SowThankful Farm Living Lettuce Garden Bowls with Care & Harvest Instructions

Living Lettuce Garden Bowls are the way to go if you love lettuce & fresh greens, you enjoy growing your own food & especially if you have very little to no outdoor growing space. Or it happens to be the middle of Winter. OR it happens to be the super hot heat of the summer and you have a nice, bright but cool sunroom.

Beginning the 2nd week in March 2023, limited quantities of Living Lettuce Garden Bowls will be delivered to Polks Folly Market in Cedar Crest, NM each Wednesday morning. Polks Folly Market is located at 12128 NM-14 in Cedar Crest, NM. They are open Wed-Sunday 10am-5pm.

The Garden Bowls (limited quantities) will also be available directly from our SowThankful Farm booth at the Cedar Crest Farmers Market when it opens in Mid-May 2023.  The Cedar Crest Farmers' Market operates on Wednesdays from 3pm-6pm in Mid-May to Mid-October. The Farmers' Market is located in the open lot just north of the Triangle Grocery at 12183 NM-14, Cedar Crest, NM

What could be fresher than eating lettuce immediately after you harvest & wash it?!
What's even better is that with proper care, the lettuce will grow back, giving you up to 3 months or more of fresh harvests. Re-growth time after cutting varies depending upon many factors such as how deeply the leaf was cut, bowl location, temperature & humidity, and soil moisture & fertilization; but new growth is usually seen within 3 days or so with leaves ready to harvest in 2 - 4 weeks or so after that.  Once it's done, you can empty, clean and clean the garden bowl then refill & seed again with either lettuce, small herbs or small greens of your choice.

Care & Harvest Instructions

TEMPERATURE: Most lettuces and many greens can take some cold and even light frost conditions, but we recommend keeping your Living Lettuce Garden Bowl in a temperature range of 50 degrees – 70 degrees for best production.
LOCATION: Please, NOT in the refrigerator.
An ideal winter location would be a cool sun room that is bright; but do not place the bowl very close to a window that receives direct sunlight. You want bright light but not close proximity to glass receiving direct sunlight as this may burn your lettuce or cause it to bolt (go to seed). Indirect light is fine. Grow lights are fine. Another great winter location could be a bright, unheated porch. With enough light (we recommend a minimum of 6 hours) and proper care, you can continue to harvest for at least a few months and possibly much longer.
In warmer spring and summer months, choose an area with bright morning sun that offers some shade in the heat of the day. This helps prevent some of the greens from bolting (going to seed).
WATER: It’s important to NOT let the soil completely dry out. Keep the soil slightly moist but not soggy/wet. It is not necessary to water every day, but we recommend checking the moisture level each day with your finger. If the top inch or so of the soil is dry–It’s time to water.
FERTILIZER: Salad/Lettuce/Greens require food that is rich in nitrogen. We recommend feeding an appropriate compost tea, the (discarded) water you used to boil vegetables, or a weak dilution of organic fish emulsion approximately every 7-14 day.
HARVEST: Twist off--or cut--the largest individual leaves from the outer sides of the plant(s) as well as any leaves that begin to overlap each other but be careful not to over-pick so plants maintain enough leaf surface for adequate photosynthesis required for regrowth and new leaves. When harvesting, don’t cut leaves too short, you want to leave approximately 1 -2 inches of growth above the soil line. 
NOTE: Always wash/rinse produce thoroughly before serving.
After you’re finished growing lettuce, you can empty & clean the garden bowl, refill with fresh potting mix and replant with your choice of lettuce, herbs or other small greens.