If They Grow It, They Will Eat It!

Convincing children to eat their veggies may sound like an impossible task, but a research study conducted by Parmer, et al. found that “second graders who participated in school gardening as part of a nutrition education class increased their selection and consumption of vegetables at school, compared to second graders who did not participate in gardening”.[1]

If you’re an educator who wants to engage kids in growing and tasting fresh vegetables, lettuce is a great crop first crop, and it can be grown throughout South Carolina starting in February through early March.

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is an annual crop that is related to sunflowers. It prefers cool soil and air temperatures, growing best between 45 and 65 °F, which means that winter in South Carolina is the perfect time to grow lettuce. For information on growing lettuce, see HGIC 1312, Lettuce.

Warm weather will create bitter leaves and prompt the plant to bolt, which simply means it will complete its short life cycle more quickly by sending up flower stalks, creating seeds, and then dying. Fortunately, slow bolting and heat resistant varieties are available.

The easiest of all the lettuce types to grow is leaf lettuce. This type allows gardeners to ‘cut and come again’, meaning you can cut the outer leaves and leave the rest of the plant to grow and harvest more later. Leaf lettuce is also quite beautiful with chartreuse greens, ruby reds, and frilly leaves. Heat-tolerant varieties include heirlooms, such as ‘Black Seeded Simpson’ and frilly ‘Lolla Rosa’. One of my favorites is the fancy All-America Selection winner called ‘Red Sails’. For information on growing heirloom vegetables, see HGIC 1255, Heirloom Vegetables.

Other types of lettuce that can be grown just