National Salad Month; Grow Your Own Salad

Melinda’s Garden Moments is heard Mon.-Fri. at 7:45 and 10:45 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. on 97.9 WHAV.

Melinda’s Garden Moments is heard Mon.-Fri. at 7:45 and 10:45 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. on 97.9 WHAV.

May is National Salad Month. Grow your own ingredients for the best tasting and most nutritious salad.

You don’t need a lot of space to grow your own salad greens and fixings. A small spot in the garden or a container will do just fine.

Grow leaf lettuce for fast results. Add a bit of color to the mix with red leafed varieties like red sails or variegated varieties like freckles.  You’ll be harvesting greens in 45 to 55 days.

Add some radishes and carrots. Just make sure your soil is well-drained or container deep enough to accommodate these plants. I like short carrot varieties that grow better in heavy soils and containers.

Save space by planting carrots and radishes together. You’ll harvest the radishes first, leaving space for the later maturing carrots to continue to grow and reach full size.

Include pansies, calendulas, and other edible flowers for a bit of fun and flavor.

A bit more information: Harvest the outer leaves of leaf lettuce when 4 to 6 inches tall. The plants will keep producing, providing lots of fresh greens for you to enjoy.

For more gardening tips, how-to videos, podcasts and more, visit www.melindamyers.com.