Cool Springs Press – serie

* 2025 National Outdoor Book Award Winner, Outdoor Adventure Guides Category *A unique, welcoming guide for the ultimate outdoor hobby.Axes, woodchopping, and fire: it can all seem intimidating. But the truth is that with the proper knowledge and technique, they are safe, fun, sustainable passions. What’s more, times have changed. In the past, you may have seen guides that relegated women to organizing and stacking wood—focusing on men as the true outdoorspeople. Yet everyone is capable of chopping with skill and making fires. Nicole Maple Coenen (nicole_coenen) has made her name (and 5M+ followers) with exactly this message. The techniques and lessons in this book showcase strength and will empower you to find the same in yourself.Axe in Hand teaches the history and benefits of woodchopping and woodburning as opposed to other energy and heat sources. You can save money, have a lower carbon footprint, or simply use it as a way to form new social connections. You’ll also find:The history and anatomy of axes themselves, providing you with a thorough, supportive body of knowledge with which you can choose your own axe to begin your woodchopping journey.Comprehensive tutorials on how to chop wood, including stances, hand position, and mechanics of woodchopping, allowing you to begin as soon as you feel comfortable.Choosing and sourcing wood, including how to source, sustainable sourcing, estimating, and dealing with sap/pitch and fatwood.How to restore and re-handle an old axe.Instructions for stacking, storing, and seasoning wood, including information on building a perfect place to store wood and a variety of stacking patterns.Burn science and DIY firestarters to use in any situation.Stacking for fire, including log cabin, teepee, cone, pyramid, and Swedish stacks.This comprehensive guide to woodchopping and outdoor living will bring you closer to nature and assist you in developing strength and confidence. No matter your entry point, Nicole is sure to inspire and educate anyone ready to pick up an axe.

Beauty, charm, and simplicity are the hallmarks of the Scandinavian planting techniques featured in Containers in the Garden.*Winner of the GardenComm 2023 Laurel Media Awards Gold Award in the Book Publisher/Producer General Readership Category*Celebrity gardener and Danish floral designer Claus Dalby shares his signature container gardening style in this gorgeously illustrated book. His distinctive use of a single plant species in each pot, with dozens of planted pots collected together, creates elegant and eye-catching garden displays. Partnered with an abundance of textures and often a monochromatic color palette, Claus’s container gardens change with the seasons. By combining flower and foliage colors with beautiful pottery and layered displays, the results are nothing short of extraordinary.In Containers in the Garden, the English-language version of his top-selling Danish gardening book, Claus shares his best-kept secrets so that you, too, can create the container garden of your dreams. Season by season and color by color, you’ll learn how to plant, organize, tend, and share your potted plantings. Whether your display is on the front steps or the back patio, the simple yet bold design methods found here create unique garden features that are a joy to behold.The breathtaking photography found within, coupled with Claus’s descriptive and personal text, features:  Early season container plantings of tulips, primroses, narcissus, and other spring-flowering beautiesLush summer pots, overflowing with dahlias, roses, hydrangea, and foxglovesColorful and textural foliage-only containers to add structure and interest to the collectionUnusual container plants such as spikemosses, wintergreen, oxalises, and even edible plantsTropical beauties bring a summer explosion, including cannas, Brugmansia, and hibiscusAutumnal fireworks of bronze, gold, and rust round out the seasonal displayStep inside Claus Dalby’s Danish garden, and find ideas and inspiration for bringing a bit of lykke and hygge to your home with Containers in the Garden.Also by Claus Dalby:The Cottage Garden and The Container Kitchen Garden

In Happy Plants, Happy You, author Kamili Bell Hill of @PlantBlerd shows you that spending quality time with your plants is spending quality time with yourself.Houseplants are so much more than a living decorative accent for your home or a relaxing hobby, and caring for houseplants should not be a mindless task. Instead, it’s an opportunity to check in with yourself as you check in with your plants. You’ll learn how houseplants can help you avoid burnout and bring a healthy focus to your own self-care. As it turns out, when you tend to your houseplants, you’re also tending to yourself. Houseplants have a lot of lessons to teach about relationships and the importance of a little give and take, including how to focus on the ones who love you back and how—like getting rid of a dead leaf or a mealybug—sometimes you gotta cut bait and bail on relationships that are bringing you down. Author Kamili Bell Hill used houseplants to exit the stress highway that was overtaking her life and she knows they can do the same for you. Easy houseplant-care tips to help build your confidence in growing, combined with wise and witty words on everything from managing “devil-spawn fungus gnats” to making your houseplant leaves shine like the top of the Chrysler Building, Happy Plants, Happy You is part self-exploration, part houseplant handbook. In a nutshell, it’s a plant-based roadmap to a happier you. You’ll get the lowdown on:  How to choose the right plants for you as a person, not just for your growing conditionsAdvice on avoiding “vampire relationships” with plants (and people!) that suck you dryA wish list of the best tools for houseplant parents How to date several plants before settling on the best ones for youThe art of letting go of things that aren’t thrivingGiving up on the illusion of control—and being totally okay with itAs your plants grow, you will too. Houseplants are a guilt-free path to peace, and the result of stepping into an intentional plant-care/self-care routine will be happy plants and a happy you.

