It did very well last winter, but doesn’t seem to be doing so well this year so far, although we have had an influx of slugs and because of the dull damp conditions, there is a lot of rotting off and mildew. You win some, you lose some. Generally seems to survive most winters in polytunnels, but needs to be kept clean, remove any decaying leaves, and hoe round plants. 

Brightlights chard & rhubarb chard

I have grouped these 2 types of chard together because they are alike, except brightlights produces a variety of coloured leaves and the rhubarb chard is red or red veined. Sow these outside from April-July, in reasonably fertile soil, for cropping 4 - 6 weeks later. I grow most of mine in tunnels, I will make my first sowing mid March, then sow about 6 - 8 times up to the end of August. I find the outside crop will continue reasonably till about mid September and the inside crop  about a month longer. In a mild winter they will continue cropping through to the spring. The leaves tend to get a bit cardboardy, but still make a pretty garnish. If you leave 1 or 2 plants of rhubarb chard to grow to maturity, I think they make magnificent specimens for the ornamental garden.

Choy sum purple flowering

I think this makes  a good spring and autumn crop, because the cooler weather makes the leaves purple or have a purple tinge, where as in warm weather, it just has green leaves. Sow outside March - April for spring/early summer crop. I sow March, in polytunnels for cropping April-May. I will then make 2 - 4 sowings in late August - September for autumn/early winter salad crop. I find choy sum will survive some frost under protection and certainly should provide pretty salads up to Christmas.

Claytonia

Very good winter salad, should provide you with a good supply of leaves from October - April. We usually get 4 + cuts, the last crop in early spring is the best, because of the pretty little white, edible flower that is produced through the centre of the leaf. Claytonia is very hardy and will survive outside, of course if you have some protection it will do much better.

I sow it outside August/September for cropping from September onwards.

Sow in tunnels from August -November, (I have sown as late as 22nd Dec, this sowing produced a late spring crop, 3 cuts in late March - May)

When sowing claytonia make sure it is kept on the moist side. It does not like the heat so try to grow it in a shaded position , especially in the late summer. Some people say you can grow it year round , I disagree and think it is a waste of time trying to grow it in the summer.

American cress

Another good winter salad, similar taste to water cress. Grows well in most soil. This is another salad crop, that in my opinion is not really worth growing in the summer, as it too readily goes to seed. Sow outside late July - early September. Should be ready for picking approx 4 - 6 weeks later. Very hardy plant, will survive most winters and at the worst will provide a late crop in the spring before flowering. I grow it mainly in tunnels. Sowing from August - early October, it should then provide a crop, from September, right through to the following April, when it will produce yellow flowers, which are edible.

Greek cress

Peppery flavoured salad, with flat dissected leaves. I think it is best grown for spring and autumn salads. Will grow in most well-drained soils. Sow outside from early March - August, for continuous supply from late April - September. Sow in tunnels mid Feb - early April for spring crop and August - late September for autumn/winter crop. If growing through the winter, you must try to keep the plants well aired. I suggest, when sowing try to give plants a bit more room than in the warmer months. You will learn by experience. I’m still learning.

Red russian kale

I find this the easiest of the kales to grow. The name red russian is a bit of a joke most the time, more a greyish/green, turning pink in the colder weather, but nevertheless an attractive salad leaf and I am told by chefs has a good flavour. I don’t grow this in the summer. Grows best in rich, fertile, well-drained soil. I sow this kale directly in rows, rather than transplanting it. Sow outside July/August, for cropping late August onwards. I grow the majority of my crop in tunnels, sowing from August-September. It will usually provide 2 cuts early in the autumn, then stands through the winter till early February, when it seems to spring into life and I have cut it several times up to the end of April. Try to keep around the plants hoed and keep the plants trimmed. It will then crop handsomely.

Lambs lettuce

An old favourite for winter salads. All the varieties form rosettes. The hardiest variety seems to be vert de cambrai, but favourite is coquille de louviers, because I think it looks more attractive, slightly smaller rosettes, with inward curled dark green leaves. Grow in a sunny sheltered spot, in reasonably fertile soil. Sow outside August - September, for cropping from late September onwards, or sow under protection August - October. If possible cover outside crop in severe weather, although lambs lettuce is very hardy, a bit of protection helps provide much better quality plants.

