A fresh supply of organic salad crops, microgreens and pea shoots is possible throughout the growing months in even the smallest space explains Chris Collins, Garden Organic’s Head of Horticulture
While it might seem easier to pop to the shop for a vacuum-packed bag of salad, this can’t rival the taste of homegrown – and you’ve no idea where or how they’ve been grown. Sowing your own seeds takes just a little effort but will save you money.
My favourite way to sow a ‘salad bar’ is in a trough on my balcony. I’ll sow in drills marked with a garden line. My go-to crops are spring onion, cut-and-come again salad leaves, wild rocket, spinach and mustard. Harvested young, wild rocket adds an amazing peppery flavour to sandwiches.
In my large trough (50x30x30cm/19x11x11ins) filled with lovely peat-free compost, I sow 20cm (8in) apart and crop when the plants are slightly bigger than microgreens. If you want more mature plants, you can space your drills and seeds more widely.
Repeat sowings are the key to maintaining a constant fresh supply. Leave a wide enough gap between each drill, which allows you to inter-sow another row in between a few weeks later. Always sieve your compost over the top of the seeds and gently tamp down to ensure the perfect seed bed. A watering can with the rose turned upwards guarantees a finer shower that will soak but not disturb.
Inter-sowing like this all summer, across different pots and containers, means when the first crop is ready a second is already on the way – and I can rest assured my salad bowl will always be full.
Question and Answer
Q. What other salad crops are quick growing?
A. Radish and rainbow chard are delicious micro-crops and look pretty enough to be added among your flowers or to fill gaps in hanging baskets.
Q. Are there any heritage varieties that are good for pots
A. These varieties add extra flavour and interest to your planters – and you’re also helping support seeds that might otherwise disappear. Lettuce ‘Tennis Ball’ and Mustard ‘Guptas Indian’ are my favourites. You could also try Chop Suey Greens’ ‘Yings Shungiku’ or lettuce ‘Black Seeded Samara’.
Q. I don’t own any containers, what can I grow my salad in?
A. Salad crops are shallow rooted and quick growing so they can be grown virtually anywhere. You don’t need to fork out on expensive troughs or pots – a large shopping bag will do, or you could recycle fruit punnets, large milk bottles or even an old colander.
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