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Post by ottawagardener on Jun 21, 2011 15:00:04 GMT -5
Besides, amaranth and purslane, what would you suggest. I know people often say the goosefoots like lamb's quarters, magenta spreen and so on, but I find they get a bit tough as the summer goes on and are better as cooking greens. Except for swiss chard, I guess.
Give me your excellent ideas! Also open to hearing (and trading for) really good summer lettuces.
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Post by atash on Jun 21, 2011 16:46:32 GMT -5
"Profusion" Sorrel in small amounts. It's sterile so it never bolts so it never turns bitter. In my climate close to 12 month a year harvest season. It's quite sour with oxalic acid so small amounts only.
Mint varieties with especially tender, non-hairy leaves. No idea if Vietnamese Mint is coldhardy but it would be a good one. Check Richter's mint list for prospects. Mints turn tough with age and hot weather, but you can sort of force flushes of new leaves if the weather is not too hot.
Collards in small amounts. In my part of the world, collards are non-heading cabbages; in certain parts of the world they are called "Kale" despite being distinct from Kale (Kale is a smaller, more "salady" vegetable with a different chromosome count, that does not handle heat as well).
Brassica carinata, sown multiple times and harvested PROMPTLY. Brassica carinata grows and bolts quickly, like Mustard Greens. Probably a stabilized hybrid between a collard and a mustard. Bred in Ethiopia for the rainy season and common throughout much of eastern Africa. Look for the variety "Texsel" (Texas Select).
You already mentioned Purslane, but it's worth pointing out that it could be dramatically improved. The problem is that wild purslane is a tad high in oxalic acid, but domesticated purslane is extremely determinate. For all intents and purposes, you only get a few leaves--well, that's all I get.
Mine blooms poorly too.
Ideal situation would be to restore the indeterminate habit of wild purslane, to create a "cut and come again" green.
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Post by 12540dumont on Jun 21, 2011 16:59:05 GMT -5
red ace beets or golden beets
champion or Georgia collards
Rainbow mix chard - Bountiful Gardens
The above 3. I pick as mini's. Raw or stir friend. One 50' row feeds 8 families once a week. These last all the way till fall.
Summer Crisp lettuce - & Bolt Resistant & Heirloom lettuce mix from Bountiful Gardens All have stood the heat here. (It's 99 today)
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Post by lavandulagirl on Jun 21, 2011 17:23:28 GMT -5
I have zero luck with lettuces for dry, hot summers. I can fix the dry, but I can't fix the heat! Everything I have ever tried gets so bitter. If anyone has suggestions for a summer of avg mid 90's, zero humidity at about 2000', I'd love to hear them. Otherwise, I'll be eating only spinach salad out of the garden. I am going to try close seeding lettuce and picking it at "baby stage". It just means growing more, and planting more, I guess. 
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Post by atash on Jun 21, 2011 18:23:02 GMT -5
Lavandulagirl, domesticated Purslane (for that matter, wild too) does not turn bitter in heat, or when it blooms. That seems to be true of that family in general (Portulacaceae).
If you don't mind the slightly mucilaginous texture, Malabar Spinach might be a good bet. Some people like it better than the real thing. It likes humidity but is so heat-tolerant that it should be OK with irrigation.
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Post by lavandulagirl on Jun 21, 2011 18:50:00 GMT -5
Thanks, Atash. I grew Malabar Spinach last year, but it refused to grow til really late in the season. I think my site choice made the difference - it got watered, but not irrigated, if you get the difference. I may try it again. Purslane is a wild crop here. I'm generally busy trying to keep it out of the garden! Hahaha! If I could just convince my husband that planters on the lower deck were a good idea, I could probably get a lettuce crop in the shade there. Of course, that would just be til every animal in the neighborhood, domestic and wild, discovered it was there.
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Post by ottawagardener on Jun 21, 2011 19:32:38 GMT -5
I haven't had any luck germinating eitehr Malabar Spinach or or the other one whose name has slipped my mind at the minute. Must try again.
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Post by garnetmoth on Jun 21, 2011 19:49:27 GMT -5
I finally remembered to get my Egyptian spinach seed planted (jute)- Ive read its a great cooked green. Sweet potato greens are great cooked- I may try them both raw and report!
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Post by steev on Jun 21, 2011 21:59:01 GMT -5
Arugula
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Post by ottawagardener on Jun 22, 2011 12:34:34 GMT -5
Arugula is a fav of mine. I have some in seed and some at the baby leaf stage. Sweet potato greens: genius. They are normally cooked no?
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Post by extremegardener on Jun 23, 2011 12:03:09 GMT -5
I've had good luck with succession plantings of frisee endives, sow thick and eat young (micro greens). I also do arugula and cilantro that way - I can never seem to plant enough cilantro. Bear in mind I'm in a cold wet place, so good greens are not too hard to keep going here through the summer. I also have a partially shaded, moist soil garden area for greens. Beetberries (chenopodium capitatum) theextremegardener.com/?p=12 are fine for salad greens, as well as salad fruits, especially if the plants are well fed and watered. Again, succession plantings are the key I think... |
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Post by garnetmoth on Jun 24, 2011 8:27:57 GMT -5
thanks for the reminder Extreme, Ive got beetberry seeds I have forgotten to get sown (I started some in late winter but it took a while to quit being so wet here)
Ottawa- I havent tried sweet potato raw, but our kept rabbits love them.
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Post by 12540dumont on Jun 24, 2011 19:29:01 GMT -5
Can you can the berries?
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Post by steev on Jun 24, 2011 20:46:43 GMT -5
Sure, but I can't imagine why you'd want to; for me they're rather unproductive and fairly insipid. They're worth adding to a salad, whenever there are a few.
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Post by extremegardener on Jun 25, 2011 10:32:49 GMT -5
I second Steve, they're not worth canning, though I would call the flavor delicate instead of insipid  . The berry structure is also too delicate for canning, but good added to kimchee, or other lacto-fermented concoction |
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. The berry structure is also too delicate for canning, but good added to kimchee, or other lacto-fermented concoction