Mibuna

It forms clumps of long thin leaves, has mild pronounced mustardy flavour.

Grows best in a rich fertile soil. Sow outside from April - August, will be ready for picking 4 - 6 weeks later. For an early spring crop, I sow in Feb/March, in poly-tunnels and for a late crop August/September. I find mibuna late usually produces the stronger crop, from Sept - Oct. You can now buy 4 types of mibuna , early, mid-season, late and green spray. Green spray is suitable to sow any time in the growing season. The other 3 have been bred to grow in the seasons.

Mizuna

Mizuna produces a clump of long finely dissected feathery leaves, similar flavour to mibuna, but milder. As mibuna, 3 types have been bred :- early, medium and late. Grow in rich fertile soil, not too free draining, it seems to tolerate wetter conditions than most the other oriental greens I grow. Sow outside March - August. I find it does well inside, sowing for spring crop mid Feb - early April and late August - early Oct for autumn/winter crop. To grow it through the winter, you will need to keep the plants tidy removing any decaying leaves and hoe round occasionally. It is easy to grow as I have had some growing through the tarmac outside the front door of my house.

Misome

Misome is a type of rosette pak choi, it seems to be more heat tolerant than tatsai. It produces a rosette of deep green oval shaped leaves and has a slightly bitter taste. I find it grows best in rich, fertile soil. Sow outside April - August. Also I grow it in tunnels through the summer and it seems to grow well, better than most the other orientals. I don’t find it a particularly hardy winter salad, it does fine up to November inside, but is prone to mildew, much more than most. I have found no information on this plant anywhere. I have grown misome for a couple of years, it seems quite popular with the restaurants we supply.

Mitsuba

Also known as japanese parsley. Its leaves form three heart shaped leaflets. Mitsuba has a distinctive flavour, of angelica and celery? I find it best to sow mitsuba in modules, from April - August. It grows best in reasonably fertile, moisture retentive soil. Plant out in position when plants big enough,( general guide when roots are protruding out of the bottom of the cells.) I plant them out about 10cms apart and leave 30cms between the rows. They are perennials, but I think for salad purpose, best treated as bi-ennials. If you like mitsuba, I think it gives you tremendous value, it crops over a long period from March - October, as long as you keep picking the leaves and remove any flowers, it  produces in the summer. It is worth growing a few plants inside if possible, as it extends the season a bit.

Chinese mustard

They all have mustard flavour, which strengthens with age, especially through the winter. Grow in rich, fertile soil. Sow outdoors March - August for summer crop. Sow under protection late August - early October for autumn/winter crop.

Chinese mustard green wave

It has attractive frilly edged, light green, oval shaped leaves. I find this mustard grows well outside through the summer. We sow it in March, in polytunnels for a spring crop and also August - September for an autumn crop.

Chinese mustard green in snow?

Since I’ve been growing oriental greens, I have been led to believe that the above name was correct, but now I understand it may not be. I will let you know when I find out.  Anyway, this mustard is best grown from either an early sowing late Feb - late March for a spring crop, or a late sowing  late August - early October for an autumn/winter crop. It is a  hardy plant. I grow it mostly in poly-tunnels, but it will grow outside alright. It is best to give it some protection from the frost. It has darkish green, flat oval shaped leaves.

Chinese mustard red giant

Excellent salad plant, tasty and very decorative. It has green leaves mottled or tinged red, in cool weather the whole leaf turns red. Red mustard can be cropped year round. It should grow outside April - October, from sowings made between March and September. For a winter crop we grow it in polytunnels, from sowings made between August and early October. For a spring crop, sow from early February - early March. Red mustard can be sown more-or-less anytime of the year, without any artificial heat.  I have sown it in an unheated tunnel in January and had a crop off it within 12 weeks.

