Growing salads in the shade

BexInLondon

Hi guys,

Does anyone know what salad plants (if any) I could grow on a north facing balcony that never sees the sun? My favourites are lambs lettuce (corn salad) and rocket, but I'm keen to grow whatever leaves will grow really! Is anything possible? My only other option is a south-facing terrace which is very windy and has full sun!

Lotus-eater

I would say all salads would do that, I know I've grown salads in places that get no sun or very little sun in the late afternoon.
Best thing to do, is to try different things in both places and see what does best.

ixwood

Your "only other option" sounds pretty good to me. Salads generally prefer shade anyway, so the balcony would be good for them, but a south facing terrace means you can grow all sorts of edibles and flowers.

ALIBOBSY

We have the opposite problem we struggle to find spots with enough shade to stop the salads going to seeds. Go more for cut and come again, or eating the lettuces young to avoid.

ali x

Optimisticpair

ixwood wrote: »

Your "only other option" sounds pretty good to me. Salads generally prefer shade anyway, so the balcony would be good for them, but a south facing terrace means you can grow all sorts of edibles and flowers.

I think that would do nicely for the OP.

BexInLondon

Thanks for your thoughts everyone. I'm going to give it a go in the shade. I've got lots of seeds so it's not going to cost me anything extra to try it.

The issue with out terrace is that it's one of the windiest places on earth. I've got a few plants out there and eventually I hope to make a bit of a wind barrier with palms and grasses and then to build a raised bed for all my veggie needs, but can't afford the big plants at the mo. I did grow a couple of lettuce plants out there last year but they were seriously munched by aphids.

Our windows are tinted which means I can't grow things well indoors - everything I have tried has grown really leggy and fragile which means it can't then be planted out as the first gust batters it!

Oh the tribulations At least I don't have slugs!

Do people to diaries on this board? I could do one about how to grow plants to eat and enjoy when your options are: total shade, tinted windows or gale-force winds!

ixwood

There's diaries of sorts. Go for it.

Do you have a pic of the terrace area? I'm sure people will be able to come up with cheap practical solutions for you.