Just about all types of greens grow very well in our cool climate. They’re grown outdoors all summer, in the greenhouse fall, winter & spring, and in the cold frame in late winter to very early spring. We’re able to grow things like lettuces, endive, arugula, spinach, mustards, chards & kale. The only thing I’ve been unsuccessful with is radicchio, which I’ve attempted to grow several times with no luck–it doesn’t get very big/full and rots in the middle. I’m not a big fan of mustards, but they tend to attract flea beetles away from the things I do like, so I grow it and feed it to the ducks after the flea beetles have dissipated.

I often have way too much lettuce to eat, which is either given to friends or to the ducks. I try to plant in succession, at about 2-3 week intervals, but still often have too much. Spinach planted in spring usually lasts pretty much all summer; sometimes I’ll start a second batch around July 1 for later fall eating. I’ve tried to grow some for seed, but by the end of the season it isn’t usually ready to harvest the seeds. 

Many different Asian greens have seen their place in my garden. I’m not a real fan of cooked greens, so they usually end up as duck food. I’ve successfully grown things like kale, collards & Swiss Chard. Since the greens are so easy to grow, I won’t elaborate on the details of growing, but here’s some of my favorite varieties (Swiss Chard and Kale each have their own pages):