Long Lasting, Mild Flavor, Best Leaf Lettuce
Written: Mar 23 '09 (Updated Mar 23 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: A mild flavored, light green leaf lettuce. Excellent for salad or sandwich.
Cons: Bolts in hot weather but generally holds well.
The Bottom Line: Of all the types of lettuce you may grow, this one is a must to have in your garden and you will never plant another garden without Black Seeded Simpson.
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| rfish's Full Review: Lettuce Black - Seeded Simpson Heirloom - 1 Pkt. 1... |
I learned gardening from my father. I grew up in the 50s and if you wanted to eat cheaply you grew it yourself. We had a garden of almost 1/4 acre and grew almost every vegetable you could imaging. One of our old stand-by types of lettuce was Black Seeded Simpson. I remember my father and mother putting together their seed order at the end of the winter and going through he catalogs picking out their favorites and some new things to try. I'll bet that the first thing on their list was this lettuce.
<b>Type Of Lettuce</b>
Black Seeded Simpson is a light green, loose leaf, Heirloom lettuce. This type of lettuce is best sown in early spring and you can have succession plantings until mid summer. It grows best in cool weather and is slow to bolt. During a growing season you are best served by planting 2 or 3 plantings 3-4 weeks apart and thereby able to enjoy this wonderful lettuce all summer long.
When sowing the seed (1000 per packet) try and sprinkling evenly in 1-2 inch deep furrows. After seedlings appear (about 45 days) thin to about 2 inches apart. I have trouble killing any edible plants so I have had great success with transplanting some of these thinned plants to another area of the garden. Transplanting does set them back a couple of weeks but that is OK.
<b>Growing and Maintenance</b>
Once the plants have been thinned make sure they are kept watered, especially if you have a dry spring. Early growth will determine the length of crop you will be harvesting. Once the leaves get large enough (about 4 inches long) you can start a couple of small pickings. As the plants grow taller try and pick the lower leaves first and then pick up the stalk. After the initial pickings this lettuce will keep your salad bowls full for 2 months. It is very important to keep the weeds pulled around the plants. Black Seeded Simpson works well with plastic mulch.
<b>Uses</b>
To keep your leaves crisp I recommend washing the leaves, shake off the water, and put in a plastic bag. Leave the bag in your refrigerator overnight before use.
One of our favorites is to just put some oil, vinegar, pepper, and salt. Toss gently and serve. When I was small, my mother used to take a leaf and sprinkle a little sugar on it and fold it up. I was then given these lettuce squares to eat. They were great and I was eating lettuce without complaints. She lived to be 97 years old and always liked a little sugar on the Black Seeded Simpson as a snack.
<b>Overall</b>
Burpee Seeds are always consistent with a high germination rate. I order every year and have not been disappointed. Black Seeded Simpson is a very good lettuce for beginners as there is very little chance of failure. This type of lettuce has been around for around a century and is always a big hit. I'm sure you will never be disappointed and will continue to grow this lettuce every year.
Happy Gardening
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
rfish
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Location: East Hartford, Connecticut
Reviews written: 341
Trusted by: 581 members
About Me:
Enjoys Star Trek, Science Fiction conventions/collecting, gardening(flowers and vegetable), working with the Boy Scouts.
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