Um, yeah, it’s a real thing. August being the time of year that you realize that you planted way too much zucchini and failed to remember (again) just how much you end up with. According to internet sources “Sneak Some Zucchini on Your Neighbour’s Porch Day” (I’ve Canadianized the spelling) was created by Tom and Ruth Roy and it’s an annual event. In this day and age, ringing the front bell at your neighbour’s might be more germane than actual sneaking … but the spirit is in the right place.

Backyard gardening is all the rage these days. Here’s a few books on the whys and hows of food and food cultivation:

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: a year of food life by Barbara Kingsolver

Apples to Oysters: a Food Lover’s Tour of Canadian Farms by Margaret Webb

Eat Here: Reclaiming Homegrown Pleasures in a Global Supermarket by Brian Halweil

Fair Shares for All: A Memoir of Family and Food by John Haney

Food of a Younger Land: a Portrait of American Food — Before… by Mark Kurlansky

Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen by Anna Lappé and Bryant Terry

Harvest for Hope: a Guide to Mindful Eating by Jane Goodall

Second Nature: a Gardener’s Education by Michael Pollan