Where’s the Salad Mix & Lettuce?

By Andrea Yoder

This week’s article was prompted by inquiries from several CSA members expressing that they would like to have more salad greens in the weekly vegetable shares. Valid request and we know our salad mix in particular is enjoyed by many for its convenience as well as its place as a staple component of many meals.  Well, you too may be wondering why we aren’t sending more salad mix, spinach, lettuce, etc. your way, thus we thought it would be appropriate to share the full story with you this week!  

First, a little history for you. Richard, being the pioneer of organic farming in the Midwest that he is, was a key part of the picture of introducing mixed baby greens to this part of the country. He visited growers on the west coast where he saw them growing baby greens and lettuces to make salad mix (also known as mesclun mix). He brought the concept back to the Midwest and spent many years refining our production system. Fast forward 30 plus years and salad mix/Mesclun mix is grown extensively across the country on much larger scale than our operation.  It’s easily available year-round on grocery store shelves, so if they can do it, why can’t we?  

Salad Lettuce Varieties in the Field

Well, it is possible to grow salad greens and head lettuce over the course of the entire growing season, and that was our plan at one time. We used to plant these crops weekly from early April into late September or early October. We invested in a mechanical cutter to harvest with so we could scale up production. And then after several years we realized, it’s just not worth it to grow salad greens or lettuce in the heat of the summer.  You see, lettuce, baby arugula, spinach, etc. actually grow best in the cool of the spring and fall. In fact, they thrive during these parts of the season, producing flavorful products with rich colors that just look healthy and vibrant. During the heat of the summer though, these delicate plants are stressed. They take on an “old” appearance early in their life and they are often bitter and/or have off flavors. The summer months are also intense times for weed pressure and we found, in some locations, that the weeds grew faster than the product! We’d lose the crop to a bed of purslane, and it felt very defeating.  One day we stopped banging our head against the wall long enough to ask ourselves “Why are we trying to force these vegetables to grow during the time of the year when they are stressed and struggling?”  There were other factors at play as well. Baby greens and salad mix in particular are very labor-intensive products.  During the middle of the summer, we have so many other things to do that, from a business perspective, are much more profitable. So we made the decision to change our planting plans to only include 4-6 plantings of baby greens, lettuce, etc. in the spring.  again in the fall while taking the middle of the growing season off.  We also decided to limit our head lettuce crops to early in the spring and mid-late fall. Head lettuce can quickly melt down in the heat of the summer sun, or it may decide it’s done with its life cycle and shoot up a seed stock.  Plus, it just doesn’t taste good in the heat of the summer!  The flavor is much more balanced and desirable when grown in cool weather.

So, what does that leave us eating when there is no lettuce or salad greens to use for salads during the summer? This is how we learned to appreciate how we can use other vegetables that do thrive during the heat of the summer to build delicious and nutritious salads to enjoy as a side or as a main entrée. This is my challenge to all of you, to embrace the practice of eating seasonally even when it comes to salad greens and lettuce. I know this is probably where some of you may sign off and say “I don’t think so Andrea.  A green salad is a green salad…no substituting.”  And that’s ok.  For those of you who are still with me, there are a lot of great salad options awaiting you!

Roasted Beet & Kale Salad with Maple 
Candied Nuts

Still staying in the realm of leafy greens, there are actually some really great options in the class of summer greens.  Some of the greens we enjoy during the summer include kale, chard, baby bok choi and cabbage. One of the things I actually really like about these vegetables is that they are more durable and can be tossed with dressing or vinaigrette in advance, without getting too soggy.  This makes them great options for taking on road trips, picnics or just taking them for your lunch on a regular workday. You can enjoy these salad creations as a side dish, or easily turn them into a main dish by adding a protein of your choosing such as beans, tofu, cooked chicken, grilled steak or fish.  Plus, in the heat of the summer entrée salads are a cool alternative to heating up the oven or stovetop to make dinner! At the conclusion of this article, I will include a few of my favorite recipes in this category from past newsletters and hopefully there will be a few that appeal to you as well.

Garlic-Scented Tomato Salad

The other types of vegetable salads we can enjoy may be built out of the bounty of summer vegetables we have available to us, such as cucumbers, zucchini, beets, peppers, carrots, eggplant, tomatoes, corn, green beans and even melons and watermelon! Really, the possibilities are endless! There are so many creative ways to use these vegetables in different salads. You may choose to make a salad with vegetables only, such as a creamy cucumber salad with slices of fresh onions or a tomato salad with garlic and herbs. Of course, you can bulk it up with the addition of pasta, cooked grains such as quinoa, wild rice, farro or couscous. Fresh feta or mozzarella cheese, f. h herbs, flavorful vinegars and oils, toasted nuts and seeds, croutons, fruit such as peaches, grapes, cherries, or apples……are you starting to see how vast and wide the potential is here?!

So, I’ll leave you with the challenge of seeing what fun and delicious ways you can fill the void created by salad greens this summer.  And when fall rolls around and we include beautiful head lettuce and those colorful, delicate baby greens in our boxes once again, know that they are in the height of their glory, thriving in the season that fits their style best. Have fun, get creative, and don’t forget to share your summer vegetable salad creations with all of us in our Facebook Group!

Here are a few of my favorite summer vegetable salads from past CSA seasons:

Roasted Beet & Kale Salad with Maple Candied Nuts

Bok Choi Salad with Sesame Almond Crunch 

Red Cabbage Slaw with Maple Mustard Dressing 

Summer Vietnamese Rice Noodle Salad (with Cabbage) 

Carrot Parsley Salad 

Swiss Chard Salad with Lemon, Parmesan and Breadcrumbs 

Grilled Corn and Kale Salad 

Summer Succotash Salad with Orzo 

Corn & Tomato Salad with Torn Croutons 

Grilled Eggplant & Quinoa Salad with Dates & Almonds 

Garlic-Scented Tomato Salad 

Red Pepper, Lentil & Tomato Salad