The Berry Grower - by Blake Cothron (Paperback)

About the Book

The Berry Grower is an innovative guide for small-scale growing and marketing of organic fruits and berries. Covers planning and strategy, organic soil care, profiles of profitable small fruits, cultivar selection, planting, organic weed and pest management, marketing strategies, and interviews with successful growers.

Book Synopsis

Grow Berries that Thrive--At Home, in your Market Garden, or on your Small Farm

Unlock the secrets to profitable, sustainable, and innovative berry growing. From backyard plots to market gardens, The Berry Grower equips you to grow organic small fruits successfully in any setting.

What You'll Learn

Whether you're a beginner or experienced grower, this guide gives you practical strategies, expert insights, and hands-on knowledge to produce high-quality fruit that sells or feeds your family. You'll discover how to:

• Plan and manage your orchard or berry patch for efficiency and profit


• Cultivate a wide range of fruits including raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, currants, gooseberries, figs, and lesser-known but high-value varieties


• Optimize soil fertility, manage weeds naturally, and control pests organically


• Adapt to climate change, drought, and extreme weather with resilient growing methods


• Harvest, handle, and pack fruit professionally for the market or CSA


• Diversify products beyond fresh fruit for increased revenue and market stability


• Learn from interviews with successful small-scale growers and market gardeners across the US.

Why This Book Works for You

Blake Cothron draws on over 20 years of experience as an organic farmer, nursery operator, educator, and speaker. His expertise makes complex concepts approachable, whether you're planning your first backyard patch or expanding a small-scale farm.

Praise from Experts

"Blake covers everything from soup to nuts, figuratively, in growing these fruits in various settings, for home use or markets. A number of the fruits he mentions are not yet well-known, but are worth growing."

― Lee Reich, PhD, author of Growing Figs in Cold Climates and The Ever Curious Gardener

Start Growing your Future

Today From self-sufficiency at home to profitable small fruit production for local markets, The Berry Grower provides everything you need to turn soil into success. Pick up your copy and begin growing your best berries yet.

From the Back Cover

Dig into the fruits of your labor! Profitable, innovative organic fruit farming strategies and skills for modern growers of any scale

Blake has done an amazing job at compiling an enormous amount of information into an easy-to-follow resource that anyone can use.
-- Rob Avis, PEng, co-author, Building Your Permaculture Property and

Valuable practical, effective, up-to-date information, including addressing climate chaos, to encourage more localized and resilient organic food production, garden by garden.
-- Pam Dawling, author, The Year-Round Hoophouse and Sustainable Market Farming

AN INNOVATIVE GUIDE for growing and marketing organic small fruits and berries, The Berry Grower offers intelligent strategies and solutions for successful small-scale, non-chemical fruit production in the 21st century. Coverage includes:

• History, innovations, and 21st century challenges in modern fruit farming
• Creating your own market farming reality
• Farm planning for efficiency and profitability
• Factoring in climate change, drought, and extreme weather
• Soil fertility, efficient weed management, and organic pest control
• Modern tools of the trade for efficiency
• Harvesting, fruit handling, and packing
• Fruit profiles including raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, currants, gooseberries, figs, tomatoes, and more, including new cultivars
• Innovative marketing methods and thinking beyond fresh fruit with multi-product strategies to maximize profit
• Learn from other experts through interviews with successful growers and marketers from diverse areas around the USA.

From the market garden and small farm to the homestead and backyard, The Berry Grower is the essential guide for both new and aspiring organic small fruit growers and seasoned farmers looking to produce high- quality organic fruits and products for local markets and self-sufficiency.

Blake covers everything from soup to nuts, figuratively, in growing these fruits in various settings for home use or markets.
-- Lee Reich, PhD, author, Growing Figs in Cold Climates and The Ever Curious Gardener

A terrific resource ... loaded with helpful background, tips, tricks, and recommendations that will benefit small fruit growers of any scale or level of experience!
-- Dan Dalton, PASA Sustainable Agriculture

BLAKE COTHRON owns Peaceful Heritage Nursery, a 4-acre USDA Certified Organic research farm, orchard, and edible plant nursery. He shares his two decades of experience in organic agriculture and horticulture through magazine articles, public speaking engagements, and blogging. Blake is the author of Pawpaws: The Complete Growing and Marketing Guide. He lives with his wife and son in Kentucky.

Review Quotes

"Whether you're looking to grow for your family, or for production (or anywhere in between), this resource is absolutely stacked with actionable insights that you can utilize. Blake has done an amazing job at compiling an enormous amount of information into an easy to follow resource that anyone can use."
-- Rob Avis, PEng, co-author, Building Your Permaculture Property and Essential Rainwater Harvesting

"Blake covers everything from soup to nuts, figuratively, in growing these fruits in various settings, for home use or markets. A number of the fruits he mentions are not yet well-known, but are worth growing."
-- Lee Reich, PhD, author, Growing Figs in Cold Climates and The Ever Curious Gardener

"The Berry Grower is a terrific resource for anyone getting into small fruit production or those looking to diversify their crops. It is loaded with helpful background, tips, tricks, and recommendations that will benefit small fruit growers of any scale or level of experience!"
-- Dan Dalton, PASA Sustainable Agriculture

"Blake uses 20 years' experience growing berries and other small fruits to provide valuable practical, effective, up-to-date information (including addressing climate chaos) to encourage more localized and resilient organic food production, garden by garden."
-- Pam Dawling, author, The Year-Round Hoophouse and Sustainable Market Farming

"I've cracked open your book and like what I'm seeing so far!"
-- The late, great Michael Phillips, author, The Holistic Orchard and The Apple Grower

About the Author

Blake Cothron is an organic farmer, nurseryman, writer, musician, and speaker, with over 20 years' experience in organic agriculture, botany, horticulture, and growing food. He is the co-owner and co-operator of Peaceful Heritage Nursery, a 4-acre USDA Certified Organic research farm, orchard, and edible plant nursery. Author of Pawpaws: The Complete Growing and Marketing Guide, he has also written for Permaculture Design magazine and various online publications. Blake has an educational blog and YouTube channel devoted to fruit growing, and he is an educator with the Organic Association of Kentucky. He divides his time between farming, research, writing, beekeeping, gardening, travel, yoga, meditation, and being a husband and father in beautiful Kentucky.