Red and gold orach

Two attractive summer salad ingredients, very pretty for garnishing. These plants can grow to one and a half metres tall, but as long as you pinch out the tops when about 15 cms high, and keep removing the growing tips, until it starts flowering you will get at least 3 or 4 picks. I grow most my crops in tunnels, because they produce more tender plants, which are better for salads, although the red in particular is not such a deep colour as outside crops.They grow best in a rich, moisture retentive soil , in a sunny position. Sow outside May - July and thin out plants to 25cms apart, when large enough. Y ou can start them off a bit earlier, March-April, in modules and plant them outside when risk of significant frost is over, or plant them into prepared beds in tunnels. I think the best red variety to grow is crimson plume. As far as I know there is only 1 yellow available at the moment. Sometimes when young it produces a yellow upper side and the underneath has a pretty pink hue.

Pak choi joi choi

It is quite possible to grow this pak choi all year round, like most the orientals, I find it grows best in the spring and the autumn. Must be grown in fertile moist soil. Sow outside March - August, for continuous summer salads. If you want to grow some onto maturity, use thinnings for salads, until plants thinned out to 25cms, grow on and you will produce some nice plants for cooking ie: stir-fry or steaming. Sow under protection Feb - early April for spring crop and August - early October for autumn/winter crop.

White stemmed pak choi, round dark green leaf, crunchy juicy leaf stalks, makes, makes excellent salad ingredient, in my opinion.

Mei qing choi

Green stemmed pak choi, with oblong leaf shape. Same growing reqirements as joi choi, although I find it not as hardy 

Par-cel or Zwolsche krul

Looks like parsley, but leaves taste of celery. Can be used in salads sparingly, as it has a strong flavour. Apparently, a tasty soup can be made from it or a sauce to accompany lamb has been recommended to me. It will grow in most soil types and tolerates wetter conditions than a lot of crops. I sow zwolsche krul in multi-cells, from April - July, in polytunnel  covered with some fleece, in the warmest part of the summer I sow them outside in a frame. Make sure you keep seed moist, they are very erratic to germinate aand will take 3 - 5 weeks. When seedlings large enough to handle, plant outside leaving 15cms between the plants. I always grow some in our polytunnels, they will crop year round. Keep picking plants, and make sure you remove any flowers. Zwolsche krul is best treated as a biennial. If you do grow some inside, watch out in the summer, the flavour tends to get very strong. Another good point, slugs do not seem to like this plant.

Perilla or Shiso

I only grow the red perilla. It is a spectacular plant, but has a short season in this area. It has  dark red, nettle-like leaves, makes a good summer bedding plant in a warm summer. Perilla has an unusual citrusy flavour, makes decorative summer salad ingredient. I grow it only in poly-tunnels. Before sowing, it is best to chill seed (in sealed pkt) for a while. I sow in modules May - June, plant out seedlings when big enough, another which is rather erratic to germinate. It will grow in most soil. If growing outside, find a warm sunny position, sheltered from cold winds. Do not plant outside until all risk of frost is over. When its season is over I try to let the frost kill it off, before digging it out. A couple of years ago I grew the green version I  decided to remove it in August and broke my fork on it. So be warned it has a very good root system!

Summer purslane or Pourpier

I grow the green and the golden form. The green has a more erect habit than the golden. I personally prefer the golden. They both produce succulent leaves, that have a flavour of pea pods. Purslane grows best outside in light, well-drained soil, in a sheltered sunny position. Sow outdoors from May - July, or sow indoors April and transplant outside when risk of frosts are over. If it is a cold, dull summer, the purslanes don’t like it. Last year we had a cold couple of days in June, I went to have a look at a crop of golden purslane we had growing in a tunnel, thinking they should be ready to pick. They had dropped all their side leaves, it looked like autumn, they did recover to a degree. In an average summer they are very productive and well worth growing. If you have somewhere with some protection, it is worth sowing a few seed. I grow most of mine in polytunnels, because of the unpredictability of our climate

Leaf radish jaba

You can use this radish for the leaf, or the long white mooli type root. It is mainly grown for the leaves, which have a pleasant, slightly peppery, radish flavour. It grows best in a light, well drained soil, which has been manured for a previous crop. Do not use fresh manure. Sow outside thinly in rows from late March - August for a continuous supply through the summer. I sow in tunnels, from late August - early October for an autumn/winter crop, on cold nights I drape some fleece over them.