Have you ever faced water-use restrictions and worried about how you can still grow a beautiful, productive landscape? Let The Water-Smart Garden show you how! As freshwater shortages increasingly strike regions around the globe, it’s more important than ever to employ water-conserving practices in the garden. Whether your landscape is filled with shrubs and perennials or fruits and vegetables, in The Water-Smart Garden, you’ll learn dozens of techniques to limit water use while growing a gorgeous and thriving garden. Not only will you learn how to make smart plant choices and improve the water-holding capacity of your soil, you’ll learn xeriscaping techniques, drought-tolerant growing tips, and plant care advice to make the most of low-water situations.Also includes information on:Harvesting and redistributing rainwater in cisterns and rain barrelsEmploying methods like ollas and drip irrigation to target water directly to plant rootsBeing more water-efficient in the vegetable garden by using mulches and targeted irrigationPlanting containers that require less-frequent watering Replacing a lawn with more drought-resilient plants Building swales and berms to redirect water to where it’s neededAuthor and dry-gardening horticulturist Noelle Johnson of @az.plant.lady makes it easy to help save this precious resource and still have a resilient, attractive, and low-maintenance landscape.

The 10-Minute Gardener is all about small efforts with a big impact. Learn quick-and-simple gardening tactics that let you have a garden and a life.If you’ve ever uttered the words “I don’t have time to garden,” this is the book for you. The 10-Minute Gardener is filled with practical, surprising, and efficient strategies that enable you to grow the veggie garden of your dreams, one minute at a time. You’ll learn how to develop your own personal autopilot system, filled with little “cheats” to help you grow more food in less time. Broken down into the time required for each task, you’ll find to-dos that take 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 8 minutes, 10 minutes, and even a handful of 30-minute tasks for the weekend, all organized by the season. A few of the “insider tips” you’ll learn from author and popular YouTube garden creator CaliKim include how to:  Develop a 5-minute morning garden ritual you can complete with coffee in-handThrow a “pest prevention party” by employing a few simple 3-minute tactics Tackle a season’s worth of weeds with help from friends and family in just a few short minutesEncourage more blooms by implementing a lunch-break deadheading routineSow more seeds by developing a succession plan that takes less than 5 minutesBring time efficiency into everything from saving seeds and staking tomatoes to pruning herbs and watering potsSet a once-a-week, 10-minute evening routine to keep the garden looking—and producing—its best   When all you have is a few minutes to spare, this is how to grow a fruitful vegetable garden. Complete beginners are welcome, but experienced gardeners will also glean plenty of useful time-saving strategies. Time is precious, especially for those of us doing it all (Kids! House! Pets! Job!). Learn how to use your limited gardening time in the most effective way possible in The 10-Minute Gardener.

* New York Times Bestseller ** USA TODAY Bestseller ** Independent Press Bestseller *Concrete Botany is a gritty, kick-in-the-guts look at the ecological disturbance humans have caused and the resilience of the plants living amongst it.Delivered in his raw and unapologetic yet botanically accurate tone, Joey Santore—the unforgettable host of Crime Pays but Botany Doesn’t—offers an often unsettling view of human-caused ecological destruction and its impact on the natural ecosystems our very lives depend on. The choices of modern civilization have led to a f***ed-up planet, scraped bare and covered in concrete and invasive species. We’ve wiped out entire ecosystems, moved invasive plants to new continents where they don’t belong, and, in a few hundred years, we’ve managed to muck up the intricate balance of a planet that has been evolving for eons. The consequences of our actions are now at our doorstep, ready to strike a match.But not all is lost. In this groundbreaking examination of plants and their role in the Anthropocene (the age of human disturbance), we see light through the cracks in the concrete and learn that humanity’s course correction starts with an understanding of plant ecology. With this knowledge comes the realization that the lives of humans and plants are interconnected in ways humans cannot live without. Plants are the base of every terrestrial ecosystem on the planet, and their presence can heal the damage humanity has caused. Our willingness to restore native plant communities and the biodiversity they support (starting in our immediate surroundings) is an essential first step in the right direction. While returning every abandoned brownfield and old rail corridor into a native plant–filled, fully restored ecosystem may be out of reach for the average citizen, fostering the native ecology and biodiversity of our own backyards is not. Concrete Botany is ultimately about how the choices we make as individuals can help ensure humanity’s survival on a very disturbed and rapidly changing planet.

