GROWING LETTUCE

Edits and additions will  be in the color which matches the date.

The picture on the left is of lettuce, April 2009, in our Cold frame/Green house at 9A.M.  It is a double layer plastic hoop house.  The light green red tipped lettuce on the right is Prize head.  The darker green on the far left is Bibb.  The Red in the middle is probably Lolla Rossa, a small, very frilly dense lettuce.

You can see the space heaters sitting around.  Occasionally we have dips to 0 in our valley in April.  The hoop house doesn't maintain the heat at those temps at night.  We splurge if we see it will be that cold and turn on the heaters late in the evening to keep the plants from getting freezer burn.

I planted my seed on February 21, 2012.  Normally I would use a propagation chamber to start them in.  The following is the blog I wrote about our propagation chamber we use: 

http://organicinstlouis.blogspot.com/search/label/SEED%20STARTING%3A%20%20Building%20a%20Propagation%20Chamber

I didn't use the chamber this time because I wanted to see what results I would have with out it.  Another change I made in my routine was I didn't follow moon signs.  I usually plant seed for plants which grow above ground before the moon comes full,  the dark side is reserved for root crop seed.  When I planted the lettuce the moon was definitely going to the dark side. 

We have a room with large windows which we keep on the cool side.  It is around 62 degrees. 

I figured they grow outside in the cold ground I would try it with out the heat source

and see how fast my seeds sprout.  All seeds were planted in plastic trays.  The ones the chocolate covered grahams come in. They were slipped into a gallon plastic bag to keep the humidity up.  they were planted in thoroughly moistened, soilless potting mix of perlite and ground peat moss.  I pressed a trough about 3/8 inch deep into the packed "soil" and lightly covered the seed(just barely).  Then I lightly pressed the covered seed.  I did not water it in because the medium was wet.

GERMINATION CHART

I planted approximately 25 seeds in each tray. 

(I used tweezers but sometime the color of the seed made it difficult to keep track of how many went in.)

Seed planted February 21, 2012

 Germination began on FEB 22.  I didn't count the seedlings because they were so tiny.  I did make a note of which boxes had no germination.  The chart has the variety, the seed company, the date purchased, and the seed color.   I will chart the seed up through their transplanting into the ground.  There will be notes following the chart typed in the color of the day. 

                                                                                                  FEB  22         25       29      Mar 1                                                                                                                                                       moving day
The green name, below the name, is the abbreviation used on the labels used in the trays on moving day.

1.  RED ROMAINE         Baker Creek  2012    white seed                           17        22             22
     RED
2.   MARSHALL COS      Henry field    2010    white seed               0           0          3            

3.  PARIS WHITE COS   Shumway      2012    white seed                            22        22            22
     COS
4.  BUTTERCRUNCH     Shumway      2012    brown seed                           23        24            23
     BC
5.  BURPEE BIBB           Burpee          2012    brown seed                           22        23            23
     BIBB
6.  PRIZEHEAD              Shumway       2012    white seed                            24        24            24
     HEAD
7.  FOUR SEASONS       Burpee           2012    black seed                            17        20            20
     4
8.  ANNAPOLIS              Veseys           2010    brown seed            0              1          7

9.  VULCAN                    Veseys           2010    white seed              0              0          0 

10.  SANGRIA                Veseys           2010     brown seed            0             1          8

11.  REVOLUTION         T&M              2008    black seed      0              0          0

Feb 22:  The open (no count) is because they were so numerous and close together it was difficult to count.

Feb 25:  They are very tiny maybe 1/8 inch.  Today it is very cold after a fabulous 60 degree day on Thursday.  So far the way the weather is looking I am glad I am starting the seeds early.  It looks like if I can get a garden area dear proofed I can put some plants out.  (but this is St. Louis...wait 5 minutes and the weather changes).

Feb 29: Some of the older seeds did sprout.  The sprouts are on the deformed side and staying very tiny.  I don't have any seed from 2011.  The above tells me, lettuce seed older than 2 years is not to be counted on no matter how good the storage conditions are.

