January 30, 2013
Strawing the lettuce frames.
Over the last week we have seen nighttime temperatures dip into the teens on Mr. Fahrenheit’s scale. In anticipation of this much colder weather we have harvested the rows of kale, leaving only the upper leaves to stand the remaining months of winter. The plants will survive and regrow foliage for a March and April harvest. The parsley is now protected under bell glass, the endive sheltered under paper frames and the lettuce has been secured within the cold frame. On the coldest nights, as an added precaution, straw is laid upon the sashes and a canvas tarp laid over all to secure it into place. This simple device provides a layer of air that much improves the insulation for the frames and preserves the lettuce even on the coldest nights.
This is the finest lettuce of the year. The freezing temperatures sweeten the foliage and retard its progress so that it will not bolt, even after the heads are fully formed. The lettuce grown for the fall and spring crop will quickly run to flower if it is not harvested in a timely manner, but the winter lettuce may be left for weeks as perfect heads.
Harvesting Dutch Brown lettuce.
Lettuce has long been a favorite subject amongst Virginia gardeners, even in the early years of settlement when gardens were a luxury that the common folk, so preoccupied with raising corn and cattle, could scarce afford. Indeed, our forefathers were often critical of our early attempts at horticulture. Robert Beverly, writing in 1705 declared, “A garden is no where sooner made than there . . . and yet they haven’t many gardens in that country fit to bear the name of garden.” A Swiss traveler by the name of Frances Michel gave a similar assessment in 1702, “The inhabitants pay little attention to garden plants except lettuce, although most everything grows here.” So at the very least it can be said we grow our lettuce and in the winter months, we grow it very well.
For an explanation of the various methods of securing your plants against the trials of winter you are invited to examine Vegetable Gardening the Colonial Williamsburg Way, 18th Century Methods for Today’s Organic Gardeners (Rodale Press).
iCitizenForum
dawn says:
What heritage varieties grow best for the winter lettuce bed? One year, I had a red, spike shaped leaf lettuce which was in a package of mixed lettuces overwinter from fall. It didn’t bolt until late spring, early summer, so a solid three seasons of growth.
Colonial Williamsburg says:
Lettuce is much more cold tolerant than most gardeners realize. Perhaps the most hardy of all the lettuces are the Romaine types. We grow a Paris white Cos lettuce that will generally survive our winters with no protection at all although the quality is much better with some protection. Mr. Randolph observes in his Treatise on Gardening, written some time before 1775, “The Dutch Brown, and green Capuchin are very hardy, will stand the winters best, and remain in the heat of summer 3 weeks longer than any before they go to seed.” Green Capuchin seems to be identical to Tennis ball lettuce, a lettuce very similar to the familiar Boston lettuce.
Carrie says:
What do you do with the large quantity of kale you emergency-harvested?
Do you supply the Foodways department? Do they get most of their vegetables from you, or do they have to purchase a lot of their vegetables?
Colonial Williamsburg says:
Dear Carrie,
Many of the vegetables we grow do go to the Foodways program. They also harvest vegetables from other gardens, particularly from the Governor’s garden at the Palace, and they procure vegetables from the market as well. We take home some of the produce from our garden and share the remaining fruits and vegetables with guests and employees. In the summer months we solicit help from visiting children to haul water from the well, put it out with watering cans, plant the beans, harvest the carrots, &c. and we often reward them with produce from the garden. If you are in Williamsburg during the months of July and August, you may get to sample one of our heirloom cantaloupe varieties or try a Brown Turkey fig from the orchard!