Mizuna is an Asian leafy green well suited for salads or salad mixes such as mesclun. Mizuna can also be used in stir-fries and soups and added to other dishes at the end of cooking. Mizuna is similar to mustard greens though milder flavored—a bit peppery, tangy, and with a light cabbage flavor. Mizuna is…
Leaf Vegetables
How to Grow Arugula
Arugula is a cool weather crop. Sow arugula seed in the garden as early as 2 to 3 weeks before the average date of the last frost in spring. Grow arugula in temperatures ranging from 45° to 65°F (10-18°C). Plant arugula so that it comes to harvest in cool weather. Sow succession arugula crops every…
Cold Weather Kale Best Varieties
Kale is a versatile autumn and winter vegetable. A good frost will sweeten kale overnight. At the same time, kale can withstand most winters in the garden with no protection. It’s hardy to 10°F. Cool- and cold-weather kale can be served almost like summer-tender spinach: cut out the center ribs of young kale and use…
Kale Growing Quick Tips
Take these kale growing tips to the garden: Sowing Kale: Sow kale seeds in the garden 5 weeks before to 2 weeks before the last expected frost in spring for a summer crop. If you are in a very cold region you can start seed indoors 5 weeks before setting plants in the garden. You…
Cabbage Growing Quick Tips
Follow these cabbage growing quick tips to get cabbage started today. Sowing cabbage: In mild-winter regions, sow cabbage from fall to late winter for a spring crop. Sow seed outdoors 6 to 4 weeks before the last frost. Start seed indoors 12 to 10 weeks before transplanting seedlings to the garden. Sow seeds indoors in…
Choosing Cabbage Varieties to Grow
Choose cabbage varieties for planting based on the flavor you want to serve–and where you live. Savoy cabbage leaves (crinkled leaves) are more pliable than smooth cabbage. They are sweet and mild flavored, easy to separate, and great to stuff and wrap. Try green winter-hardy January King (160-200 days–plant in the fall for spring harvest)…
Lettuce Bolting
Lettuce—a cool season crop—naturally bolts in warm weather. When temperatures rise much above 70°F/21°C, lettuce—an annual—will send up stalks, flower, and set seed, nature’s way of ensuring a next generation. This process is called bolting. When lettuce and other leafy crops bolt natural sugars depart the leaves for the flowers and seed. When lettuce bolts…
How to Grow a Salad Garden in 10 Steps
Salad greens are easy and quick to grow and rich in vitamins and minerals. Plant salad greens—leaf lettuce, arugula, mesclun, and radicchio are a few—for harvest in cool weather—spring or fall. In warm-winter regions, grow salad greens through the winter in open planting beds. In cold-winter regions, grow salad greens under the protection of plastic…
Plant Spring Cabbage in Fall
Set out cabbage seedlings in fall while the soil and air temperatures are still warm to start plants growing for harvest next spring. • Spring cabbage started in fall will establish roots and begin top growth before freezing weather arrives then sit nearly dormant during winter then complete its top growth in spring before temperatures…
Asian Greens for Cool-Weather Harvest
Crispy, succulent, and sweet-flavored Asian greens are easy to grow and demand little space. Like other greens such as lettuce and spinach they are cool-season crops and prefer to reach maturity in cool air temperatures. They are quick growing and well suited for sowing in spring for late spring harvest or late summer for autumn…