Unheated Greenhouses

Elliot Coleman

Eliot Coleman, renowned in the organic farming sphere, is celebrated for his innovative techniques in year-round vegetable production. His work, especially at the Four Season Farm in Maine, demonstrates sustainable methods that enable vegetables to thrive across all seasons. His influence extends through his educational contributions and practical applications, inspiring many, including myself, to adopt and share his approaches to gardening and farming, particularly through sharing insights from books to the many YouTube videos where he has presented his unique gardening system.

Eliot Coleman is fascinating. I’d love to know 1/2 of what he does about gardening. I have watched many of his videos and highly recommend them. The one I have linked to here talks about winter gardening, but there are many more. I also purchased his book The Winter Harvest Handbook.

Mid September he plants his cold hardy spinach. This allows the plant to have enough of a root system to replace leaves he harvests in the winter. His winter schedule for spinach is once every three weeks. He is in Zone 5, just like us. He has two row covers.

OYR Frugal & Sustainable Organic Gardening

Another interesting video to watch about winter greens is this video from OYR Frugal & Sustainable Organic Gardening. He shows a great inexpensive way to build a double row cover for a raised bed. His slow easy explanations and design ideas are worth exploring. It is the same philosophy that I use in my pit greenhouse – two row covers. But I have the heat of the earth to help where his design does not. It is another way to harvest in the winter.

What I learned

Here is a short video explaining what I have learned.  I hope it helps.