Growing Small

"Growing Small. How to Manage, Market and Measure Your Way to Retail Success in Just 90 Days! Even if you have no time or money." is a new kind of book that shows small store owners exactly how to take back control of their success, regardless of skill level or budget. It's a practical, no-nonsense playbook filled with case studies and examples curated out of the author's experiences as a consultant to Mom and Pop stores across the country. Growing Small focuses on the real life challenges faced by today's small business owners – and provides a proven process to fix them!

Angel Cicerone, founder and president of Tenant Mentorship, a company that focuses solely on independent retail businesses, has taken the method that has, for years, transformed small shops into high performance operators and created a "how-to" of the process that has helped the majority of her clients achieve a 10-200 percent revenue increase in just 90 days!

The book offers a fresh perspective based on the three principals of success: manage, market and measure. It guides the reader through the process of identifying key issues blocking their success, then helps them create a 90-day plan to reach realistic goals. A complimentary worksheet and plan template are available online to each book purchaser.

First published in 1977, this book—from one of America’s most famous and prolific agricultural writers—became an almost instant classic among homestead gardeners and small farmers. Now fully updated and available once more, Small-Scale Grain Raising offers a entirely new generation of readers the best introduction to a wide range of both common and lesser-known specialty grains and related field crops, from corn, wheat, and rye to buckwheat, millet, rice, spelt, flax, and even beans and sunflowers. More and more Americans are seeking out locally grown foods, yet one of the real stumbling blocks to their efforts has been finding local sources for grains, which are grown mainly on large, distant corporate farms. At the same time, commodity prices for grains—and the products made from them—have skyrocketed due to rising energy costs and increased demand. In this book, Gene Logsdon proves that anyone who has access to a large garden or small farm can (and should) think outside the agribusiness box and learn to grow healthy whole grains or beans—the base of our culinary food pyramid—alongside their fruits and vegetables. Starting from the simple but revolutionary concept of the garden “pancake patch,” Logsdon opens up our eyes to a whole world of plants that we wrongly assume only the agricultural “big boys” can grow. He succinctly covers all the basics, from planting and dealing with pests, weeds, and diseases to harvesting, processing, storing, and using whole grains. There are even a few recipes sprinkled throughout, along with more than a little wit and wisdom. Never has there been a better time, or a more receptive audience, for this book. Localvores, serious home gardeners, CSA farmers, and whole-foods advocates—in fact, all people who value fresh, high-quality foods—will find a field full of information and ideas in this once and future classic.

This fresh look at small groups starts with people and principles rather than program and structure. Stark and Wieland examine why many small-group ministries fall short of their goals, and they offer strategies that start with God's leading and people's needs. Straightforward, informative, and practical, this new organic system works for smaller churches as well as larger ones. Useful for lay leaders, small-group members, and pastors who want people to thrive and develop their spiritual gifts.

Free space for the city gardener might be no more than a cramped patio, balcony, rooftop, windowsill, hanging rafter, dark cabinet, garage, or storage area, but no space is too small or too dark to raise food. With this book as a guide, people living in apartments, condominiums, townhouses, and single-family homes will be able to grow up to 20 percent of their own fresh food using a combination of traditional gardening methods and space-saving techniques such as reflected lighting and container "terracing." Those with access to yards can produce even more. Author R. J. Ruppenthal worked on an organic vegetable farm in his youth, but his expertise in urban and indoor gardening has been hard-won through years of trial-and-error experience. In the small city homes where he has lived, often with no more than a balcony, windowsill, and countertop for gardening, Ruppenthal and his family have been able to eat at least some homegrown food 365 days per year.

How do you make a garden grow? In this playful companion to the popular Tap the Magic Tree and Touch the Brightest Star, you will see how tiny seeds bloom into beautiful flowers. And by tapping, clapping, waving, and more, young readers can join in the action! Christie Matheson masterfully combines the wonder of the natural world with the interactivity of reading. Beautiful collage-and-watercolor art follows the seed through its entire life cycle, as it grows into a zinnia in a garden full of buzzing bees, curious hummingbirds, and colorful butterflies. Children engage with the book as they wiggle their fingers to water the seeds, clap to make the sun shine after rain, and shoo away a hungry snail. Appropriate for even the youngest child, Plant the Tiny Seed is never the same book twice—no matter how many times you read it! And for curious young nature lovers, a page of facts about seeds, flowers, and the insects and animals featured in the book is included at the end. Fans of Press Here, Eric Carle, and Lois Ehlert will find their next favorite book in Plant the Tiny Seed.

The virtues of organic food have long been apparent. But what many people don't realize is that they can grow their own--no matter how small their space. Whether you've got a backyard, rooftop, or patio, or are restricted to window boxes or hanging baskets, the joy and satisfaction of organic gardening can be yours. From planning a garden, to deciding what to plant, to the best methods of chemical-free pest and disease control, this definitive guide will help you get big results from even the tiniest of spaces.