Growing salad crops for winter use.

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JayG

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Growing salad crops for winter use.
« on: August 01, 2013, 08:41 »
This is only my 3rd year of owning a greenhouse and up to now I've only tried Winter Gem lettuce as something to hopefully produce at least some salad leaves in winter.

They didn't really come to anything, and I'm guessing that it's more a question of survival than actual growth in the depths of winter, so apart from being hardy they also need to be started off much earlier (i.e. soon......?)

Any growing tips, suggestions as to which varieties work and which don't please?
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New shoot

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #1 on: August 01, 2013, 08:52 »
I've tried and failed with hearting lettuce as well, but the loose leaf cut and come again types work quite well, as do oriental greens.  For variety, a pack of mixed salad leaf seeds is the best value. 

They grow whenever the greenhouse conditions are mild enough for them to do so, but that's often most of the winter.  I just chuck fleece over if we are expecting a really cold snap or snow and hope for the best  :)

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compostqueen

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #2 on: August 01, 2013, 09:14 »
There are a lot of chicories which are winter hardy.  Seeds of Italy has a selection of them :) 

I've just dug out my packet of Cornet de Bordeaux, which is a self-blanching endive and is sown outside in August. Harvested Nov - Jan

I'm doing Winter hardy White Lisbon salad onion which can be sown July-Sept
Salad rocket which can be sown now. Spinach Bordeaux which will be sown in Sept
I'm also sowing more Romaine

I sow trays of mixed winter hardy leaves from SOI and keep them going in the greenhouse through the depths of winter.  These are cut and come agains :)

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mumofstig

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #3 on: August 01, 2013, 09:30 »
Apart from growing oriental greens for stir-fry - like New Shoot  ;)
I grow rocket, which does well and can be picked all winter and puts a spurt on in spring, and Corn Salad.

Seeds of Italy do good winter salad stuff, Meraviglia d'Inverno di San Martino is their recommended winter lettuce plus Scarola Cornetto di Bordeaux. The later had  frozen hearts a few winters ago but but was still edible once the plants had thawed :D It's a little bit more bitter like radicchio though.

I use a lot of mixed radicchio and lettuce for sowing all through the winter aka Misticanza Quattro Stagioni for picking as small leaves. Germination and growth are slower in the depths of winter, but on any non-freezing days they will grow.

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compostqueen

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #4 on: August 01, 2013, 12:37 »
I've just sown rocket and corn salad, some more Romaine and salad onions.  The stir fry stuff is generally trouble free. I like that as cut and come again, sown into trays or boxes in the cold greenhouse. One tray does a wok full  :)

The Meraviglia is unbelievably hard and it seems to be  perennial. I keep getting one come up on my plot. It survives under deep snow just fine

They say that when you cut the bitter leaves it reduces the bitterness. Also many of them are robust enough to pan fry or put on the grill. I've got some promising-looking Treviso growing at the moment  :)

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New shoot

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #5 on: August 01, 2013, 13:03 »
Apart from growing oriental greens for stir-fry - like New Shoot  ;)

I like strong tasting salad leaves so I grow them to crop as young leaves and eat raw  ;)  They perk up midwinter supermarket lettuce no end. Rocket would do the same, so will nick that idea to try as well this year  :)

Besides the amount of stir-fry I eat, I would need several polytunnels to keep me supplied  :lol:

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compostqueen

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #6 on: August 01, 2013, 22:13 »
I love a stir fry too. I have plenty of cavolo ready at the mo, and red cabbage to go with my crop of chillies and garlic.  Most of the orientals are really easy to grow which is a big help when you like a stir fry  :)  I've go the tatsoi on the side ready to sow but it's still a bit hot to risk it I think

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New shoot

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #7 on: August 03, 2013, 07:04 »
I've managed to amass quite a seed collection for autumn and winter greens and salad leaves :blush:  I blame the 50p seed sales and seed swaps m'lud  ;) I tend to grab the mixed salad leaf cut and come again mixes at 50p and sow in trays like CQ, so a few spare packs is OK.

I'm hanging fire as well until it cools down a bit as well.  Nothing bolts quite so fast as salad and oriental greens and the greenhouse is still full anyway :)


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3759allen

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #8 on: August 03, 2013, 13:49 »
i can't be of any help, but will be watching this thread with great interest.

i'm going to try a lot of things late on in the tunnel and see how it goes. after all you don't know until you try.

nothing to lose really, as there'll be plenty of space once the tomatoes and cucumbers have finished.

i will make a post of what if anything worked.

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sunshineband

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #9 on: August 03, 2013, 19:25 »
Just to add.....

... I have found winter gem Ok as a hearting lettuce late in the season, and as long as it is in the minitunnel is has survived the winter. Bolts quickly come the Spring though  :lol:
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devonbarmygardener

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #10 on: August 10, 2013, 18:21 »
I struggle with green leafy things in the unheated greenhouse so I grow the hardiest lettuces I can find on the lottie and cover with fleece.

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mumofstig

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #11 on: August 10, 2013, 18:33 »
That's weird cos it must be frostier here than where you are  :unsure:

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devonbarmygardener

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #12 on: August 10, 2013, 20:31 »
The first year I had my greenhouse in the garden (and it's fairly sheltered on one side and the back by the fence) and all the green brassicas and lettuce I tried just rotted and died - I was trying to grow them in growbags - maybe they were no good??
I don't have regular soil in my greenhouse. :unsure:

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JayG

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #13 on: August 10, 2013, 20:57 »
Thanks for all your replies so far - keep 'em coming if you can.  :)

Seems like that in the absolute depths of winter not much will be actively growing, so for things like Winter Gem lettuce (which I've got seeds for) and some of the other suggestions (which I mostly haven't) it's all about timing to get them to the stage where they will survive long enough to be usable without having already gone over.

Interesting challenge to produce salad leaves at that time of year in an unheated greenhouse, but for the price of a few packets of seeds I'm up for it!  :)

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devonbarmygardener

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Re: Growing salad crops for winter use.
« Reply #14 on: August 10, 2013, 21:03 »
They'd be less likely to bolt in the winter i'm sure.

Going to give it a good go myself this winter with lettuce and the loose leaf stuff. ;)



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