From Seed to Salad: How to Grow the Perfect Mix of Fresh Greens!
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
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Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting out, this video is your ultimate guide to growing the perfect salad mix. Join Curtis Stone as he delves into the essential techniques and expert tips for cultivating a diverse array of fresh greens that will elevate your salads to new heights.
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About Curtis Stone:
Curtis is one of the world’s most highly sought-after small farming educators. His book, The Urban Farmer, offers a new way to think about farming𑁋 one where quality of life and profitability coexist. Today, Curtis spends most of his time building his 40-acre off-grid homestead in British Columbia. He leverages his relationships with other experts to bring diverse content into the homes of gardeners and aspiring small farmers from around the world. Learn more at FromTheField.TV.
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Really good video.
I planted my first Curtis Stone style bed yesterday. I was very happy with how it turned out.
One of the most important things you can do as a farmer is to improvise. I can't stress that enough.
Keep up the good work.
Thanks
Thank you so much for putting these videos up Curtis and to show us how you do what you do.
Best front yard ever! Way to work it bro! You’re an inspiration!
Just wanted to thank you for sharing so much valuable insights. One of my favorite sayings is ´a wise man learns from his mistakes, but a genius learns from the mistakes of others´.. It is great of you to share all your experiences so that people coming after you don´t repeat things that you found out didn´t work well.
big fan! i work at a local hydroponic supply store in Columbus, Ohio and I've been spreading the word around your channel, book and your course. I'm actually planning to take your course after this season and put it in to action early next spring. thank you for sharing your talents and vision with the world, brother.
I'm from Portsmouth Ohio, I really want to start salad farming down here. Do you guys do Interns?
Holy moly - how freaking cool is your yard/operation?! Inspiring!
Thank you for your videos, I learn a lot from you. We will start up next year. Thank you Curtis. With kind regards Torben Gram, Denmark
Hi Curtis, How do you feel about Editable flowers in salad mix? Love your Videos!
I want to recommend mizuna to you! I love growing it for salad mix (young leaves) but also for stir-fry (older). Very decorative and presentable as well. Often my first cool weather salad greens of the year. It's a brassica but mild. You probably grow it already anyway. I just want to have said it. Thank you for the *great* videos!
+melovescoffee Grown it for years. Don't like the second growth. Too much decay on the old leaves.
I cant get enough of these videos, keep them coming Curtis!
Much Love Curtis Stone 🙏 Thank you for sharing your wisdom! It's an inspiration to watch these insightful videos. Keep up the great work!!!
Thanks for the videos. All the info is really useful. keep up the good/hard work. really appreciate it.
Omg i love it i pick every week a box with many veggies from organic ranch :) and all are always different depend for the season but i always i have superfood mix and salad lettuce mix :) this week i get zucchini thasoi tomatos green onion carrots cucumber turnip radish spinach and summer squash i like your videos!!!
Thank you Curtis, This is very helpful, and I bought your book audio version
You should modify your salad mixing screen to allow for the salad mix to be dumped or funneled back into the totes. Very cool though!
That's a neat idea. Not sure how I'd go about doing that. If you're keen, make some drawings and send them to me. If I like it and it makes sense, I'll make it a happily credit you.
Hi there I am running a small organic farm and Completely rethought the way I'm doing thing because of you and Jean Martin Fortier! I watch your videos daily, and Id like to thank you for doing an awesome job at providing quality tips and info. I am quite a bit further south than you down here in Oregon and I am envious of your early tomatoes! You have given me a new goal for my tomatoes next year!
I was wondering how much you spend yearly/monthly on seeds? It seems to be my biggest investment this year moving onto new lands to acheive a thick planting such as the bio intensive method I see You and Jean using!
Also I seen some of your beds have the lettuce and crops more spaced with the weed cloth, and the others are thickly planted. I seem to find more yield with the second option but it costs so much more in seed! Thank you for your awesome videos I will keep watching daily!
I'm interested in uploading some videos of my Hugelkulture raised beds that have been remastered for harvestability thanks to you and jean at the fore front of organic agriculture!
+Alex Fletcher I spend around $3000 a year on seed. $2000 of that is microgreens. This year, we'll spend a lot more because we've grown our microgreens capacity with our new greenhouse.
Awesome! I was going to get Into micro greens when I was younger but I still need to find some niche markets.
