Showtime\'s Weeds is still several weeks away from its third season finale, but the cable network has already renewed the highly-followed drama series for another year.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Showtime has placed an order of 13 episodes, with production for the new season slated to begin sometime in April. The new season is then expected to debut in the summer.


Weeds, a half-hour dramedy that airs Mondays on Showtime, stars Golden Globe-winning actress Mary-Louise Parker as Nancy Botwin, a widowed mother who resorts to dealing pot in order to maintain her family\'s suburban lifestyle.
 The series debuted in 2005, and has since then proven to be one of the cable network\'s most rewarding ventures.

For one, the series has received several Emmy award nominations, including an Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series nod for Parker and two Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series nods for Elizabeth Perkins, who plays Celia Hodes on the show.

For another, Weeds ranks as Showtime\'s most-watched original comedy series, with the show\'s current season outperforming season 2 by 19 percent, according to Nielsen Media Research. Moreover, the third season of Weeds is the cable network\'s most-watched original series among adults 18-34, a demographic often eyed by advertisers, and boasts of a total viewership that is almost equally divided between men and women.

Weeds was created and executive-produced by Jenji Kohan. Lionsgate, in association with Tilted Productions, produces the series.

Apart from Parker and Perkins, the show\'s cast includes Kevin Nealon as Doug Wilson, Romany Malco as Conrad Shephard, Justin Kirk as Andy Botwin, Tonye Patano as Heylia James, Hunter Parrish as Silas Botwin, Alexander Gould as Shane Botwin and Andy Milder as Dean Hodes. Among this season\'s most prominent recurring/guest stars include Mary-Kate Olsen, Matthew Modine, Zooey Deschanel and Carrie Fisher.