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Growers harvesting leaf lettuce varieties, popular greens
By Bobbie Whitehead
Some area growers have spiced up their salad mix with several different leaf lettuce varieties.
While traditional greens remain a mainstay of growers who sell fall crops, consumers and restaurant owners can buy fresh garden lettuce mix at the Suffolk City Market & Country Store.
Howard Piland, owner of B&H Produce, sells at the Suffolk market and has begun harvesting and selling his mesclun leaf lettuce mix, a popular mix for restaurants as well as home cooks with its varied taste due to the number of lettuces it contains.
Some area growers have spiced up their salad mix with several different leaf lettuce varieties.
While traditional greens remain a mainstay of growers who sell fall crops, consumers and restaurant owners can buy fresh garden lettuce mix at the Suffolk City Market & Country Store.
Howard Piland, owner of B&H Produce, sells at the Suffolk market and has begun harvesting and selling his mesclun leaf lettuce mix, a popular mix for restaurants as well as home cooks with its varied taste due to the number of lettuces it contains.
“I grew it last year for the first time, and it went over really well,” Piland said.
The mesclun mix includes eight different types of lettuces with ornamental mustard,red mustard, spinach and arugula being some of the varieties in the mix, he said.
Piland grows mixed greens throughout the winter by using “hoop” houses or handmade cold-frame covers for different produce items he grows. With the mixed lettuces, Piland said he’s able to harvest lettuce throughout the winter by mixing in lettuce types more resilient to the cold alongside a specific variety he’s growing.
“Sometimes I take and add different kinds of leaf lettuces, so when I cut the fast-growing lettuces, the next varieties come up afterwards,” Piland said. “This enables me to have a steady crop of lettuce throughout the winter.”
Some lettuce varieties don’t grow once the temperatures become quite cold, Piland said, but by using cold-frame covers, Piland said he’s able to continue to grow and harvest lettuce through the winter and into the spring.
For adults, the leaf lettuces serve as a good source of vitamins A, C, and K and enable them to meet the new food pyramid requirements, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In fact, the USDA’s new food pyramid shows eating one cup of romaine lettuce or spinach equals 1/2 cup serving of dark green vegetables. Mesclun lettuce is listed on the new food pyramid under the dark green vegetables subcategory, too.
Under this pyramid, the government suggests it’s important to eat more dark green vegetables, orange vegetables and dry beans and peas.
Along with lettuces, Piland has bins of collards, kale and spinach at the market, not to mention plenty of fresh tomatoes. Other items like fresh, raw peanuts and pecans have come in, too, and Piland still has butternut and acorn squash for sale.
A few new items that Piland now sells are organic oatmeal, lentils and black beans.
The mesclun mix includes eight different types of lettuces with ornamental mustard,red mustard, spinach and arugula being some of the varieties in the mix, he said.
Piland grows mixed greens throughout the winter by using “hoop” houses or handmade cold-frame covers for different produce items he grows. With the mixed lettuces, Piland said he’s able to harvest lettuce throughout the winter by mixing in lettuce types more resilient to the cold alongside a specific variety he’s growing.
“Sometimes I take and add different kinds of leaf lettuces, so when I cut the fast-growing lettuces, the next varieties come up afterwards,” Piland said. “This enables me to have a steady crop of lettuce throughout the winter.”
Some lettuce varieties don’t grow once the temperatures become quite cold, Piland said, but by using cold-frame covers, Piland said he’s able to continue to grow and harvest lettuce through the winter and into the spring.
For adults, the leaf lettuces serve as a good source of vitamins A, C, and K and enable them to meet the new food pyramid requirements, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In fact, the USDA’s new food pyramid shows eating one cup of romaine lettuce or spinach equals 1/2 cup serving of dark green vegetables. Mesclun lettuce is listed on the new food pyramid under the dark green vegetables subcategory, too.
Under this pyramid, the government suggests it’s important to eat more dark green vegetables, orange vegetables and dry beans and peas.
Along with lettuces, Piland has bins of collards, kale and spinach at the market, not to mention plenty of fresh tomatoes. Other items like fresh, raw peanuts and pecans have come in, too, and Piland still has butternut and acorn squash for sale.
A few new items that Piland now sells are organic oatmeal, lentils and black beans.
The mesclun leaf lettuce sold by Howard Piland of B&H Produce at the Suffolk City Market & Country Store includes eight different varieties.
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