Do you have any videos where you walk through your micro greens and show how it's done/marketed? I am really curious! Is that a large percentage of your profit then? And does it add up to the same as some of the more productive crops like tomatoes, lettuce and cucumbers? Thanks the responses you rock! You and Jean are my only real role models/ teachers other than websites and the organic encyclopedia of gardening
Curtis, I just bought your book and look forward to testing out many of your techniques this summer at my house. I am curious as to what your thoughts are on the pre-mixed lettuce seed varieties. I would think this would reduce labor because all you would have to do is harvest, wash, then bag. There must be a reason as you why you are not doing this on your farm. Thanks again for creating such an informative and free channel.
If u put a hinge and lock in the middle of that table u could mix the greens, then set thr tub under the front of thr middle, unlock thr table center, and it would fold slighlty in the center to pour your salad mix into a tub. It would save time if ypu could get that to work.
I don't know if its the heat wave we had or because I am much further south, but my mustard greens go to seed almost immediately this time of year. I may try it again in a more methodical manner and just water it longer to cool it down as you have suggested in another video.
I also bought your book, its great and we will use it aswell. Torben
Our mix Includes green and red cutting lettuce, Rocket, tatsoi, mizuna, Red Giant Mustard and Red Russian Kale
Would seeding at the Jeavons hexagonal spacing improve the intensive cropping you practice?
It's possible to do this with your Jang. You will need 10-11 rows 3" apart for 6" plant spacing on a 30" bed. First row 10.4" seed drop spacing. Turn around. Move 3" over from first row. Returning, lift Jang and spin wheel until seed drops, place the Jang seed drop point offset 5.2" back from first rows last seed. Continue with 8-9 more rows.
Or
Use Jang TD 6 row seeder, use 5" spacing and block every other seed hole on wheel one. On wheel 2 block every other hole offset by one hole. 1, 3, 5 rollers will drop seed at same, while 2, 4, 6, will drop seed at 5" offset. Don't forget to set each row 3" apart. This should create your Hexagon pattern.
I don't think the Jang's will be able to do carrots with Hexagonal spacing though, rows are very narrow, 1" between rows for 31-32 plants across.
+Don Ation I use the Jeavons spacing for most things I transplant. I've read his book and modified things from it. For direct seeding dense crops, it doesn't make any difference. The crops are already so dense, that a slight shift with the in-row spacing of something that drops a seed every cm, is not going to make any noticeable difference. Besides, these beds are pumping out a ton of product anyways. I'm not personally looking for ways to get more out.
I don't know what my customer base will be. But, I am wondering how much of everything to plant to start out for a flea market sale. Any ideas appreciated.
What is the health legal frame in which you operate ? Does it ever become a problem ?
Curtis, can you do a video on how you manage cleanliness to avoid contamination of your salad mixes? is this a large concern? are you occasionally bleaching your totes and the drying/mixing screens?
+Charles Ginzel Yes, but that's all it is. Nothing serious. I don't want to make videos like this because it opens too big of a can of worms with regulations and health codes. All that stuff is different wherever you are.
+Urban Farmer Curtis Stone understood. thanks Curtis!
I'm starting out at this. Wondering how I will keep my stuff from wilting. Any ideas? Looking for the cheapest route starting out. Any information on this appreciated.
Thank you to take the time to make some good video. I got a question : How do you protect your bed of green from the slug ?
+Jean-Michel Landry I don't. We have to wash greens when the slugs get in there.
I have to know something! With lettuce diversity mixes and mesclun should you thin them out and transplant them? Most people let them grow in trays close to each other and they end up small. I want to see if I can get bigger lettuce plants but I’m not sure if lettuce mixes allow for that?
Curtis, these are so great! I know it is backwards...but I am trying to sell enough now to take your online course! I am really looking forward to it. I am just trialling things this year, including some flowers, to learn what I can grow well and what our local market is here (Lexington, KY) particularly for sale to chefs. Regarding the Salanova lettuces I have a rookie question: do you just shear off the whole plant when you cut it like you do with the arugula, or do you harvest it leaf by leaf? I'm pretty sure you cut the whole head with scissors but would love clarification. I'm so pleased with mine and want to treat it right! Many thanks to you for your generosity.
+Julie Cauthen Yes, we shear it off. I've got videos on harvesting greens.
When you add arugula to your mix, that would give it a spicy/peppery kind of flavor. Do you find that chefs want that spicy aspect to their salads that they serve the customers or do they tell you not to add arugula?
All chefs are different. Mine all like arugula in the mix.
