Greens, greens and nothing but greens!

Spring is finally here at the Frosty Farm.  It’s always fun to see what comes back from the following year.  I’ve got a number of greens “going rogue,” as my BFF, Sarah Palin, says.   Arugula, kale, lettuce, and ton and tons of cilantro.

 

I planted some from seed in the flats here.  The arugula is off to a great start, but the lettuce is slower by a landslide.  The arugula seeds are new this year, from The Hudson Valley Seed Library, but the lettuce I used a pack from last year.  Germination rates should still be pretty decent for seeds that are only a year old, but this is terrible.  Each pod had five to seven seeds, but as you can see, very few sprouted.

    

Part of the problem might be the cool spring temps we saw in late April.  Temperature is a major factor in seed germination.  Lettuce germinates best with temperatures of 65 to 70, but I’ve found can tolerate 55, however as we know, the early spring temps were in the 40s.  I am guessing this is an evolutionary tactic to not sprout too early, in case there’s a frost.  Some species need a period of cold before they will sprout, called vernalization.  The seed stays dormant until exposed to cold, so that it will sprout in the spring, instead of dropping in the fall and re-sprouting next time it rains.

  

It's still early, so I don't have too much to work with, but these spring greens make a great base for a salad, baby kale, baby chard, arugula and lettuce.