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I really enjoy a blend of greens in a salad and as the gas prices rise and the produce rises accordingly basically anyone can grow a “salad bowl” of lettuces or greens.
All greens need to be grown in reasonably moist fertile soil and I like to sow cress, Arugula and Corn salad right where I want them, near my back door, in the late winter. These I harvest before the hot weather sets in and I have been able to get a couple of fall plantings in early fall for a late fall harvest.
I love the garden cress for its sweet and spicy flavor which adds a perfect touch to a mixed salad or even as an extra addition to a thinly sliced cucumber or radish sandwich.
Corn salad is an old timer which has a mild, nutty flavor and when the leaves are young and tender they are a great addition to a salad. Some people cook these up like greens though I never have.
If you have not had a salad with Arugula in it then plant some this year. It has a wonderful spicy flavor and really gives a good boost to any salad.
I love really wonderful cress that grows in just 2 weeks and can be grown on my window sill. It is called Pepper Cress which is similar to Water Cress and has a spicy, peppery flavor.
When I grow my lettuce I try to find a place that is near my kitchen door, which gets the morning sun and also a couple of hours of shade in the afternoon in the hottest weather. Last year I grew some Romaine Lettuce in one of our waist high planters and I got a wonderful crop, but that planter is out in the full sun for 8 hours a day and even that much sun, regardless of how much water it got, produced a lot of wilted lettuce quickly.
Sowing lettuce seeds or any kind of greens should be done at least 7 days apart so one can have continuous picking. When I do grow some by the back kitchen door I am able to pop out and pick as many leaves of the different varieties to make a fresh salad each day. Plus I seem to have a longer growing season.
I really like a variety of tastes and colors in my salads so I often grow things like Dark Lollo Rossa which is a deep, red frilly leaf lettuce. I don’t try to grow head lettuce any more. Leaf lettuce is the easiest for me to grow whether it is in a small patch by the kitchen door or in several containers that I can move around where I want them. One of my favorite stand-by is the Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce with its sweet, tender, light green-yellow leaves.
I personally prefer just a simple extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar on my salads with a generous handful of pine nuts. What more can anyone ask for in their salad bowl?
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Author Bio Box: Arlene Wright Correll
 For more gardening or cooking information click http://www.learn-america.com/
To see Arlene’s Gardens and to read her gardening diaries or click on Arlene’s Books where you can download or buy her gardening & cook books. Remember to check out her artwork, especially of her fruits and vegetables. Arlene says, “All my royalties from the sale of my books go to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and I thank you for visiting my site.”
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