ARUGULA IS BAE 😜💗🌠🍁🌳🍅💝
Curtis: I just met with my first executive chef yesterday and he agreed to buy my salad mix (Salanova) from me at $4 a pound. He is currently paying $3 for a salad mix from another supplier, but for a higher quality product he would pay $4. He said he orders about 10 pounds of salad mix per week. Which would only be $160 a month gross for me. How or should I approach him about getting more per pound? I can only imagine that he sells a small plate of salad to his customers which may only contain 4 ounces of salad for lets say 2 dollars a plate. That means he is making $8 per pound from his customers but is only paying me $4 per pound. That means he is making a 100% profit off of my salad mix. My question is, shouldn't I be able to get at higher percentage of the profit. Right now at the current deal he would be making 100% profit and I am not. Is he going to be willing to settle for 75% profit off of my salad mix, or something like that so that I can increase my profit? Perhaps I am asking the wrong questions or looking at it the wrong way. Can you advise me on how I should be looking at it and approaching the chef for a higher price per pound?
Hey, Curtis. Do any of your customers request that you not wash your mix? I have gotten this request, and now I feel like I should charge a premium for it being triple-washed.
When do you wash the lettuce? Are you mixing and packing and thats it??
Is it possible to grow some greens together? So your combining them together within each other on the same bed.
Curtis, What is the weight of your typical salad mix bag you sell and how much do you charge for it? Thanks.
What crops would you recommend putting on what used to be an old hay farm with around 40 acres that could be sold at farmers markets and restaurants that are good for Kansas climate. I would love if you shared your opinion on this matter. You are truly an inspiring who should be a role model for just about everyone.
Watch his video most profitable crops. You also have to research your local farmers markets to see what is selling and what is still laying around at the end of the day.
Hi Curtis. Could you share the details of seeding the auxiliary greens (seeder plate and row density)? I can't find this in your book sadly. The same goes for the bunching herbs. Thanks a bunch ;).
With regard to turn around time for crop regeneration, you mention Salanova takes 2 weeks, yet you're cutting full heads. Does Salanova regenerate from the root, then? I was assuming you'd only get one harvest of it.
+Rose Fera We cut it about an inch off the ground.
I have watched hours of your videos so far since I found you on youtube, Yet I have not located one that shows how you do your dense micro planting of greens. Am I just not seeing that one yet?
SierraDale Homestead that’s what I’m asking too!??
There are clues in some of his videos, but he now offers an online course that covers all this, so don't expect to find too many more clues moving forward.
Curtis, when you do multiple harvests of your beet greens are the roots harvestable later if you discontinue the harvesting of greens, or have the plants put too much energy into regeneration of the tops to get a viable root harvest?
They are, but their not that marketable. We eat the ourselves.
How much salad mix seed do use? What’s your method of seeding?
Curtis, I have been watching a lot of your videos lately and the ad that is at the beginning of most your videos is Monsanto gmo corn. It makes me laugh I think they are missing thier target audience on your channel!
+Nathan Hawk That's hilarious. You'd think UA-cam would have better management of that. What a lost opportunity for Monsanto. Their pretty much just pissing away their ad budget ;)
Good!
Very nice
What are signs that spring mix is no longer good to eat? I bought spring mix in a plastic rectangular container.
Reviewing alot of your videos, very helpful! A question about the salad mixes - have you had any problem with bitter salad greens? We've not tried the salanova variety but alot of the greens we harvest are bitter (we do harvest them early morning), any suggestions?
I was curious about your beet greens. Is that a double crop? The greens go in the salad mix, do you also sell the root?
Gday Curtis, Is your MOU available from your website? Thanks for the all the info
Yes, it's there under Book>Free Extras.
Hi curtis! thanks for the video!
how do your keep it fresh? I mean if you're not selling it right away... ?
Did you have to jump through any hoops in terms of neighborhood ordinances in order to do this in a front yard? Do you have a video covering this?
+Joe Sovereign I've got a video on this, but no. I never asked permission to farm in my front yard. If it was illegal, I'd still do it.
Thanks for your prompt reply! I bought your book by the way, just haven't had time to go over it yet! Cheers!
do you ever give a percentage of what's in your salad mix like percentage of lettuce red Russian kale?
Which type of Salanova are you growing?
Incised or Cored?
Don Leggett he grows butter and crisp red and green ..
Any idea on what I could sow now to compensate for poor yields from various lettuce varities we sowed this year? I see your mix is around 20% lettuce in winter, ours is 75% (in Ireland) maybe this is a mistake because we're getting very low yields and we have a relatively high customer base. The 25% portion of the mix is made up of mizuna, red mizuna, claytonia & lambs lettuce. Probably should have tried tat soi and red russian. Any help appreciated :)
have you ever put radish greens in your mix?
+nota registered user No. Never.
I know it's a common question (from what I've seen in my internet research), but how do you keep your lettuce from getting bitter as it gets warmer in the summer? Is lettuce just not "growable" in the summer?
