I have had several lettuce volunteers all around my back yard this year. One of them cropped up in a good spot in the veggie garden, so I let it go to town. It's tender and sweet and very tasty--but it's nothing I've ever grown, and I have no neighbors who garden either, so I have no idea where it could've come from.
Does anyone have any idea what it might be? I'd actually pay for seeds of this next year if I knew what it was!
Thanks for the help!
Sometimes if a hybrid reseeds itself you get a surprise. Or maybe you had a lettuce mix? It looks like Simpson to me. http://www.territorialseed.com/prod_detail_list/203 Look here and see what you think.
That's beautiful. Maybe you can let it go to seed and give them a try.
It sure does look like that picture of Simpsons, GrammysGarden! I do wonder where it came from, though--no mixed green packets last year, and only old OP varieties from Sandhill Preservation as well. One of my neighbors has been holding out on me... :)
Twiggybuds, I like your idea of letting it go to seed. What've I got to lose? Besides, with as behind as I've been on my gardening this spring, that's what's going to happen anyway--may as well make it seem like it's intentional!
Jill I'm behind with chores too. I sat in the house all winter making plans and now that it's time to rock and roll everything seems to take at least double the effort and time I thought. My lettuce has played out and I thought that I should put it on the buy list for this fall. Then I had a V8 moment about saving seed.
Remember your leek last year? You were my inspiration to try them. I had some trouble with getting them started but have 4 left. They are growing again but are still small. My onions have started going to seed so I'm getting worried the leeks might feel the urge as well. Sure hope not.
Jill,
That looks like the black-seeded Simpson that I'm growing. Maybe someone in the area allowed some to go to seed and the seeds were move in by birds. The seeds are tiny, so if it gets windy in your area then it could be possible that the seeds blew a considerable distance.
David
David, we've sure had the winds this winter, so that wouldn't surprise me. And how nice to have something useful blow into my garden, instead of more blasted weeds!
Twiggybuds, I'll think good thoughts for you and your leeks. I planted one as a seedling ( my cat ate the rest, bad kitty!) and I direct seeded one into the garden--just to see how it would go. Definitely worth starting ahead of time; a big difference in growth. Mine last year never did go to seed, even though it got into the really hot weather, so hopefully yours won't get that urge either. Mine did start making offsets, though, which I thought was interesting. I tried replanting those, but they never took--maybe because of the heat.
Let me know how it goes, okay? I'll look forward to hearing you're having some great leek soup!
