Gardening glossary
Shoulder season
Most gardeners think of the growing season as a single block between last frost and first frost. In practice, there are five seasons, not two: deep winter, spring shoulder, summer, autumn shoulder, and deep winter again. The shoulder seasons are where extension techniques, cold-hardy varieties, and clever timing pay the highest dividend.
The spring shoulder. In a UK climate this runs roughly from the second half of February through April — long days return, soil warms above 5 °C, but frost remains a regular possibility and warmth-loving crops cannot go out yet. What thrives:
- Broad beans (hardy to about -8 °C once established). - Peas, including overwintered varieties for early podding. - Salad crops under cloche or fleece: lettuce, rocket, mustards, spinach, lamb's lettuce. - Hardy brassicas: spring cabbage, early kale, kalettes. - Onion and shallot sets, garlic. - Direct-sown carrots, parsnips, radish, beetroot once soil is workable.
The autumn shoulder. September through November, sometimes deep into December under cover. Day length is shortening but warmth lingers in the soil. What thrives:
- Salads sown in August: winter purslane, claytonia, mustards, mizuna, mâche. - Spinach and chard for winter cropping. - Kale, leeks, parsnips, swedes, Brussels sprouts — these hold in the ground until needed. - Overwintering varieties of broad bean and pea, sown for an early crop the following year. - Garlic and shallots planted October–November for the next summer.
Why shoulder seasons matter strategically. They double the productive use of a garden. Summer is the easy season — everything wants to grow. Shoulder seasons reward planning: getting the right variety in the right week with the right cover. The total food output of a well-managed shoulder season is often equal to the summer's leaf and salad output, on the same square metreage.
Tools that unlock shoulder-season cropping:
- [Cold frames](/glossary/cold-frame) and [cloches](/glossary/cloche) for spring acceleration and autumn extension. - [Row cover fleece](/glossary/row-cover) for night-time frost protection. - Hardy variety selection — pak choi "Joi Choi," kale "Cavolo Nero," winter lettuce "Winter Density," cabbage "Pixie." - Mulch — a thick autumn mulch of leaf mould keeps soil active and protects overwintering crowns.
Most home gardeners use their plot for 5 months. With shoulder-season planning, you can comfortably stretch that to 9 or 10.