Wild rocket

I only grow this type of rocket now, although we used to grow the salad rocket, which is easier to grow, but the restaurants we supply, seem to prefer the stronger flavour of wild rocket. It forms rosette of thin deeply lobed leaves, I start picking, when the leaves are about 10cms long, make sure you remove any flowers, which are perfectly edible. Grows best in reasonably fertile, well drained soil. Sow outside from May - July for continuous summer salads, or sow under protection from April - August. I find it does better under protection. Be careful when sowing, not to get it too thick, as the seed is very small and the plants grow quite large. If necessary you can thin them, as soon as they are large enough to handle. I have always been told wild rocket is not at all hardy, but this year I have still got some, which is perfectly edible, not good enough quality for restaurants though and it is December.  

Shungiku or Chop suey greens

This is an edible type of chrysanthemum, the leaves have a very distinct flavour, a few leaves in a salad, will certainly give it a different taste, also the leaves can be cooked like spinach. It wil grow happily in most soil types. Sow thinly outside April - July. I think it best to thin the seedlings, to at least 20cms apart and let them flower, because they are very pretty, with varying shades of oranges and yellows. They will grow into large plants about 60cms high.   

Tatsai

Also known as rosette pak choi. It forms pretty rosettes, leaves usually deep green, round, thick and wrinkly. The stalks in particular have a crisp texture, I notice in colder weather the leaves tend to get slightly bitter, still a nice salad ingredient, also I am told it is a very useful vegetable for cooking ie: stir frying, steaming and in soups. Tatsai seems to grow best in a rich, fertile, moisture retentive soil. Sow outside from April - July for summer salads. I sow in tunnels from late August - early October for autumn/winter crop, will usually stand right through the winter, enabling you to pick some leaves. It is worth sowing some under protection in Feb - March for a spring crop, but watch out, because they are prone to going to seed easily at this time of year.

Tree spinach

Very pretty summer annual plant, has vivid pink tinged leaves. When you pick the leaves, you will find your fingers turn pink, because there is a pink protective coat on the underside of the leaves. I think it makes a stunning summer border plant, which can’t fail to stand out. It can grow into a fairly large plant, if you pinch out the tops and some of the side shoots it will bush out. You can use the shoots to really brighten up your summer salad. Tree spinach grows best in moist fertile soil, in a sheltered sunny position.

I sow the seed in modules from late April - early June, they are fairly slow to germinate, I put them in my tunnels and cover the modules with fleece.

When they are big enough to handle plant them out, if you are going to let them grow to full size, leave 30 - 40 cms between the plants, if you are going to keep them small, plant them close together. If we have a reasonable summer, they should be available from May - early September.

This year we had real difficulties trying to get them to germinate, then we noticed where we had grown them the previous season, there were little tree spinach seedlings everywhere. We transplanted the seedlings and had the best show ever. My advice is to leave a plant at the end of the season to go to seed. They really are extremely pretty.

Radicchio italiko

I only came across this radicchio in September 1997 and it has proved worthwhile growing. It has long green, red stemmed leaves, slightly bitter tasting. Italiko so far seems to grow year round, with no real problems. I think it is best to give it some protection in the winter. You will find in any mild spells, it will suddenly spring into life and provide a few leaves to use.  I treat it as cut and come again, picking leaves when they are about 10cms long, or less. You should be able to pick it several times. Italiko doesn’t seem to mind what type of soil it grows in. I sow it more or less year round in my polytunnels( which are unheated) except in January and early February. For summer crop sow outside in rows, from March - August. On 22nd Dec 1997, I sowed a few rows in a polytunnel and started picking it in the following March.  If you don’t keep picking it regularly, it soon grows into quite a large plant.