Simpson Elite
More early lettuce. This is Simpson Elite, an improved variety of Black Seeded Simpson, which is a really fast, reliable heirloom from the 1800’s. I grow both. They have thin, delicate, pale green leaves, but they’ve proven tough in heat, drought and cold. And they’re 40-45-days! These seedlings are now about 3-1/2 weeks old. I still haven’t thinned them from two per cell—all the lettuce looks so…pretty, densely bunch in their trays, and they’re stretching a bit, but just this side of really crowding each other. Anyhow, it’s the super-early lettuce…mostly for fun! (This is also my first tryout of the latest new farm tool, a Canon G9…a sturdy, field-ready bit of gear… :)
Tags: heirloom, lettuce, seedlings, thinning, tools
Somewhat related posts: • Seasonal salad • First cuts • Lettuce overnight • Fresh lettuce • Seedlings everywhere!
Somewhat related posts: • Seasonal salad • First cuts • Lettuce overnight • Fresh lettuce • Seedlings everywhere!
Steve Mudge said,
February 25, 2008 @ 9:56 pm
Agreed on the Black Simpson–has survived everything the winter has thrown at it down here and still chugging along. The Endive/escarole types have also done great.
Ethan said,
February 25, 2008 @ 11:30 pm
I have some growing in my lawn (North Texas area), not well, but it is alive.
Andrea said,
April 23, 2008 @ 8:59 am
I just bought some from a local organic store… I planted them in pots until my garden is ready. I’m in MD so we’re not cleared of frosty nights just yet. When/how do I harvest lettuce? This is my first try at gardening vegetables other than tomatoes in pots on a balcony!!! :-) Thanks for any advice or tips you can give this gardening newby!
Mike (tfb) said,
April 23, 2008 @ 11:20 am
Andrea: Lettuce is real easy, as long as you don’t have deer or rabbits or anything else that munches on it. Simpson Elite is a leaf lettuce, the individual leaves stand out (not like head lettuce, your typical iceberg lettuce, which is balled up kinda like cabbage), so you can pick off the big outer leaves for a while, it’ll keep growing, you keep picking! This way, you can get fresh salad for maybe 3-4 weeks. After that, it’ll start going to seed, it’ll start growing tall and pointy, and at that point, the leaves turn bitter (you’ll know it when you see it happening…!) Or you can wait till it looks nice and full and cut the whole thing off at the stem. That’d be around the days to maturity date that’s probably on the seed package. Simpson Elite is around 45 to 50 days from germination.
With lettuce, you should plant several times in the season. This is called succession planting. Instead of planting, say, 12 plants at one time, plant 4, wait 2-3 weeks, plant 4 more, and wait and plant again. That way, you don’t get a whole lot of lettuce all at once, and then none. Some veggies produce all season, like tomatoes, but others you’ll probably want to succession plant to keep a steady supply.
Veggie gardening is real easy. It can seem complicated before you try, but as soon as you’ve grown and EATEN just one successful crop, you’ll be hooked and you’ll be waaaaay more confident. And don’t worry if something doesn’t work out, just keep planting. a little experience is everything!
A good garden book that you like browsing is also indispensable. But an easy start is to look up your crops on the web, like “how to grow lettuce.” Read a few of the pages you find. Don’t worry about all the different details, just pick up what seems useful to you… Once you’ve grown something, it’ll all make much easier sense.
If you like radishes, try those, just seed ‘em directly in the garden right now, don’t worry about cold snaps. Radishes grow fast, around 30 days, and they like cool weather, they generally don’t do well in the really hot summer. They’re good for a quick first harvest at this time of year.
It’ll be great!