The picture on the left is the seedlings today.  I re-use domed pastry containers to put the trays in.  The trays are the plastic inserts which hold chocolate covered graham crackers.  I poke holes in the corners of each tray so they will drain and not be soggy. The domed carton keeps the surface damp for germination and provides growth room till they get their second leaves.  these I noticed are at that stage.  I will be transplanting them today if I have time after I transplant the cabbages and broccoli:  http://organicinstlouis.blogspot.com/2012/02/seeds-sprouted.html

Picture on the left is a close-up of the closed container.  The right is the open container showing the little trays. 

We are always keeping our eye out for container to reuse as little green houses.  (The rotisserie chicken boxes are good for rooting woody herbs in.)

March 1:  Today I moved the seedlings.  They were just starting to show the bud of the second set of leaves.  I normally wait till the second set is well on it's way but the stalk of the plant was tending to legginess.  I used the smallest cell Styrofoam tray I had.  It was difficult to get the root mass in the holes.  Next time I plant lettuce seed I will direct plant these cells and cover the tray with plastic wrap.  I was using tweezers anyway to pick up the seed and put it into the cracker trays.  (The only advantage so far I have seen is that I could have put the trays in my propagation chamber which is warm.) We had fast germination at the 60 degree room temperature.

The buttercrunch had one seed that was recently sprouted and had almost no roots so I destroyed it rather than transplant it.  The other 5 varieties what growth there was was stunted I did not transplant them.  I will be feeding the birds the remaining seed. (This is another advantage to being organic.  You can give your old seeds to the birds).

When I moved the transplants to their new home I didn't have my list.  I made tags to label the rows.  I abbreviated their names for the tags.  For this tray I will use this system but I will still use their number in the above list for identification.

The pictures and writings on this and any of my blogs are my own.  If you would like to use them please contact me for permission.  (If I use something from a source not my own I will make note of it ). 

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Sewing, Quilting, Cooking, Poetry and prose and a little gardening

new blog February 16, 2012 "5 Panel Boxer Shorts: tutorial"

VALENTINES DAY: PLANT SEEDS OF LOVE

This is a seed starting blog.  The information begins the 6th paragraph down. 

 

I have been ask more times this past week, than I want to count; "What are you going to do for Valentines day? Or what Do you want for Valentines?" Romance has always happened around nature for Hunny and I. Bird watching, Hiking, camping, gardening, and of course cooking. Our most romantic times have been the unexpected ones when we have been physically exhausted from a day of endeavors.

 

 

If you bring me chocolate covered strawberries, I am not impressed but to see a package of strawberry plants thrills me no end. (We prefer our chocolate dark and unadulterated) In this economy the thought of going out and spending money for a dinner with an exorbitant price tag floors me. Technically the idea of getting overdressed for the occasion and then the long drive to and from the place leaves me cold...and knocks the romance out of the occasion. (It seems the meal served is not what it is purported to be.)

 

 

Friday night I retrieved a leg of Lamb out of the freezer. It was left to thaw (wrapped) in the kitchen sink. Saturday morning I deboned it. This is an arduous task. Not one that I enjoy. If it had been purchased, the butcher could have done the dirty work. It wasn't, it is one of our farm raised lambs.

 

 

The reason I debone the leg is to make a butterflied leg of lamb. It's preparation is one learned from a Julia Child cook book. After all the hard preparation work the finishing is a breeze. You run to the green house for enough rosemary to make about 3 TBS when the leaves are stripped from the stems. Chop them on the fine side. Put 3 large cloves of garlic through a garlic press and mix with the Rosemary. I tweak her recipe a little, I add more of some of the ingredients. Place the herbs in a gallon plastic bag and add 2 TBS lemon juice, 3 TBS olive oil, 2 TBS soy sauce, and mix well. Place your lamb in the bag and squeeze the marinade around it. Store in the refrigerator and turn every hour. (this step can be done the day before.)

 

 

The Lamb will be served with garlic mashed potatoes. We are not fond of dirty mashed potatoes so these will be peeled. Lamb says spring. Spring isn't quite here so it is into the freezer I head for asparagus harvested last spring. One hour before you are to cook your lamb, remove it from the fridge. This allows the meat to come to room temp. Forty minutes before the lamb is to be served preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare the broiler pan (spray with a cooking spray). Put marinated lamb, skin side up on the pan. Arrange the lumpy meat as much as you can the same thickness. (I use a meat pounder on the huge muscles before I put it in the plastic bag. It helps a little.) Put lamb in the oven, immediately turning the temp down to 375F. Cook for 20-25 minutes. I do 25 for medium rare. When the timer rings remove the lamb from the oven. Set the rack for broiler use. Set the temp on Broil (leave the door ajar). While the broiler is preheating, Baste the top of the lamb with 1 TBS Olive oil. Place under the broiler for 3-4 minutes to brown. When finished set on the side for 15 minutes before carving. While the meat is resting you can use the pan juices to make a wonderful gravy .