+Chris P You don't. You just get less cuts.
Urban Farmer Curtis Stone I have watched and enjoyed a ton of your videos as of late. I have not found this in any of your videos but how many lettuce transplants do you put into each 50' bed?
John I've seen on his vids where they transplant lettuce. You can see also where he goes over hole burning in tarps, which he transplants them with those in place. I've had to use my best judgment on spacing. If he doesn't say how far apart, just get the visual. Then do the math for 50' bed :)
6inch on center
6 inch on center it will b around 400
How do you get around health inspections for processing greens / microgreens in Canada? Do you need certification of any kind? Could you please recommend a resource for this info. I'm on Vancouver Island
+Leviben11 I don't know. I never asked.
+Leviben11 Especially growing them 1 foot off of the road. Seems like a lot of pollution for such a delicate.
ArtKrishnamurti i wouldn't eat that salad ...
Great Video---thanks for the tips. Having worked for a non-profit group at event centers for concerts, pro and semi-pro baseball games, pro soccer games, semi-pro hockey games, etc. to raise money for the grandkids sports, we had to wear gloves everywhere for sanitation reasons. I had to take the vendor's classes on food preparation, take the Health Dept. Test, etc.. None of you Farmers seem to wear gloves, yet you handle the product with bare hands before you deliver it to your customers. I don't understand the double standard regarding food.
That's right. We don't. And nobody gets sick.
Could you do the same with microgreens?
what does salad mix sell for wholesale?
What material is your mixing table top made of...glass, plexiglass, or wire screen...can not tell?
Yes, wood and wire screen.
Good video. I've seen seed packs like braise mix, spice mix. These appear to be mixes of greens already. Ever try anything like these?
+Papa Bly Ya, I grow things separately.
+Urban Farmer Curtis Stone Which with the idea of optionality in mind, seems like a good choice.
what do the fans do over the screen?
Do you guys ever grow peppers? I don't think I've ever seen them in your videos. Is there just not enough demand?
They dont likely meet the speed, margin, saleability criteria.
+Adrian PaivaToo low value for us. I grow a few for myself and a couple chef's, but just lunch box peppers.
Hey Curtis, do u put indivdual details of various salads on the bags? Also the nutritional value? Do u also consider the overall taste of the mix as diff salads have diff taste
I don't put any info on the bags like that.
Any reason you dont grow collards for your greens just curious think they would be good considering how large the leaves get. Very good info.
Nobody up here eats those.
Well that does make sense lol Im not really in the south USA but Ive seen them my whole life, figured everyone had collards. Thanks Curtis Keep it up man.
I am still unclear why you chose the varieties you did to go into your mix. Do chefs from restaurants have any consideration as to what goes well together? Do you just choose varieties that are easy to grow with high profit margin? Even if you consider seasonality it would seem there are still are large number of options to consider.
+askiro jars It's a bit of both, what people are demanding and what has the best profit margin. Turns out Salanova lettuce has both characteristics, that's why it's now our main crop.
how do you plant radish? with the seeder?
+Paulo Silva Yes, I use a seeder to plant radish.
+Urban Farmer Curtis Stone thank you :D
Which seeder do you recommend? I am sure I will find it in a video, but just wanted to check.
what zone do you farm in
Great video :) what is the first step in no-till if the plot is currently just grass?
+Chris Whitely V Watch my video Lawn to Farm.
Thanks, I noticed you used a tiller though - would it be possible to hand weed and plant this season?
+Chris Whitely V
What? Go for it. Knock yourself out!
Ralph Stenger thanks to see the video .
Your idea can use the farmer it's income is double.
We know your email address.
I love how you got rid of the lawn like all you neighbors are like wtf
Had nothing but support from all neighbours at all of our plots the whole time the business was in operation. People in Canada are generally more open to new things than folks in the US. We don't have HOA's here.
@@offgridcurtisstone not all of us Americans are soo closed minded, most of us want our freedoms and to be left alone.
It’s interesting though, your initial response was to assume the neighbours weren’t in support. The opposite was the truth.
@@offgridcurtisstone I can only go based on my own experience and things I have seen
Thanks for all the knowledge you've been sharing! I'm starting my own small farm out here in Hawaii and you've been inspiring me a lot.
How does the Salanova do as far as heat tolerance? Any specific sources you'd recommend for seed that does better in the summer months? I'm assuming johnnys
Curtis, trying to crop plan for our new urban farm next year. What have you found the DTM to be for Salanova lettuce after transpalnting in the spring?
3-6 weeks.
Great, thanks! That piece of information really helps.
Still waiting for the How to Grow part...?
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