Create a regenerative, self-sustaining landscape where plants, people, and wildlife all thrive with this practical guide full of easy-to-implement solutions.At its core, permaculture is gardening and living with a deep respect for—and responsibility to—nature. In The Complete Guide to Home Permaculture, you’ll learn the fundamental concepts of permaculture in simple, actionable steps through case studies adapted to the suburban/urban landscape and a modern lifestyle. A plethora of before-and-after photos and examples of existing home permaculture gardens, coupled with how-to projects, detailed illustrations and landscape plans, and a thoughtful explanation of the 3 pillars of a regenerative landscape (water, soil, and plants), will lead you to discover that every garden—no matter its size—can have a positive impact. Discover uncomplicated, tried-and-tested processes to transition conventional landscapes into beneficial and interconnected ecosystems. Learn how to:Protect biodiversityGrow food, medicine, habitat, and beautyLimit resource useCreate a closed-loop system that reduces wasteCapture and reuse rainwaterHelp restore depleted soil and capture carbonFoster a functional polyculture filled with a diversity of plants and lifeGrow vegetables and other edible plants in an edible landscapeThe Complete Guide to Home Permaculture offers accessible ways to address the global climate crisis we face, allowing you to participate in the Earth’s return to health right from your own backyard.

Ahh, tomatoes! Every gardener loves growing them, but they sure can break your heart. But…such heartbreak is no longer inevitable with Ripe Tomato Revolution. Whether your favorite is a juicy beefsteak, a flavorful heirloom, or a sweet cherry, knowing how to grow tomatoes to near-perfection will save your gardening reputation and your sanity. Former organic tomato farmer and avid tomato home grower Frank Hyman has spent 40 years perfecting the art of ’mater cultivation and now he’s ready to spill the proverbial beans with insight on everything from how to build the “World’s Best Tomato Cage” to preventing common tomato buzz-killers, like late blight, hornworms, and blossom-end rot. In his classic folksy tone, Frank puts the fun back into tomato growing with advice overflowing with wit and wisdom. Grow your BEST tomatoes ever by learning how to:Create the perfect tomato-growing soil and siteConstruct the best caging and trellising options, including the Cat’s CradleSelect and use the best mulches for tomatoes Water tomatoes properly for healthier plantsOvercome challenges such as pests, weeds, and diseasesChoose the best tomato varietiesStart seeds at home for the best resultsMaximize your yields and really “bring home the bacon” for that BLT! (All gardeners know who the real star of a great BLT is…)Detailed illustrations throughout provide additional instruction on everything from constructing a tomato-protection shelter and capturing rainwater for tomato irrigation to making a critter-proof composting system to help feed your plants. Use the detailed growing advice in RipeTomato Revolution and fall in love with growing tomatoes all over again.

Discover how to design a home that works beautifully for the way your family actually lives. Make your home work for you!The Functional Home delivers expert-level insight made approachable and easy to follow, without the high price tag of hiring a home design specialist. Professional designer and social media star Julie Jones (@juliejones_designs) spills all her secrets and hands you the tools to rethink your rooms, plan smart layouts, and create a home that feels both functional and inviting—no matter its size, shape, or style.From understanding the “language” of space to mastering the flow of furniture, lighting, and décor, Julie breaks down the fundamentals of interior space planning so you can design your own rooms with confidence. She helps you see your home through a technical lens—how people move, interact, and live within a space—so every square foot works harder and smarter for you and your family.In this useful and beautiful illustrated guide, you’ll discover:Simple guidance for planning layouts that improve comfort, accessibility, and visual balance in every room.Room-by-room design strategies for kitchens, bathrooms, living areas, bedrooms, home offices, and more.Expert insight into human scale and flow, with real-world examples that explain why dimensions and clearances matter.Detailed kitchen and bath design advice, two of the most challenging and high-impact spaces in any home.Tips for new builds and remodels, plus tools for drawing to scale and mapping your own personalized floor plan.Metric equivalents for every measurement, in case you need them.By the end, you’ll understand how to look at your home the way a designer does—balancing beauty, function, and practicality. The Functional Home empowers you to make smart design decisions that create safe, comfortable, and thoughtfully arranged spaces that truly fit your life.