Mixed greens - growing salad greens

A salad mix of many kinds of tender leaves - needing only a great vinaigrette - is one of the most rewarding crops you can grow. Salad greens sprout quickly, and they're beautiful to look at in the garden and in a bowl.

The idea of a salad mix started in southern France as mesclun. (The name comes from the word mescla, which means to mix in the local dialect of Nice.) This regional specialty is a combination of tender, early shoots of arugula, dandelion greens, and new lettuce. Arugula, with its piquant flavor suggesting peanuts and mustard, is the key ingredient. Other ingredients in a mix might include chervil, chicories (curly endive, escarole, radicchio), lettuces, and mustard greens.

Lettuces commonly used in salad mixes are green and red loose-leaf such as 'Oak Leaf' and 'Tango'; small romaine such as 'Little Gem'; butterhead (butter or 'Bibb') such as 'Perella Red'; and crisphead such as 'Rosy'. All of these lettuces are tender and tasty with a smooth to slightly crunchy texture.

You can combine the seeds yourself or buy a seed mix. Fall is the best time to start them in the mild-winter West; in cold climates, wait until early spring or sow seeds in fall in a greenhouse or another protected area. For seed sources, see page 96.

PLANTING AND HARVESTING TIPS

Scatter seeds thinly on rich, well-prepared soil. Cover them with 1/4 to 1/2 inch of soil. Water well, and keep damp until seeds sprout. Pick when leaves are 1 1/2 to 2 inches long; harvest individual leaves or whole plants.

RELATED ARTICLE: FROM GARDEN TO KITCHEN

Salad Greens with Prosciutto and Shrimp

Golden calendula petals are part of this salad mix. Add shrimp and sizzled prosciutto to make a main dish for lunch or a light supper. For four servings, silver 1/4 pound thinly sliced prosciutto and stir with 2 teaspoons olive oil in an 8- to 10-inch frying pan over medium-high heat until lightly browned. Pour into a wide salad bowl and mix in 3/4 pound (about 4 qt.) rinsed and crisped salad mix, 1/2 pound rinsed and drained shelled cooked tiny shrimp, 2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger, 1/4 cup pear or rice vinegar, 3 tablespoons salad oil, and 1 tablespoon Asian (toasted) sesame oil.