The salad belongs to the early ripening green crops. He is the leader in this group. An early harvest from your beds will provide your family with vitamin, environmentally friendly greens, and save money. You can even make some money on the sale of fresh salad if you wish.
To get a salad harvest in early spring, you need to pay attention to the following important points.
1. Choosing a place for growing
Despite the fact that lettuce is a cold-resistant culture, it should be grown in warm, sun-warmed, highly fertile beds, where early field work is possible. The best places would be near the southern wall of a house or barn.
Salads do not grow well on acidic soil. They do not tolerate the introduction of fresh manure. This must be taken into account.
2. Choice of variety
To get an early salad, you should give preference to early ripening varieties. Leafy lettuce grows in 40-50 days from sowing the seeds, giving good production in May in the open field. The head group has a longer growing period, 50-80 days. Head-shaped salads are best grown in greenhouses or greenhouse shelters.
Not every variety is suitable for early growing. Many lettuce varieties react differently to day length and can be shot. The most guaranteed of the leaf varieties: Kucheryavets Odessa, Lolla Rossa, Moscow Greenhouse, New Year, Delightful. From the head group: Arctic, Berlin Yellow, Four Seasons Miracle, Sprinter and others.
3. Growing seedlings will ensure an early harvest
Sowing seeds is carried out in cassettes (pots), if grown without picking. You can sow in boxes, then open the seedlings. Lettuce develops normally at moderate temperatures and watering. Additional lighting is needed when sowing seeds very early, for example, in February. The seedlings are between 5 and 7-8 weeks old.
Before planting, the plants are hardened.
4. Planting seedlings in the ground
Leafy varieties are planted in open ground according to the scheme: at least 15 cm between rows, about 10 cm between plants. For better survival, the plants are covered with non-woven material, and in case of sudden cold snaps, also with a film. Early lettuce grown outdoors is loosened and weeded several times, watered as needed.