book data
135 ratings,
4.39
average rating, 29 reviews
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published
October 1st 1999
(first published 1992)
by Chelsea Green Publishing Company
binding
Paperback, 234 pages
isbn
1890132276
(isbn13: 9781890132279)
description
If you love the joys of eating home-garden vegetables but always thought those joys had to stop at the end of summer, this book is for you. Eliot Cole...more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 291)
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avg 4.39
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in August, 2008
recommends it for:
green thumbs
This book is friggin' great. Coleman outlines the basics of the four-season harvest method; namely, composting, the outdoor garden, the covered garden, and the underground garden (or root cellar). His explanations are clear and detailed, and the wonderful illustrations provide a great working model for readers interested in tackling some of the construction projects Coleman describes.
What I particularly loved about this book is Coleman's dedication to simplicity. Through careful pla...more
What I particularly loved about this book is Coleman's dedication to simplicity. Through careful pla...more
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recommends it for:
Lovers of fresh veggies in the winter months
Eliot Coleman has mastered the art of season extension in the bitter cold regions of northern New England. The book breaks down several techniques for growing vegetables under cover to enjoy throughout the winter. There's also a great section with a complete description of each vegetable along with several facts for growing with rotations, cover crops, and soil amendments. Great book for any home gardener.
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A very practical (and entertaining!) book with lots of useful information and time-saving steps for those of us northern folk who want fresh garden produce all year long. The author is from Maine and grows salad greens in a simple and inexpensive cold frame all winter long. The book is especially helpful about choosing hardy winter seed varieties from both local and european traditions.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in March, 2008
You really can grow foods all year round no matter where you live. This book guides you in determining which vegetables grow best in your local climate, and when to plant and harvest them. It is comprehensive and very well organized--a great help in developing and managing a simple and balanced garden. I like this guys style--simple, organized, well thought-out, and earth-friendly.
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I got really excited when first reading this book, about the prospects of greenhouse growing in Michigan during the winter. That is until someone reminded me how cloudy MI is during the winter...so I did some research, and sure enough, the part of Maine the author lives in has more sunny days than the US average in winter, whereas Michigan is among the cloudiest of all areas, with sunny days far below the national average. It's still a good book, but I think the author should've made as much a p...more
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Read in January, 2005
This book is an excellent resource for both the summer gardener and the year-round gardener. Coleman accompanies easy-to-read instructions and detailed illustrations with the heartfelt and comical experiences of his own gardening efforts.
I especially enjoyed the historical research into old-fashioned and forgotten vegetables, the use of cold frames, root cellars and other old-world low-tech solutions. Most of his suggestions can be followed with a minimum of expense at first, and...more
I especially enjoyed the historical research into old-fashioned and forgotten vegetables, the use of cold frames, root cellars and other old-world low-tech solutions. Most of his suggestions can be followed with a minimum of expense at first, and...more
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06/17/09
UConnCo-op
added it
I'm not a serious enough vegetable gardener to put Coleman's advice into practice but I dream that some day I too will be growing lettice and carrots in winter. If we all followed his lead, we'd be healthier and our grocery bills would be diminished. Suzy S
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Read in March, 2009
Probably the most exciting gardening book I've read. The only down side is that now my husband is planning on buying ducks, enlarging our compost area and turning even more of our yard into a vegetable nursrey.
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Read in June, 2009
This book has inspired me to grow salad greens all winter long. I learned so much. I would highly reccommend it to anyone wanting to learn how to extend their harvest no matter what climate they live in.
Read in January, 2004
Great tips for building and using a greenhouse.
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03/18/09
Annette
is currently reading it
Read in March, 2009
reading on my Kindle
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Read in October, 2008
Bend your mind around this: instead of extending the growing season, extend the harvest season. Doesn't sound like much, but it's the difference between putting extra expense and energy into heating a place to grow foods out of season -- and just protecting what you've planted in late summer and early fall so that you can harvest it all winter. Genius! It's a little late in the year for me to start trying this, but I'm going to have to find a copy for myself and plan for next year.
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Read in January, 2006
This book is quite inspiring. There are so many great ideas for extending the harvest into the fall and winter, and also starting earlier in the season. The planting tables by zone are quite useful. Coleman really seems to know what he is doing and his tone is intelligent yet not overbearing or snobbish. This is a great resource for anyone wanting to get more out of their garden!
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Read in February, 2009
My new gardening plan--forget summer gardens here in the San Luis Valley! I'm going to eat fresh all year! (And during the summer I'll buy from the farmer's market). Coleman really makes you feel you can do this.
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Read in May, 2007
I'm a novice gardener--all about growing vegetables--and was intrigued by the ideas here to grow food throughout the year. The author is in coastal Maine (I think), also zone 5, like us in upstate NY, and had great suggestions based on travel through Europe--particularly France--for how to harvest vegetables even in the winter.
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2 comments
truly a classic. my only comment: planting-date matrix has probably adjusted since publication as global warming has altered first-frost dates. hopefully, whomever would reference these would do their research or recognize this. otherwise, an engaging and useful book.
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Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
Gardeners
This is a really helpful book if you are trying to garden and grow your food year round. It talks about techniques to make it possible in a variety of circumstances, gives some history on year-round gardening, and has good charts for planting recommendations.
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Read in September, 2008
A good how-to explanation about making traditional and cold frame vegetable growing work best you. If anything, the pure density of information is a bit overwhelming. That said, I can see having this book as an on-shelf reference.
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Read in May, 2008
Want to grow a green thumb in the sub-arctic of New England? This book will tell you how...for mere hundreds of dollars, you can grow one head of lettuce. No, actually, this book rocks!
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