic agriculture is not only possible; it is desirable for the good of the planet and its inhabitants.”—Elise Desaulniers, author and executive director of the Montreal SPCA
“Producing, raising, exploiting, and killing sentient animals for our purposes almost always violates their most fundamental interests. Adopting a vegan lifestyle is therefore morally desirable. Except, of course, that ‘owe implies can.’ Veganism is a requirement of justice only if it is possible to feed ourselves through veganic agriculture. The thorough and very precise work that Jimmy Videle presents in this book is thus of crucial importance. By showing us how to produce healthy food in sufficient quantity and diversity, even in difficult climates such as those of Canada and the United States, he gives us nothing less than the key to avoid causing untold harm to countless animals.”—Valéry Giroux, LLM and PhD of Philosophy, co-publisher of Le Véganisme and L’Antispécisme
“I wish this book had been available back when I was studying organic farming! With his rich knowledge and experience acquired over 20 years of farming, Jimmy Videle shares everything you need to know about the importance of growing food without animal inputs and how to do it. The Veganic Grower’s Handbook covers all aspects of growing produce and gives a head start for anyone interested in growing their own food or starting a commercial farm. For us at the Veganic Agriculture Network, this book is particularly valuable, since it’s a new reference for gardeners and farmers in cold Northern climates. And proof that veganic growing is not only possible in our region, but more ethical, economical and ecological than other farming approaches. We’re grateful to Jimmy for writing this useful and comprehensive resource. His long-time commitment to animals and the planet will have far-reaching benefits for everyone.”—Stéphane Groleau, Veganic Agriculture Network
“Jimmy Videle is a visionary—and one who has the practical knowledge, skills, and insights necessary to bring a beautiful vision to fruition!”—Shelley Harrison, Convener, Humane Party
“The Veganic Grower’s Handbook is a shining example of how we can grow our food while reestablishing biodiversity, treading lightly on the planet, and extending an ethos of kindness to all species. Beyond being a powerful how-to guide for new and experienced growers, it’s a reminder that we’re active participants in the wider ecosystem upon which we all depend.”—Meghan Kelly, Learn Veganic
“The Veganic Grower’s Handbook is an incredibly comprehensive companion to any aspiring or veteran grower alike. The breadth of information covered in the book is astounding and will be a resource returned to often during the years of planting and growing.”—Keegan Kuhn, co-director of Cowspiracy and What the Health, and former veganic farmer
“The ecological and social crises we are facing today can only be addressed from the ground up: by transforming our food systems, what we grow and how we treat the soil. An ever-larger number of people are becoming aware of this and are working towards a transition to small-scale, ecological farming, but very few include animals in their circle of compassion. In fact, as food system change and soil regeneration became hip topics, the myth that ecological farming required animal exploitation served as a buffer against the changes that the animal liberation movement has been pushing for. In maintaining this fundamental status quo in agriculture–the exploitation of other animals–the food and small farming movements have reproduced some of the problems they have purported to solve. The value of this book goes beyond its practical teachings–it is a testament that we can move on from animal exploitation, that veganic methods can yield healthy and abundant food while allowing us to liberate land for rewilding, and that ultimately this world can be one of abundance. Jimmy Videle has written not only a clear and accessible guide for veganic growing, but for a revolution.”—Nassim Nobari, co-founder of Seed the Commons and Veganic World
“As we confront the thorny issue of climate change, we are obligated to look for means of reducing the impact humans have on the environment, especially through conventional, animal-based agriculture. Veganic cultivation emerges as the most planet-friendly solution to growing our food. Drawing upon his rich experiences of both conventional and organic cultivation in several climates, followed by years of veganic cultivation, Jimmy Videle writes persuasively and engagingly about the crucial importance of a whole-system approach that respects the natural world in all its diversity. His book offers a thorough practical guide to anyone wishing to embrace not only a wise but a compassionate lifestyle.”—Catherine Perry, PhD, University of Notre Dame
“The Veganic Grower’s Handbook is an essential resource for independent cruelty-free gardening. Drawing on a quarter century of farming expertise, Jimmy Videle explains how to cultivate healthy ecosystems of edible plants and also clearly details the natural science that makes these methods work. A good choice for those looking to enrich their relationship to plants and the web of life that supports them.”—Margaret Robinson, PhD; Coordinator, Indigenous Studies Program
“After years of encouraging meat and animal derivatives on our plates, we realize the impact on our health and that of the environment. Quietly, a balance is returning where plants are more and more at the heart of what we put in our bodies. The same phenomenon occurs in agriculture, where it is realized that feeding the soil with manure and products of animals is not a healthy source of energy either. The soil also needs veganism to regain shape, health and nutrition for the generations that follow. Growing our own vegetables, in a soil nourished solely by plant organic matter is a time-honored principle and respects current and future life in all forms. Jimmy Videle’s The Veganic Grower’s Handbook cultivates these very ideas. In the name of all living beings, thank you!”—Mariève Savaria, author of La Saison des Lègumes
“This is an exciting new contribution to the practitioner’s literature on veganic production. An experienced grower with conventional, organic, and veganic expertise, Jimmy Videle has responded to the need for accessible, detailed guidance on plant-based cultivation. The handbook is conversational in tone and draws on personal farming experiences and philosophies as well as the research literature to discuss myriad aspects of small-scale, sustainable production. Gardeners and small-scale market farmers will gain not only technical knowledge but also a strong sense of the ways in which veganic growing is based in respect for more-than-human life.”—Mona Seymour, PhD., Loyola Marymount University
“With CO2 emissions escalating, conventional and animal agriculture practices continue to be the dominant drivers. We are fast in need of solid solutions. The Veganic Grower’s Handbook paints a sustainable picture of eliminating exploitation, yet increasing productivity. The potential of small-scale gardening and farming revolutionizes the very way we feed ourselves and nourishes all floral and faunal life in the process. This is an exceptional resource at a critical moment in our history.”—Dave Simon, author of Meatonomic$
“The way that modern day agriculture functions resemble an apocalyptic science-fiction novel. Billions of land animals exploited, lands desertified and waters turned toxic from chemicals and manures. It is past time for a renewal. Jimmy Videle’s, The Veganic Grower’s Handbook is the breath of life that provides the tools, techniques, insight and vision for human change through small-scale fruit, vegetable and herb growing, that the entirety of Earth’s floral and faunal collective deserves.”—Casey Taft, PhD, Boston University School of Medicine, vegan author and publisher
“I thoroughly enjoyed reading Jimmy Videle’s The Veganic Grower’s Handbook: Cultivating Fruits, Vegetables and Herbs From Urban Backyard to Rural Farmyard. It provides an elegant solution to the enormous impact of industrial animal and plant agriculture on the environment. Instead of waging war on microbes, insects and animals who are seen as the enemy of agriculture, he shows that farming can be done coexisting peacefully with the many species who keep our planet alive and vibrant. He has taken organic agriculture critical step further and removed all animal products, resulting in the veganic approach. Veganic agriculture eliminates the cruel exploitation of farmed animals. Healthy food, healthy humans and a healthy planet. Thank you, Jimmy, for sharing your journey that makes the world a more compassionate place.”—Liz White, leader, Animal Protection Party of Canada
