Reading with Ranger Robby Astrove

Ranger Robby Astrove came to the InTown nursery to talk to our native plant gardeners about their gardens, native plants, all things beautiful, low maintenance, wildlife friendly, and edible.

Robby's table was full of books about native trees, granitic outcrop plants and food forests. I thought I would share his selections, some of you may find the resources worth exploring.

Tree Facts and Folklore:

Dan Williams' book has concise line drawings to illustrate the details of each tree, and a solid chunk of information for each species. As you can see from all of the flags at the top of the book, our Ranger friend finds this book very useful.

Information on traditional uses of native plants is always sparse at best, I am looking forward to adding this as a reference book in my library.

Guide to the Plants of Granitic Outcrops

By William H. Murdy & Eloise Brown Carter. This is an out of print book, but it is a beauty. Each page has a color portrait of a plant species that occurs on the granitic outcrops, along with notes about their ecology.

Robby said it is out of print, makes me want to do a web search. (Yes, I have a thing for books...)

Guide to the Plants of the Granitic Outcrops by William H Murdy and M Eloise Brown Carter

Uncommon Fruits Worthy of Attention

This gardener's guide has practical information on gardening with unusual fruit trees and shrubs, many of them native to the Southeast.

About Ranger Robby Astrove:

Robby is the Park Ranger at the Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve, and leads facilitated walks and programming to educate both children and adults about the strange and beautiful granitic ecosystems of the park.

When he’s not working at Arabia Mountain, he is active in the local food movement of the Atlanta Metro Area and contributes as an educator, advocate, and community organizer. In support of the local food cause, Astrove has helped plant edible landscaping and fruit trees in community gardens, urban farms, parks, schools, libraries, and churches. Astrove's social enterprise Fruit Forward Orchards provides fruit tree orchards, horticultural training, and education to people living in Atlanta’s food desert communities.