The 12-month gardener Simple strategies for extending your growing season

Who says you can'st fool Mother Nature? When it comes to extending gardening seasons, Ashton not only believes it's possible but he has discovered how. Guided by the philosophy that gardening doesn'st have to end when winter begins, Ashton reveals surefire strategies for gardening beyond the warm-weather months involving the construction of weatherproofing devices he calls garden "contraptions": floaters, tunnels, stoop houses, cloches, and cold frames. Many can be built in less than a day, and Ashton provides plans to fit any type of garden, plant material, time schedule, and budget. Using these season extenders, eager gardeners no longer need to rely on store-bought vegetables for sustenance once killing frosts begin. Ashton's enthusiastic yet straightforward approach demystifies climate manipulation techniques, and his clear, easy-to-follow construction instructions will have even the most unhandy handyman or handywoman sawing wood and hammering nails. --Carol Haggas