This year I decided to make a salad, or rather a salad green bed! This is one of the 3’x4′ beds in our raised bed vegetable garden. I decided to section it off into four smaller squares rather than plant in rows. I prefer to sprinkle the seed for lettuce and spinach instead of placing each seed (I think it looks better this way – just wait until the plants are full grown). When the plants grow large enough to consume I’ll thin them out as we eat them into a better spacing.
The lettuce is a mix of various kinds like I grew last year. Some are speckled while others are green and some are more purple, but they all taste good! The lettuce you buy in the store just can’t compare to what you grow in the backyard garden. Lettuce is only good while the temperatures are cooler. When the heat arrives they will begin to bolt, or put out flowers for reproduction. If you happen to get to this point you have two choices: either let it go to seed or pull it out and toss it in the compost bin. The third choice which isn’t really a choice is to eat it but you will end up with a very bitter tasting meal. You had better slather that salad with a ton of dressing if you plan on that option. If you let it go to seed you can collect it and use it again next year.
Once the spinach and lettuce bed is done producing I’ll use it in the succession planting of my squash. I’ll have some already started in another spot but this bed could easily house 3-4 squash plants. Have I mentioned that we like squash?
It is looking good, Dave- I planted in a decorative pattern this year, with different colors of lettuce at different intervals. I thought it would look better than rows. We will see. I can’t wait to see how this looks in a couple weeks.
Heather
What a great idea! I once saw a pizza bed (it was round) with all the fixings to make a pizza. But I love the salad idea. I think I will do that next year when I have my beds up.
Sounds like a plan Dave. And it does look good!
I like you garden plans. Each section has it’s own produce. Easier to keep up with. I’ll have to pick a special place next fall to plant my spinach. Love the stuff–raw or cooked.
I also took the plan of just sprinkling my greens seeds onto the soil this year. Its just so much easier, and its looks better too. There is more satisfaction seeing a whole group of green than one little plant.