How to Grow a Salad Garden in a Month – Everything You Can Still Sow Now and Eat Four Weeks Later
Discover these 5 fast-growing salad crops
Growing and eating your homegrown produce with friends and family is one of the many joys of summer. However, some crops take a lot of planning and require a long growing season. Thankfully, salad does not, and if sown now, you could be sharing a delicious and refreshing meal within just a month.
Spring and early summer are always busy times in the garden, but sowing a few salad crops can be quick and easy. Growing well in pots and containers, you do not need a separate vegetable patch to grow a salad garden, as these shallow-rooted crops can thrive in surprisingly little soil.
I have always loved growing my own produce, and with over a decade of experience managing community and kitchen gardens, here are my top five salad varieties you can grow and enjoy in as little as four weeks.
Arugula
One of the easiest vegetables to grow from seed for a quick harvest is arugula. Rocket, as it is also known, has an earthy and peppery flavor and is popular in restaurants and vegetable gardens. As it matures, arugula develops a stronger flavor. However, if you pick it when the leaves are young, you can enjoy a milder, slightly sweet flavor.
Depending on your location and USDA hardiness zone, you can grow arugula from spring through fall and even year-round under glass.
Germinating best at a temperature of 40°F to 55°F, seedlings can appear in as little as five days and be harvestable in around four weeks. Succession sow for a continuous crop and provide shade in mid-summer to prevent it from bolting and prematurely going to seed.
Ideal for adding some bite to a summer salad or for topping a home-made pizza, you can purchase arugula seeds from Burpee.
Loose-leaf Lettuce
Loose-leaf lettuce is one of the best cut-and-come-again varieties. Perfect for container cultivation, lettuce is an easy and quick crop to grow at home.
Even though lettuce will germinate at temperatures as low as 50°F, providing additional warmth through a heat mat like this VIVOSUN heat mat and thermostat, available from Amazon, can encourage seedlings to appear in as little as 2-3 days.
Having grown cut-and-come-again lettuces for nearly two decades in kitchen and community gardens, Lactuca sativa ‘Salad Bowl' is a trusted and productive variety I often recommend.
Perfect for adding to a grilled burger or mixed-greens salad base, simply harvest the young leaves when 4-6 inches tall with clean, sharp snips, cutting 1-2 inches above the soil level.
Lettuce ‘Salad Bowl Red’ seeds are available to purchase from True Leaf Market.
Mizuna
For something slightly different, why not try mizuna for its distinct, peppery taste? Often described as a cross between arugula and mustard greens, mizuna produces feathery leaves in shades of green and red, and is ideal for adding some color and interest to a planter or mixed salad bowl.
A Japanese green, mizuna (Brassica rapa subsp. nipposinica var. laciniata), is fast-growing and thrives in cooler conditions.
In hotter areas, dappled shade can yield good results. It can be sown directly outdoors or earlier in a greenhouse, using a seed compost such as Black Gold organic seedling mix, available from Lowe's, before transplanting to its final position. I have found that it germinates most quickly at 55° to 75°F.
By trapping moisture and warmth, you can create a greenhouse effect and encourage germination with seed-starting equipment like this propagator with a vented dome, available from Amazon.
Harvestable as young leaves in around 30 days, cut what you need just above soil level and allow to regrow before repicking. You can purchase mizuna seeds from Burpee.
Corn Salad
Although a cooler weather crop, generally better suited to growing in the shoulder seasons or even in the winter, corn salad or lamb’s lettuce (Valerianella locusta) is an ideal choice if you want to grow a salad garden in a month.
With a tendency to bolt during hot, dry spells, corn salad is perfect for sowing in late spring or the fall, or for growing in more temperate areas. Furthermore, it is a great option for growing under glass over the colder months.
To sow directly in outside containers or the ground, sow around 6 inches apart and cover with a thin layer of soil. As with the other crops mentioned, keeping the soil moist but not drenched is key to encouraging rapid germination. To protect your sowings and to increase warmth and humidity, you can use a cloche, such as these Bell cover cloches available from Walmart.
Even though not fully mature for 8-12 weeks, you can still harvest the nutty-flavored, young, tender leaves after 4-6 weeks for a summer salad. Vit organic corn salad seeds are available to purchase from Burpee.
Spinach
Known for its earthy flavor, vitamin-rich foliage and ease of growing, spinach (Spinacia oleracea) is a chef’s and gardener's favorite. Perfect for growing in pots, spinach takes around 7-8 weeks to mature.
However, its small, tender leaves are ideal for adding raw, after washing, to a salad dish, or wilting in a pan and adding to pasta, and can be picked in as little as 25-35 days from sowing.
With a propensity to bolt in hot and dry weather, if you are growing it in mid-summer, why not try Seaside spinach, available from Burpee, a superior variety for baby leaves and resistant to heat-induced bolting.
Sow in containers or directly in the ground, half an inch deep and keep the soil moist. Harvest spinach as and when required and irrigate regularly to encourage new growth.
Along with growing salad, now is also the ideal time to sow some annual flower varieties that will add impact and beauty to your garden later this summer when they bloom.
Growing your own cut flowers can be hugely satisfying and although some types require a long growing season, these selected cut flower varieties can be planted in May and will bloom in just a few weeks for you to pick and arrange in vases for your home.
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