Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!

  • 55 Replies
  • 27687 Views
*

Kristen

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Suffolk
  • 4065
    • K's Garden blog
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #15 on: April 06, 2011, 07:45 »
Does/has anyone grown Lettuce in an unheated greenhouse this past winter to crop through the winter?
We as a family of four have spent a fortune on lettuce and mixed salad leaves through the winter and i was wondering if it can be grown sufficiently to harvest durin mid winter, between lets say November to March?

I've tried and given up.  I have a large greenhouse (30' x 10') so I could grow a huge number of plants to combat the fact that the combination of low light and cold means that things grow very slowly ... but I haven't really had more than a few handfuls of salad (may just be me of course, don't let me put you off trying!)

On the other hand we are self sufficient in Leeks, Parsnips, Celeriac, Jerusalem Artichokes, Brussels Sprouts etc. So we've taken the view that we will eat Winter crops in the Winter, and Salad in the Summer :)

I do grow some things over winter, but they only come into their own from mid March onwards - Leaf Beet (particularly successful in the greenhouse), Kohl Rabi (some goes to seed, but we eat that like Sprouting Brocolli), Beetroot, and a some early-sown Lettuce for an early crop.

I'm going to try Lambs Lettuce (better!) this year. Tried last year, but the seedlings grew SO slowly that I need to start them much earlier this Autumn.

*

mumofstig

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Kent
  • 57877
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #16 on: April 06, 2011, 08:28 »
I found that It's the timing of those autumn salads that you have to get right, for successful winter salads.

The trouble is you have to be thinking about it whilst summer crops are still being picked ::)

*

lottielearner

  • New Member
  • *
  • Location: Bristol
  • 38
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #17 on: April 12, 2011, 21:39 »
I took a chance last autumn and sowed several different lettuce seeds, Winter Density, Oak Leaf Lettuce and all year butterhead lettuce along with some salad leaves, straight into the border.  I constructed a fleece type cover as you would to  keep birds off, watered once in October and left it until January as due to an operation I wasnt able to get up for months.  The first time I checked on them the greenhouse door was frozen solid so i  thought 'thats it then'  :(  but when it thawed out,  low and behold lettuce aplenty that we are still eating now!! So just chuck it in and hope for the best, nothing ventured and all that  :D :nowink:
Chuck it in - it won't grow in the packet!

*

muntjac

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: near diss norfolk
  • 11971
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #18 on: April 26, 2011, 22:20 »
time for a munty tip here...... ok get some fresh steaming well rotted non gross stinking manure ,,, put it in your greenhouse in the beds or boxes as best you can .. old polystyrene fish boxes are brilliant. wooden boxes with loads newspapers stuck around em will suffice ok  fill ya boxes or beds with the manure .. put a covering of soil over em .then plant ya lettuces etc, then cover em over with cloches..........result heat from the manure ,,,,, i learned this winter growing tip from my grand dad when i was a tinkler... where have all the old skills and tips gorn to?
still alive /............

*

mobilekat

  • Senior Member
  • ****
  • Location: Exeter
  • 837
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #19 on: May 06, 2011, 16:39 »
To follow on from Munty....

Manure has heated many a greenhouse- in fact that's how the Pineapple house was heated at Helligan!- with a mixture of manure and wood bark fermenting away!

Georgians were clever with their dung...
Very often quite lost- would be more lost if I could work out where I was!- But always find my way home.....

*

Endymion

  • Experienced Member
  • ***
  • Location: S.W. Hants
  • 159
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #20 on: May 09, 2011, 23:57 »
time for a munty tip here...... ok get some fresh steaming well rotted non gross stinking manure ,,, put it in your greenhouse in the beds or boxes as best you can .. old polystyrene fish boxes are brilliant. wooden boxes with loads newspapers stuck around em will suffice ok  fill ya boxes or beds with the manure .. put a covering of soil over em .then plant ya lettuces etc, then cover em over with cloches..........result heat from the manure ,,,,, i learned this winter growing tip from my grand dad when i was a tinkler... where have all the old skills and tips gorn to?
We grow squash and cougettes on a heap of compost/manure, would it be an idea to use that for winter salad or would it have lost its heat by then?

*

Growster...

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Hawkhurst, Kent
  • 13162
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #21 on: May 10, 2011, 20:35 »
The lettuce Mrs Growster planted last autumn has a new lease of life, and is taking over as a cut-and-come-again salad. I got through all that snow (under cloches) too, so is a pretty hardy plant to consider.

The rocket goes to seed and gets a bit hot so that's gone now.

Always worth a few seeds to try them out, you just don't know till you do!

