The combination of wanting to eat healthy and escalating food prices has made growing your own veggies very attractive. No matter if you have a yard where you can devote space to a garden or live in an apartment with a deck, raising your own vegetables is a possibility and perhaps now is the time to give it a try.

The Veggie Gardener’s Answer Book (Storey Publishing, $14.95 paper) by Barbara Ellis deals with every stage in the life of a vegetable garden. From planning and soil improvement to planting and pest control, the author shares plenty of tips that will not only ensure you produce healthy plants and maximum yields but also have an enjoyable horticultural experience.

Focusing on the 20 basic veggies from tomatoes, cucumbers, leafy plants and vine crops to eggplant, onions, and potatoes, the author’s question-and-answer format is easy to follow and allows readers to focus on whatever concerns they might have about a particular type of vegetable.

For organic gardeners, the informative section on “Pests, Diseases and Other Problems” will enable them to tackle these situations without resorting to pesticides.

Whether it’s knowing when it’s time to harvest a particular veggie or how to successfully create a container garden, Ellis provides all the information you’ll need to be a “do-it-yourselfer.”

If you’d rather just look at your plants rather than consume them and are looking for some low maintenance garden ideas, Hardy Succulents (Storey, $19.95 paper) by Gwen Moore Kelaidis opens up the world of these hardy plants.

With their distinctive shapes, colors and textures, succulents can bring a new dimension to deck, patio or garden. Not only does Kelaidis discuss the options available when selecting these durable plants, but she also explains practical care procedures and creative ways of grouping them.