{"id":677,"date":"2023-06-15T13:17:17","date_gmt":"2023-06-15T12:17:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/?p=677"},"modified":"2023-06-15T13:17:18","modified_gmt":"2023-06-15T12:17:18","slug":"growing-fast-summer-salad-crops-in-the-uk-rocket-mustard-cress-and-lettuce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/growing-fast-summer-salad-crops-in-the-uk-rocket-mustard-cress-and-lettuce\/","title":{"rendered":"Growing Fast Summer Salad Crops in the UK: Rocket, Mustard Cress, and Lettuce"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Summer is synonymous with salad. Fresh, crisp, and often fast-growing, salad crops are perfect for planting during the warmer months. This article will guide you on how to grow three popular fast-growing salad crops in the UK: rocket, mustard cress, and lettuce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rocket<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Rocket, also known as arugula, is a peppery leafy green with a quick growing cycle, often ready for harvest in just 3 to 6 weeks from sowing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Grow Rocket<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Sowing<\/strong>: Rocket enjoys cool conditions, so sow seeds directly into well-drained soil from late spring to early summer. You can also sow the seeds in module trays and transplant them when large enough to handle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing<\/strong>: Sow the seeds at a depth of 1 cm, spaced around 10 cm apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care<\/strong>: Keep the soil consistently moist but not waterlogged. Rocket does well in full sun to partial shade, so find a spot in your garden that fits these conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvesting<\/strong>: Pick the outer leaves when young and tender for the best flavour, leaving the central rosette to produce more leaves for later harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mustard Cress<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Mustard cress, with its distinctive spicy tang, can be harvested just 5-7 days after sowing, making it one of the quickest crops you can grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Grow Mustard Cress<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Sowing<\/strong>: You can sow mustard cress seeds virtually anywhere, from pots and trays to dedicated vegetable patches. The seeds should be sown on the surface of well-moistened compost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing<\/strong>: Spread the seeds as evenly as possible without any need for spacing, as you’ll be harvesting the cress when it’s still young.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care<\/strong>: Mustard cress prefers cooler conditions with indirect sunlight. Keep the compost consistently moist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvesting<\/strong>: Harvest the cress when it’s approximately 5 cm tall by cutting it with scissors. The best flavour comes from cress that’s harvested just as or just before it starts to leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lettuce<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Lettuce is another quick and easy salad crop, with some varieties ready to harvest as little as 3 weeks after sowing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Grow Lettuce<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Sowing<\/strong>: Lettuce seeds can be sown directly into the ground or in pots. For summer cropping, sow the seeds from mid-spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing<\/strong>: Sow seeds about 1 cm deep and 30 cm apart. If you’re growing them in pots, sow a few seeds per pot and thin out to the strongest plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care<\/strong>: Water well, especially during dry spells. Lettuces prefer cooler conditions, so in hotter summers they might appreciate some shade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvesting<\/strong>: Harvest lettuce by picking outer leaves as needed or cut the whole plant from the base.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tips for Success<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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  • Successional Sowing<\/strong>: To ensure a continuous harvest, practise successional sowing. This means sowing new seeds every few weeks so that as you finish harvesting one crop, another is ready to take its place.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Watering<\/strong>: Keep your crops well watered, particularly during dry periods. Lack of water can lead to bolting (where the plant prematurely goes to seed) or a bitter flavour.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Weed Control<\/strong>: Keep the area around your crops weed-free. Weeds compete with your plants for nutrients and water.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Protection<\/strong>: If pest insects such as slugs and snails are a problem, consider using organic deterrents or barriers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Summer is synonymous with salad. Fresh, crisp, and often fast-growing, salad crops are perfect for planting during the warmer months. This article will guide you on how to grow three popular fast-growing salad crops...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":678,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gardening-notes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenadvice.co.uk\/jane\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}