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Cool Season Gardener: Extend the Harvest, Plan Ahead, and Grow Vegetables Year-Round
"...this guide is a must-have reference for any vegetable gardener working in the region's unique maritime climate." -- Caroline Bristol, The American Gardener magazine
"Along comes Bill Thorness, beautifully encouraging gardeners to take their edibles to the next level." —Jill Lightner, Editor, Edible Seattle
How would you like to serve your own vegetables on Thanksgiving, or a fresh-from-the-garden salad at the winter solstice? Or how about collards for Christmas, leeks on New Year's, and lovely red beets for Valentine's Day, all right from your own garden? If you live in a mild climate, you can, without much trouble, by practicing winter, or "cool-season," gardening.
Cool Season Gardener is longtime gardening writer Bill Thorness's friendly guide to maintaining your garden year-round in maritime climates that don't get hard winters. He shows you how to keep the garden in production in cold months, practice succession planning for sowing and transplanting, plant cover crops, utilize homemade garden structures, and more.
Even the most avid gardeners might be surprised to learn all the benefits of cool season gardening—the fact that it is often less work than summer gardening due to slower growth and less maintenance, or the seasonal bonus of having fewer pests. Not to mention that year-round gardening will create substantial savings on your food bill, while at the same time yielding fresh, homegrown produce on your table every month of the year. And Thorness wants you to know it's easier than you think!
"Along comes Bill Thorness, beautifully encouraging gardeners to take their edibles to the next level." —Jill Lightner, Editor, Edible Seattle
How would you like to serve your own vegetables on Thanksgiving, or a fresh-from-the-garden salad at the winter solstice? Or how about collards for Christmas, leeks on New Year's, and lovely red beets for Valentine's Day, all right from your own garden? If you live in a mild climate, you can, without much trouble, by practicing winter, or "cool-season," gardening.
Cool Season Gardener is longtime gardening writer Bill Thorness's friendly guide to maintaining your garden year-round in maritime climates that don't get hard winters. He shows you how to keep the garden in production in cold months, practice succession planning for sowing and transplanting, plant cover crops, utilize homemade garden structures, and more.
Even the most avid gardeners might be surprised to learn all the benefits of cool season gardening—the fact that it is often less work than summer gardening due to slower growth and less maintenance, or the seasonal bonus of having fewer pests. Not to mention that year-round gardening will create substantial savings on your food bill, while at the same time yielding fresh, homegrown produce on your table every month of the year. And Thorness wants you to know it's easier than you think!
- GenresGardening
176 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
About the author
Bill Thorness
10 books13 followersBill Thorness's most recent book is All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War a memoir where the author crosses continents and history to retrace his father’s steps on the battlefields of World War II. All Roads Lead to Rome (December 2024, University of Nebraska Press) was named an Independent Book Awards 2025 finalist.
A Seattle-based author, editor and freelance writer, Bill currently focuses on travel, lifestyle and history.
Visit Bill's website billthorness.com and read his Substack newsletter Annotations.
Memoir:
All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War
Join his Goodreads book group related to WWII, focused on the First Special Service Force, the subject of his memoir.
Cycling:
Bill's bicycling guidebook, Cycling the Pacific Coast: The Complete Guide from Canada to Mexico (Mountaineers Books, 2017) was the culmination of three years of research and writing. His first cycling book, Biking Puget Sound: 60 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans, (Mountaineers Books, 2014) is the second edition of his popular cycling guide that was first published in 2007.
Gardening:
Bill also is the author of two gardening books: Cool Season Gardener: Extend the Harvest, Plan Ahead, and Grow Vegetables Year Round (Skipstone Press, 2013) and Edible Heirlooms: Heritage Vegetables for the Maritime Garden (Skipstone Press, 2009).
Other work:
Bill is also the co-author of the biography POWER: How J.D. Power III Became the Auto Industry's Adviser, Confesor, and Eyewitness to History (Fenwick, 2013).
Bill gives presentations on edible gardening regularly around the Northwest, and is active in many gardening organizations, including Master Gardeners, Plant Amnesty and the King County Seed Lending Library.
He writes for regional print and online publications and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, the Northwest Editors Guild, the Pacific Northwest Writers Association and the Authors Guild.
A Seattle-based author, editor and freelance writer, Bill currently focuses on travel, lifestyle and history.
Visit Bill's website billthorness.com and read his Substack newsletter Annotations.
Memoir:
All Roads Lead to Rome: Searching for the End of My Father's War
Join his Goodreads book group related to WWII, focused on the First Special Service Force, the subject of his memoir.
Cycling:
Bill's bicycling guidebook, Cycling the Pacific Coast: The Complete Guide from Canada to Mexico (Mountaineers Books, 2017) was the culmination of three years of research and writing. His first cycling book, Biking Puget Sound: 60 Rides from Olympia to the San Juans, (Mountaineers Books, 2014) is the second edition of his popular cycling guide that was first published in 2007.
Gardening:
Bill also is the author of two gardening books: Cool Season Gardener: Extend the Harvest, Plan Ahead, and Grow Vegetables Year Round (Skipstone Press, 2013) and Edible Heirlooms: Heritage Vegetables for the Maritime Garden (Skipstone Press, 2009).
Other work:
Bill is also the co-author of the biography POWER: How J.D. Power III Became the Auto Industry's Adviser, Confesor, and Eyewitness to History (Fenwick, 2013).
Bill gives presentations on edible gardening regularly around the Northwest, and is active in many gardening organizations, including Master Gardeners, Plant Amnesty and the King County Seed Lending Library.
He writes for regional print and online publications and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, the Northwest Editors Guild, the Pacific Northwest Writers Association and the Authors Guild.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 24, 2013
If you are a gardener the Pacific Northwest, this is a must read.
February 14, 2021
Very informative. I think this will be a great resource as I learn to expand my garden. I like that the information is local and focused on using all of the seasons.
May 7, 2021
Good, useful ideas on season extension. Very well designed book!
March 10, 2013
I received this book through the First Reads giveaway program on Goodreads.
It's easier then you think to have fresh, homegrown produce on your table every month of the year! This book is an awesome addition to any gardeners collection.
It's easier then you think to have fresh, homegrown produce on your table every month of the year! This book is an awesome addition to any gardeners collection.
March 25, 2013
~First Reads Winner~
I currently live in a hot climate, but I am moving to a cold climate, so I was super happy to win this! Lots of good tips and will be very helpful. My only 'wish' is that the pictures would have been in color. Other than it was awesome! Can't wait to put it to good use.
I currently live in a hot climate, but I am moving to a cold climate, so I was super happy to win this! Lots of good tips and will be very helpful. My only 'wish' is that the pictures would have been in color. Other than it was awesome! Can't wait to put it to good use.
March 26, 2013
Overall, I thought this was a very well written book. The only reason I didn't give it five stars was because I thought it was going to be aimed at beginning gardener's. It is not. This book is meant for people who already garden, but are trying to find ways to improve by growing year-round.
March 23, 2013
I won this book on Goodreads. This book is great I plan on doing some of these tactics this year and my dad wants to read this book because he loves to garden.
April 6, 2013
Absolutely fantastic. Thank you so much to the author for this one I believe it will be helping me greatly with my first garden here very soon. Won via Goodreads Giveaway.
May 8, 2013
I won this in a Goodreads Giveaway.
Very informative.
Very informative.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews