QUICK FACTS AND TIPS ABOUT GROWING LEAFY VEGETABLES / GREENS

Leafy vegetables grown organically are the powerhouse of good health and nutrition and contain more vitamins and minerals and fewer calories than any other vegetables. High in fiber, beta-carotene and anti-oxidants it is hard to eat too many leafy vegetables in your daily diet!

Salad greens are ideal for summer lunches when heat dulls the appetite and the desire to cook! Most leafy vegetables are easy to grow, do well under cool conditions and can be eaten at any stage of maturity, which makes them ideal for regions with a short growing season. With proper selection, culture and storage, leafy vegetables can be available most of the year. 

To achieve a season long of fresh, organically grown salad greens start with an:

• April planting of spinach, lettuce and cabbage. Continue successive plantings until too hot.
• May planting of Swiss chard
• August planting of lettuce and spinach
• Harvest cabbage in October and store in a pit for winter use
• November, mulch spinach; remove the mulch in March. Harvest the leaves after growth resumes.

Black plastic or woven groundcover mulch is helpful to warm the soil in the spring, conserve moisture and control weeds. A winter mulch of straw and soil over spinach and parsley helps bring them through the winter for production of early spring greens. To prolong your season during the hot summer months, cover rows with 50% cloth to reduce high temperatures.

How to Grow Your Own Fresh Lettuce, Baby Salad Greens and Leafy Greens :

Climatic Requirements for Growing Lettuce:
Lettuce is a cool-season vegetable that will develop best when grown under cool, moist conditions. Lettuce that is grown during the heat of the summer tends to have a bitter taste and is tougher than lettuce grown early or late in the season. The ideal temperature for lettuce seedlings is between 45 F and 65 F, lettuce seedlings will also tolerate a very light frost without much damage.  Lettuce seeds are typically planted in successive planting starting in early spring when the ground is suitable for planting. Butterhead and romaine lettuce can be grown either from seeds or transplants. Crisphead or Iceberg lettuce is typically grown from transplants due to its long-growing season. Lettuce seed is so inexpensive that you should buy your seed directly and either sow directly into the garden or start seedlings indoors.

Soil Requirements:
Lettuce can be grown in a wide range of soils but lettuce prefers a loose, fertile, sandy loam soil that is well-supplied with organic matter. The soil should be well-drained and moist but not soggy. Like most other garden vegetables, lettuce prefers a slightly acidic pH of 6.0 to 6.5.

Cultural Practices:
Since lettuce seed is very small, a well-prepared seedbed is essential. Large dirt clods will not allow proper seed-to-soil contact and will result in reducing germination. Lettuce does not have an extensive root system, making an adequate supply of moisture and nutrients also necessary for proper development. Lettuce seed may be sown in single rows or broadcast for wide row planting. Wide rows should be 12 to 15 inches across. Cover the seeds with 1/4 to 1/2 inch of soil. Water carefully but thoroughly. Several successive plantings of leaf lettuce will provide a more continuous harvest throughout the growing season. Leave 18 inches between the rows for leaf lettuce and 24 inches for the other types. To achieve proper spacing of plants, thinning of lettuce seedlings is usually necessary. Thin leaf lettuce plants four to six inches between plants, depending on plant size. Butterhead lettuce and romaine lettuce should be thinned six to ten inches between plants. Crisphead or iceberg lettuce transplants should be spaced 10 to 12 inches apart in the row.

Topdress very lightly with organic mulch to help conserve moisture, suppress weeds and keep soil temperatures cool. If weeds become a problem, pull by hand or cultivate very shallowly to avoid damage to lettuce roots. Planning your garden so that lettuce will be in the shade of taller plants in the heat of the summer may reduce bolting.

VARIETIES OF LEAFY VEGETABLES FOR HARDY GARDENERS

Brussels sprouts. (Rider.) May be direct-seeded or transplanted. Sprouts will form in the axils of the leaves, beginning with the lower leaves. Harvest sprouts at 1 inch in diameter to keep plants productive. Harvest extends from August to November.

