With a bit of planning, you can sow salad to be able to harvest all year round - this is a great challenge to set yourself and will mean you can stop buying expensive bagged salad without missing out on delicious mixed leaves.

Growing calendar
Sow outdoors (spring and summer salad)	Mar - Jul
Harvest (spring and summer salad)	May - Sep
Sow outdoors (autumn and winter salad)	Aug - Sep
Harvest (autumn and winter salad)	Nov - Mar

How to grow salad

Regularly sow salad onion seed 0.5cm deep in pots or rows. Thin seedlings or transplant, giving more space to produce bigger plants (eg 5cm for seedling crops; 15cm for mature plants)

Quick-growing spring and summer salad varieties can be sown between slower-growing plants to make the most of every bit of your garden!

Remove weeds carefully and protect from slugs and snails. Autumn and winter salads are more reliable if they're protected by a cloche or horticultural fleece, or grown in a greenhouse/polytunnel, just make sure you ventilate them well.

Harvesting salad

Use thinnings or cut seedlings to 2.5cm when plants are 10cm tall (plants may regrow many times). Cut outer leaves of semi-mature plants or whole salad heads.

Tips on growing salad

Keep the soil moist for continuous growth. For spring and summer salad this is important to avoid the plants bolting (flowering early) or producing tough or bitter leaves. For winter grown salad, make sure the soil doesn't get too wet to prevent rotting.

Growing notes
Difficulty	Easy
Suggested varieties (spring/summer)	Endive, lettuce, rocket
Suggested varieties (autumn/winter)	Chicory, claytonia, corn salad, land cress, lettuce
Germination time	3-12 days
Average time to harvest	4-12 weeks
Equipment needed	Horticulture fleece (winter salad)
Average plant size	20cm tall and wide
Seed saving notes	Annual, self-pollinating
Key nutritional content	Vitamin C, iron (autumn/winter)