Becky's Greenhouse
  • Home
  • BLOG: Gardening and You
  • Gardening Events
  • Flowers
  • About Us
  • Contact

How do you fix your fresh garden lettuce?  Share with us all.

5/29/2016

2 Comments

 
          I had a question yesterday about how to harvest lettuce so here is what I found.  This is what I told the young gardener.   I have several varieties of lettuce in containers so you can take home transplant, eat right away and have fresh garden lettuce.  I took one home and will have fresh lettuce today for our evening meal.  I have put in a recipe of a dressing like my mom used to make.  See what you think do you remember it?  How do you fix your fresh lettuce? 
How to Harvest Leaf Lettuce
  • Harvesting leaf lettuce is quite simple. Are you having salad for dinner? Walk out to the garden and pick the mature leaves. When you think about how to pick leaf lettuce, just remember that you don’t want to uproot the whole plant, which will cause the rest of the plant to die off. Be gentle and quickly snap off each mature leaf, leaving behind those that aren’t ready so the Lettuce should be harvested when full size, but just before maturity. You want it young and tender.
  • Before maturity, you can harvest leaf lettuce by simply removing outer leaves so that the center leaves can continue to grow. Butterhead or romaine types can be harvested by removing the outer leaves, digging up the whole plant or cutting the plant about an inch above the soil surface. A second harvest is often possible this way. Crisphead lettuce is picked when the center is firm.
  • Mature lettuce gets bitter and woody and it will go bad quickly, so check your garden everyday.
  • As time passes, you will want to cut the whole plant from the ground.
  • It’s best to harvest in the morning before leaves have been exposed to sun.
  • Keep lettuce in the refrigerator for up to 10 days in a loose plastic bag
Ingredients  for dressing for Garden Lettuce
1- 5 ounce can evaporated milk
1/4 cup cider vinegar
4 1/2 tsp white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
Whisk the evaporated milk, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper together in a bowl until the sugar is dissolved.  Chill until ready to use.
Till next time, this is Becky Litterer, from Becky's Greeenhouse, Dougherty Iowa Enjoy this great Memorial Day weekend...
2 Comments
Mary Kay Winke
5/30/2016 11:03:24 am

Mother would make a dressing using equal amounts of cream (I use sour cream) sugar and vinegar with some salt and pepper. For a family of 4 I would use 2 large T. of each.

Reply
Lorian Bartle
4/4/2018 02:40:12 pm

Excellent advice. All I can add is wash, wash, and wash the lettuce. Fresh lettuce is wonderful but the local bugs thinks so too!

Lorian Bartle

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Author

    Hi! My name is Becky and I am a Master Gardener. I own Becky's Greenhouse in Dougherty, Iowa.

    Archives

    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    October 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014

    Categories

    All
    Planting

Picture
Gardening and You Radio Show 
KLMJ every Saturday morning at 7:20 a.m., station 104.9, Hampton, IA
Becky's Greenhouse
80 South Main
Dougherty, IA 50433
Phone:  641-794-3337 
cell 641-903-9365
​
Larry's Garage
Shop: 641-794-3337
Cell: 641-318-2007
2023 Copyright
Gardening & You Blog
Contact
Radio Show Recordings
  • Home
  • BLOG: Gardening and You
  • Gardening Events
  • Flowers
  • About Us
  • Contact