*

Brushcutter

  • Full Member
  • **
  • Location: Faversham
  • 50
    • Andrews Decorating
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #22 on: May 13, 2011, 20:55 »
Winter density works for me, not only hardy but tasty too. :D

*

muntjac

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: near diss norfolk
  • 11971
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #23 on: May 16, 2011, 23:40 »
time for a munty tip here...... ok get some fresh steaming well rotted non gross stinking manure ,,, put it in your greenhouse in the beds or boxes as best you can .. old polystyrene fish boxes are brilliant. wooden boxes with loads newspapers stuck around em will suffice ok  fill ya boxes or beds with the manure .. put a covering of soil over em .then plant ya lettuces etc, then cover em over with cloches..........result heat from the manure ,,,,, i learned this winter growing tip from my grand dad when i was a tinkler... where have all the old skills and tips gorn to?
We grow squash and cougettes on a heap of compost/manure, would it be an idea to use that for winter salad or would it have lost its heat by then?

 if you dig it out when your finished growing on it ... get loads air into it before you put it in your hot box/frame tunnel, the new addition of air helps the cooking process,,,, thats why we should turn the compost bins at least twice a year ,if not 3

*

BabyStar

  • Experienced Member
  • ***
  • Location: Durrington, Wiltshire
  • 105
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #24 on: September 06, 2011, 10:34 »
On the way back for my local paper shop I pass by a chinese and they throw out lovely pierced plastic boxes about 18in x 12in and about 4 inches deep......the kind that will stack if you want. Lined with a bit of plastic, from empty compost bags, they are perfect for salads etc  :)

Needless to say, I now have quite a stack of them  :lol:

Does lettuce really grow in a tray as shallow as this? I want to do salad leaves over winter in the greenhouse and have open seed trays but doesn't seem very deep!

*

mumofstig

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Kent
  • 57877
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #25 on: September 06, 2011, 10:38 »
The trays I use are deeper than a standard seed tray, cos they're about 4 inches deep.
But the pics posted by compostqueen on the first page of the thread, show them growing quite happily in a seed tray...don't you think  ;)

You obviously have to be consistant with watering, to get results like these though...you can't just sow and forget  :D
« Last Edit: September 06, 2011, 10:39 by mumofstig »

*

Growster...

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Hawkhurst, Kent
  • 13162
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #26 on: September 06, 2011, 11:11 »
Mrs G uses ordinary seed trays, and sows seed very thinly.

They last for about two - three weeks, and after then are chucked on the compost heap, while the new ones are coming on.

You're right about watering though, they need a lot.

*

savbo

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Rusholme, Manchester
  • 1742
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #27 on: September 07, 2011, 09:15 »
i did quite well last year with wooden fruit boxes lined with compost bags, so only a few centimetres of compost...

I echo the point that there's almost no growth over winter, so you need to get the plants up to eating size by autumn

*

sunshineband

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Reading, Berkshire
  • 32056
  • Tallest Sunflower prizewinner 2014
    • A Little Bit of Sunshine
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #28 on: September 07, 2011, 19:54 »
Winter density lettuce are very reliable too  :)
« Last Edit: September 07, 2011, 19:56 by sunshineband »
Wisdom is knowing what to ignore - be comfortable in your own skin.
My Blog
My Diary
My Diary Comments

*

WendysLot

  • Full Member
  • **
  • Location: Banbury
  • 65
    • Healing Beads
Re: Lettuce in the greenhouse in winter!
« Reply #29 on: September 09, 2011, 12:25 »
What a great topic.  I too feel inspired to have a go at growing as much as I can in my greenhouse over the winter.  Good luck everyone.

Wendy



xx
Winter greenhouse

Started by Margaret on Growing in Greenhouses & Polytunnels

2 Replies
4678 Views
Last post October 23, 2006, 09:14
by John
xx
Greenhouse growing in winter

Started by Amilo on Growing in Greenhouses & Polytunnels

1 Replies
2435 Views
Last post May 05, 2012, 15:54
by arugula
xx
what do you grow in your greenhouse in winter?

Started by helluvatractor on Growing in Greenhouses & Polytunnels

19 Replies
14685 Views
Last post February 14, 2011, 21:33
by VirginVegGrower
grin
Winter greenhouse spuds.

Started by Kleftiwallah on Growing in Greenhouses & Polytunnels

2 Replies
2355 Views
Last post October 04, 2023, 07:24
by bayleaf
 

Page created in 0.14 seconds with 40 queries.

Powered by SMFPacks Social Login Mod
Powered by SMFPacks SEO Pro Mod |