It is officially gardening season in Northeast Missouri, and each day I dip into my seed storage container and start a few varieties indoors and direct sow a few more in the garden. I’m a firm believer in a slow and steady approach to gardening – even a half hour’s work each day will lead to a lot of food!
Right now, I am focused on growing salad greens. My early spring standards always include lettuce, kale, swiss chard, mesclun, and collards. But this spring, I’m feeling a bit sassy, so I’m throwing a few more favorites into the mix.
I’ve selected five of my favorite spring greens to share with you today. These five greens are easy to grow, and will add a little diversity and flavor to your salad blend.
Five Spring Greens to Add to your Garden
MIZUNA
Mizuna is a delicious and tender Japanese green that you can eat raw in a salad blend, or cook like spinach. I love to graze on it straight out of the garden. I have both green Mizuna and Red Streaked Mizuna started in my garden. As an added bonus, mizuna is very cold-hardy, so it’s a wonderful green to plant in the fall as well; mine survived temperatures well below freezing without cover.
CORN SALAD
Corn salad forms small rosettes of greens, and is one of the first greens of the spring. Some sow corn salad seeds in the fall, but I have been sowing starting in mid-winter for a mid-spring harvest.
DANDELIONS
A 6 month old Ella Rose munches on dandelion greens.
You’ll probably think me crazy, but I am actually starting dandelion seeds this spring! Our property has plenty of invasive fescue, but not a single dandelion. I miss their gorgeous blooms, and Brian loves their slightly bitter greens. Dandelions are high in iron, calcium, and potassium, and wonderful in salads.
PURSLANE
A low crawling and spreading “weed,” purslane is high in Vitamin E and Omega 3 Fatty Acids. It also makes an amazing salad. Last summer, our neighbor Julia brought over a salad made of purslane, tomato and feta. I was instantly hooked on this combination, and for the rest of the summer, I bought purslane by the pound from a local organic farmer.
ARUGULA
Arugula has to be one of my favorite greens. I love the somewhat spicy flavor, and use it in salads and pesto. It even tastes great cooked – I’ve been to several gourmet pizza restaurants that serve up arugula-proscuitto pizza. For a more mild flavor, harvest arugula when it’s very young.
What are your favorite spring greens?
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I love your list, and looks like I’ll be wandering your site finding lots of other things that’ll bring a huge smile to my face – any site with chickens usually does that for me, lol, but you have lots of my favorite subjects rolled into one here! *two thumbs up*
You mentioned finding Baker Creek, but there’s a few other fantastic seed companies around locally, too. 🙂 Granny’s Heirloom Seeds is a Missouri company I’ve liked for years, and there’s also Clear Creek Seeds and Dust Bowl Seeds from Oklahoma that I’d recommend, too. None of them are as HUGE as Baker Creek, which even has another branch in CA, but they’re all great, and each has things Baker Creek doesn’t have. As a huge bonus, every one of them have signed the Safe Seed Pledge!
Thanks so much for the recommendations, Mary Ann! I’ll check those ones out, especially the Missouri seed company. Glad you stopped by!
We eat a lot of spinach and are going to grow arugula for the first time this year. So glad I discovered your blog through the hop!!
Glad you found it! Welcome!
Why can’t I make myself like Mizuna?! That’s a great list and I thank you for sharing it at Green Thumb Thursday – hope you’ll join us again tomorrow!
Spinach is my all time favorite!
This would be an amazing win. Thanks or the contest!
I like spinach. After reading your post I’d really like to try purslane!
I lve baby romaine and baby spinach!
Baker Creek is wonderful, I got the majority of my seeds from them this year. 🙂 My favorite greens come from the lawn down on the acreage I do chores at. Chickweed grows there, and dandelions, and violets, and wood sorrel, too, and it is purple!! I love when they are all flowering at the same time! I think I’ll be starting some garden seeds tomorrow, yay spring!
Spinach and kale are my favorites, but I can honestly say I’ve never tasted a green, either raw or cooked, that this Grandma didn’t like.
My favorite spring greens are dandelions.
we are so ready for wilted lettuce! we like the black seeded simpson for this, but love all types of greens. love your page!! 🙂
I love spinach, kale and Swiss chard!
Our favorite greens are spinach & kale.
Our favorite greens are kale. spinach and dandelions. Thanks for the chance to win!
Spinach and lettuce but have been wanting to try something different.
Never thought to eat dandelion greens! I’m a big fan of arugula myself, but I’ve never had any others of these. Going to have to try them out some time. 🙂
Some of my favorite spring greens are colorful lettuces and violets. I love Baker Creek seeds and had great success with my tomato and zinnia seeds I purchased there when I visited during one of their festivals in MO last year. Thanks for the chance to win and try some new varieties. :0)
Don’t forget Lamb’s Quarter! My purslane has been wonderful this spring; I have some regenerating in a large pot and get a salad’s-worth just by trimming the tops.
Hello! I understand if you can not answer my question, but are you near Memphis MO? We have friends that live there that we visit often and are thinking of moving there as well. We have looked in Greentop, Gorin, and around the Kirksville area for acreage. So far, no luck….. We want a small home and 5 or more acres.
Thanks for your time, Heather
Haven’t tried corn salad, sounds interesting. have you tried tatsoi, it’s a favorite of mine.
I love dandelion, violet greens, chickweed, and lambs ear. 🙂 I nibble on my yard and watch the neighbor’s goats get jealous! 🙂
Thank you for hosting the giveaway!
I’m a beginner gardener and would love to give growing some greens a try!
Thank you for hosting the giveaway!
I’m a beginner gardener and would love to give growing some greens a try!
I feel really silly now. And I don’t see a way to delete my comments and start over. My favorite spring greens are spinach and that speckled lettuce. I didn’t see the instructions for the comment until after I first commented.
No worries! I love all comments!
Love garden green!
Make that, garden greens. Haha, I like green gardens too.