Gadenin日本語Get the appThe shape of the season
This is a warm-season annual with a compressed life. Sown in spring warmth it germinates in one to two weeks, takes a slow month getting established, then spreads quickly through early summer and gives its best pickings through the hottest part of the year, exactly when other salad crops are bolting. It finishes abruptly at the first cold nights.
There are only four decisions that really matter. Sowing on the surface into a warm bright place; planting out into the leanest, sunniest, driest spot you have; pinching and picking from early on to keep it compact; and getting a second sowing in mid-season so the supply does not stop when the first plants flower. Everything else is watering less than you think and not feeding it.
From sowing to first picking is roughly ten to twelve weeks, and a well-managed plant then produces for two to three months. It is not a crop that carries over; each year starts again from seed.
| Stage | Trigger | Main job |
|---|---|---|
| Sowing indoors | Four to six weeks before the last frost | Surface sow on a firmed gritty mix in bright light |
| Transplanting seedlings | At two true leaves | Individual pots, strongest light available |
| Planting out | Nights above 45F (7C) | Full sun, gritty lean soil, sixteen inches (40 cm) apart |
| Establishment | First three to four weeks outdoors | Water sparingly, top dress with grit, pinch the tips |
| Full production | High summer heat | Pick tips weekly, salted water every week or two |
| Second sowing | Six to eight weeks after the first | Keeps young glittering shoots coming late |
| End of season | Nights below 40F (4C) | Final harvest, clear the plant off the bed |
Spring: sowing and getting plants started
Start indoors or under glass four to six weeks before your last frost. The seed is dust-fine, needs light to germinate and must not be covered, so sow it on the surface of a firmed, pre-watered, gritty mix and keep the surface just damp with a mist until it comes up. At 65 to 75F (18 to 24C) that takes seven to fourteen days.
The mistake at this stage is kindness. Warm, dark, rich and wet is the wrong recipe: dark and covered gives no germination, and rich and wet gives thin seedlings that damp off. Bright, warm, lean and only just damp gives short sturdy plants.
Transplant into individual small pots as soon as the seedlings have two true leaves, handling them with a label rather than fingers, and grow them on in the brightest place you have. Harden them off over a week before planting out, and let the pots run slightly dry during that week so the plants toughen up.
- Surface sow, thinly, and do not cover Mix the seed with dry sand so you can see where it falls, and scatter it on a firmed damp gritty surface. Press gently for contact, put nothing on top, and keep it in bright light at 65 to 75F (18 to 24C).
- Mist rather than water Keep the surface just damp with a fine mist or a clear lid until germination. A watering can washes the seed into corners and off the edge of the tray in one go.
- Transplant at two true leaves Lift each seedling with a plant label under the roots into its own small pot of gritty mix. Do it early, while the roots are still separate, and put them straight back into the strongest light.
- Harden off dry Over a week, increase exposure to sun and wind and let the pots dry down further between waterings. Plants moved straight from a sheltered warm bench into full sun scorch and check for a fortnight.
One packet holds far more seed than any household needs. Sow a pinch, keep the rest dry and cool, and it stays viable for the following season.
Summer: planting out and the weekly routine
Plant out once the last frost is well past and nights hold above 45F (7C). Choose the hottest, brightest, best-drained place you have, including spots that are too dry and reflective for other salads. Space plants twelve to sixteen inches (30 to 40 cm) apart, set the crown level with the surface rather than buried, and top dress with coarse grit so the sprawling stems never rest on damp soil.
Then do very little. Water by soaking thoroughly and letting the top inch and a half (4 cm) dry out before soaking again. Feed almost nothing, a weak balanced feed once a month at most. Every week or two, water with lightly salted water instead of plain, roughly a teaspoon in a gallon (5 ml in 4 L), which noticeably improves both the saline taste and the density of the bladder cells.
Pinch the shoot tips when they reach about six inches (15 cm) to force branching, then start picking weekly. Take the top three to four inches (8 to 10 cm) of shoots, no more than a third of the plant at a time, in the cool of the morning. That weekly picking is what keeps the plant compact, productive and out of flower.
Mid-season, sow again. The first plants coarsen and start to flower after a couple of months of picking, and a second sowing six to eight weeks behind the first takes over exactly when they do.
| Job | How often | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Watering | When the top inch and a half (4 cm) is dry | Soak thoroughly, at the base, in the morning |
| Salted watering | Every one to two weeks | A teaspoon per gallon (5 ml per 4 L) onto damp soil |
| Feeding | Once a month at most | Weak and balanced, skip it if growth is soft |
| Picking shoot tips | Weekly | Top three to four inches (8 to 10 cm), a third at most |
| Pinching flower buds | Weekly from midsummer | Buys several extra weeks of good leaf |
| Checking the crown | Weekly | Look for soft brown stems where they meet the soil |
Autumn: ending the season and recording it
The end arrives quickly. Growth stops as nights cool, the leaves toughen and the plant flowers in earnest, and the first frost destroys it outright. Take a final large harvest when nights start dropping below 40F (4C) rather than gambling on another warm spell, because the leaves are still good at that point and a single cold night can take the lot.
Clear the plant off the bed afterwards. Wet succulent material left to rot at soil level over winter holds disease and shelters slugs. If you have grown in a pot and watered with salt, empty the mix and wash the container out rather than reusing either.
Saving your own seed is possible but rarely worth the trouble, because a single packet holds enough for several seasons and the seed keeps well if you store it dry and cool. If you do want to save it, leave a few shoots to flower and set, and collect the capsules once they are dry and brown rather than green.
Then write the year down while it is fresh. Four dates and two observations are enough, and after two seasons they will tell you more about growing this plant in your garden than any general guide can, because the whole crop hangs on how bright, how dry and how salty your particular spot is.
- Take the final harvest at the first cold nights When nights head below 40F (4C), strip everything usable in one go. This crop has no slow decline; it goes from productive to collapsed within days of the first real cold.
- Clear the bed or empty the pot Remove the whole plant rather than digging it in, and discard used salty potting mix instead of reusing it. Wash containers before they are stored for the winter.
- Record the four dates Sowing, emergence, first picking and the day cold ended it. Those four numbers tell you next spring whether to sow earlier, and how long a productive season you actually get where you live.
- Note the position and how the leaves looked Write down where each plant stood and whether the leaves sparkled or went dull and soft. Position is the single biggest variable in this crop, and last year's note is the fastest way to choose this year's spot.
- Note when the second sowing came in Record the week the first plants flowered and the week the second sowing started picking. Closing the gap between those two is the whole trick to a continuous supply next year.
Store leftover seed in a sealed container somewhere cool and dark. It stays viable comfortably into the following season, so there is no need to buy a fresh packet every year.