 

This was a Blog on Seed Starting which I haven't even addressed yet. That is what we spent Valentine's afternoon doing. Seed starting is a fairly rudimentary proposition at our house. We use recycled take out containers for propagation chambers. Ones with domed lids are the best. We also use the plastic trays from cookies and cover them with plastic wrap (don't use the multi-pack trays it is hard to extract seedlings from them). Another hint; Plant varieties that are the same in each tray I.E. lettuces with lettuces. Make sure all varieties have the same maturation times, you disturb the roots of the adjoining rows when one type sprouts before another one and you try to remove them.

 

For starting seeds you can purchase a seed starting mix but we usually mix our own if we can't be sure of the contents of the mix. We use a mix of 3/4 peat and 1/4 vermiculite. When you open your mix bag or mix your own you need to moisten it. DON'T dump cold water in it. The peat in the mixture will just float around on top of the water, not absorbing it. We heat the water very hot in the microwave. (Hot water from the tap can have copper leached from the pipes in it).  When the water is heated the peat absorbs it immediately.  Stir until it is absorbed.  I usually prepare my potting medium the day before  I need it so it can cool down. 

 

We put at least 1 inch to 1 1/2 inches in the container depending on how deep the container is.  After planting we place them in our fancy propagation chamber.

 

 

Fancy propagation chamber directions:

We use Styrofoam cooler. Inside you will find a yogurt maker. Remember the ones that were the rage in the 70's (I find them for a dollar or less at the resale store). They are put in the bottom of the cooler and a piece of heavy cardboard with slots cut in it(for heat circulation) is placed over the "maker" for a shelf. We place the small take out containers on this. A word of caution. Test your homemade propagation chamber to make sure the temps stay under 80 degrees. If the heat is higher than this you need to open the lid a scosh.  Different seeds have a different preference for sprouting temps.

 

When seed starting beware that some seeds need light and moisture to germinate. There are books, but the net is perfect to look up the requirements for the seed you are planting. Remember different varieties of the same plant may have different needs. I.E. some lettuces require light and some require being covered with 1/4 in. of medium.

 

 

Lettuces we planted:

Prizehead lettuce, a wonderful loose leaf lettuce. It is lime green inside, blooming to a beautiful burgundy on the tips. It stays sweet far longer than most varieties we've tried. It seems to have a longer storage in the refrigerator. Flavor, If you are looking for a lettuce with taste, this is one you will want to try. It is a large leaved lettuce with a mildly frilly edge. We purchased our seed from Shumway.

 

Revolution, This is an extremely dark red lettuce with a heavy fleshed frilly edged leaf. We thought it would be great when the heat came on but not! It turned bitter with the first hot day. We are trying it again planting it earlier to try to miss the hot days. It's flavor is not sweet but not bland either. Nice addition to a salad, definitely a treat for the eye. I recommend planting this one for accent in the flower garden even if you don't eat it. When it bolts it is a gorgeous 1 1/2 ft tower of deep red burgundy, verging on black red. We purchased our seed from Thompson and Morgan seed company.

 

 

Tropicana, a new variety for us purchased from Johnny's Seeds.


Green Ice, This is an old time lettuce which doesn't have a good shelf life so it is not usually grown for commercial production. It has a fragile leaf, but a taste that makes up for it's fragility. The leaf is frillier than most but not as frilly as a Lolla rossa type. It is a large leafed type which makes it great for sandwiches and lining trays for a party. Purchased from Shumway. I will be starting more lettuces today.

 

 

The photo is Cimmeron lettuce, a reddish cos type lettuce that could be considered a miniature vegetable. It's maximum growth is about 8 inches at most. These are just ready to transplant to the garden. They are about 4 weeks old.

 

 

On Valentines day Hunny and I did what we love most, gardening.

 

 

 



For more blogs by me, visit at:

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New blog, tutorial on how to make 5 panel Boxer Shorts.

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