Growing your own salad greens is easy and inexpensive. They should be planted in the early spring after the last frost (right now is perfect) to be harvested by June. You will need:
- A variety of salad-green seeds
- A fairly large growing area
Getting started:
- Till the soil thoroughly, breaking up clumps and removing stones and debris.
- Mix in plenty of compost and well-cured manure to ensure the best growing soil for selected salad-green variety.
- Plant seeds about two feet apart, depending on variety.
- Keep soil moist, but avoid watering in the evening.
- Mulch soil to conserve moisture and keep soil cool.
- Once plants have grown, feed every three weeks with seaweed extract or compost tea (easily found in a nursery).
- Begin cutting lettuce leaves as soon as they’re large enough for use in a salad. Harvest when lettuce heads are firm and fully formed.
—Source: California Department of Public Health
Good Neighbor Pharmacy Health Connection, April 2014
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