Grow Great Salad GreensThere is nothing like eating a salad full of gorgeous greens that you've grown yourself. And today, there are so many vegetables out there that are easy to grow and that thrive right into the fall. They also grow so fast that you can actually impress friends at your next dinner party sooner than you think.
Look for cool-season vegetables, such as leafy greens: lettuce, spinach, turnips, Swiss chard and broccoli, for example.
Container gardens Even if you don't have a yard big enough for a vegetable garden, you can still grow salad greens in containers. Look for frost-proof pots, which can stay out on the patio all winter long.
Lettuces germinate quickly, and they double in size every week. In as little as three or four weeks, you'll be able to harvest a salad of micro-greens. To plant, just scratch up the surface of the soil a little and spread the seed evenly over the surface. Then just pat the soil to settle the seed. You don't have to cover them up. Then just give them a drink of water with a gentle spray to soak in the seeds, and keep the soil moist while the seeds sprout.
Consider doing a container that will provide vegetables and look beautiful in the process. One combination is a cayenne pepper plant, Swiss chard and variegated pepper. Rainbow chard is also very colorful and terrific for containers.
Raised beds. Raised beds warm up the soil earlier in the spring, and you can get the soil prepared in the area sooner. Use plants from the garden center that already have a good head start. Avoid chemical insecticides, since you're going to eat the vegetables. Try insecticidal soap or another organic compound that is safe for consumption.
If the temperatures take a plunge after you plant your veggies, cover them with a frost blanket, which will keep them just a little warmer.
![PHOTO](javascript:popup("http://img.diynetwork.com/DIY/2008/02/09/DTST-111_contain-veggies-flowers_e.jpg",350,450))
