Mesclun Mix: How to Plant, Grow, and Harvest Gourmet Greens

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through links on our site, we may earn a commission.

Growing mesclun mix in garden beds and containers is a quick and easy way to enjoy a non-stop crop of gourmet salad greens. Mesclun is a blend of greens that includes lettuce, arugula, kale, and spinach which are picked when still immature. Mesclun greens make delicious and beautiful salads with a variety of colors, textures, and flavors. In this article you’ll learn how to plant, grow, and harvest mesclun mix as well as discover 10 awesome types of mesclun greens.

You may have spotted mesclun salads on menus in upscale restaurants or in gourmet salad packs at the grocery store. Or maybe the vendors at your local farmers’ market sell bags of mesclun. But what is it? Mesclun mix is blend of gourmet baby greens with origins in France where tender wild greens were gathered for salads. A mesclun blend typically includes crops like lettuce, spinach, tatsoi, mustards, and curly endive which are harvested immature and enjoyed as baby leaves.

I love growing mesclun mix in my garden because it’s delicious and very quick to grow with the first harvests beginning just 3-4 weeks after seeding. Most mesclun blends contain a wide range of greens with varied leaf flavors, colors, shapes, and textures.

As with most types of vegetables, mesclun mix grows best in a garden bed or container that receives full sun. If you have more shade than sun, you can still have success with leafy greens, but try to give the plants at least 3 to 4 hours of light each day. The best soil is fertile, loose, and well-draining and I amend the garden with an inch of compost before planting