Cabbage. (Green: Grand Prize, Polar Green, Grenadier, Quick Step. Red: Red Rookie. Savoyed: Savoy Chieftain. Chinese: Yoko.) Cabbage is used in salads or coleslaw, boiled, baked, processed into sauerkraut, or pit stored. Schedule storage or sauerkraut cabbage to mature in the fall.

Celery. (Dwarf Golden Self-Blanching, Utah 52-70 R Imp.) Transplants should be 10 weeks old when planted during June. Earlier transplanting may encounter cold weather that can cause bolting. Celery is one of the more difficult Crops for a home Gardener.

Chard, Swiss chard. (Light green: Lucullus. Dark green: Fordhook Giant. Red veined: Rhubarb.) Desirable because of its heat tolerance. Provides greens and salads from July to October.

Chicory. (For greens: Radichetta, Gold Lace. For overwintered greens or forcing: Witloof.) To force, harvest mature roots and replant in sand to produce blanched heads in darkness.

Collards. (Flash, Vates.) Like mustard and kale, it is a member of the cabbage family. It will stand more heat and cold than other members of this family and therefore is a valued long-season green. Plants remain productive if the growing center remains untouched while harvesting only the outer leaves.

Dandelions. Cultivated dandelions have been developed to produce on a par with other greens. Instead of planting dandelions, dig those in the lawn, which improves the appearance of the lawn and provides greens. The lawn, of course, should be chemical-free.

Endive, escarole. (Plain leaf: Bossa, Race Salanca. Ruffled leaf: Salad King, Tasos.) Leaves are used for garnish, salads and greens. The blanched white hearts are a delicacy.

Garden cress. A cool-season crop more popular in Europe than the United States. Leaves are ready to harvest six to eight weeks from time of sowing.

Kale. (Light green ruffled: Bona. Dark green ruffled: Winterbor. Dark green, purple veins: Red Russian.) Kale holds up well in cold weather and is a dependable green until the ground freezes.

Lettuce. (Loose leaf dark ruffled: Black-seeded Simpson. Loose leaf light ruffled: Simpson Elite, Slobolt. Loose leaf red: Rouge Salad Bowl, Sierra - tinged. Oakleaf dark: Royal. Oakleaf red: Brunia, Dapple. Butterhead dark, flat: Sudi, Optima. Butterhead light: Cindy - flat, Nevada - ruffled. Romaine dark: Romulus, Verte Mar. Iceberg not recommended.) Sow lettuce in April and again in late July. Keep soil surface moist until seedlings emerge. Leaf lettuce is most practical for a home Garden because leaves can be harvested as needed, leaving the plant to regenerate more leaves.

Mustard. (Dark ruffled: Green Wave.) Plant for early summer or fall crop. Goes to seed in hot weather.

New Zealand spinach. Not really a spinach, but tolerates warm weather and continues to produce all summer. Harvest by breaking off 2 inches of the growing tips and use like spinach.

Pak choi. (Mei Oing Choi, Joi Choi.) Pak choi is recognized by its rounded green leaves with white petioles. It is a popular green in oriental cooking.

Parsley. (Dark, cut, curled leaves: Garland, Krausa.) Parsley is a cool-season crop that does best in spring and fall. Use as a garnish and as a flavoring. Overwinter for early spring production before it bolts.

Radicchio. (Dark red/green, ovate leaf: Chioggia Red, Prima Rossa. Green, upright, strap leaves: Verona. Small red head: Medusa.) Use in salads.

Spinach. (Carambole, Tyee, Marathon, Long Standing Bloomsdale, Indian Summer, Medania.) Spinach bolts in warm weather, although these varieties are slower to bolt than others. Plant the spring crop in April and the fall crop in August.

Watercress. Not related to Garden cress. Water cress beds usually are established around limestone springs in clean, running water. Few Gardeners can produce it because it requires such a unique aquatic habitat.