SEED LIBRARY
LETTUCE GROW TOGETHER
Did you know that lettuce is a member of the sunflower family?!!
Lettuce is a good source of fiber, iron, folate and vitamin C. Lettuce leaves that are darker in
color contain more vitamins and minerals than other varieties of lighter color.
Although there are many varieties of lettuces, there are four main types: romaine (or cos),
which forms tall and loose oblong heads; crisphead, which grows in tight heads that resemble
cabbage; butterhead, which grows in soft, thick-leaved heads; and looseleaf, or leaf lettuce,
which grows in a loose rosette of tender leaves off the stem.
Lettuce is a cool-season crop that grows well in most regions in the spring and fall. It grows
quickly, so the best approach is to plant a small amount of seeds at a time, staggering
the plantings for continual growth all summer long.
If you are new to gardening, lettuces are a great place to begin because they do grow quickly,
produce for a long time, and are not very demanding if you keep the plants sufficiently watered.
They grow great in raised beds, making it ideal for small spaces, and do well in containers,
which can be placed on decks, patios, balconies, and porches. They will need to be protected
from wildlife such as deer, bunnies, squirrels, etc.
PLANTING LETTUCE
Prior to planting, prepare the soil with amendment/compost to create a rich, loose soil.
Plant seeds 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch deep and lightly cover with soil. Lettuce seeds need light to
germinate, so don’t sow them too deep.
Water the newly sowed seeds with a gentle spray. Make sure the soil remains moist but not
overly wet. It should drain well. Overwatering leads to disease or soft growth.
To harvest, simply snip off the outside leaves, leaving the inner leaves in place allowing the plant to continue to grow, or give it a “hair cut” by using your scissors to trim the plant from the top, leaving approx. 1/3 of the plant to continue to grow. This way you can continue to harvest
throughout most of the season. Once the plant starts to bolt or set seeds, it will become bitter and it is time pull it out. Hopefully you will have already planted new seeds to keep the lettuce
supply growing. Re-seeding every 4 weeks should keep your harvest plentiful all summer long.
LETTUCE US EAT
Get creative with salads, add nuts, cheese, chicken, steak, dried cranberries, raisins, croutons, or try a wilted lettuce salad or caesar salad. There is no end to what you can use to jazz up a salad. Get creative with lettuce wraps, Asian chicken with peanut sauce. Ground turkey, cabbage with hoisin sauce. Roasted veggies, noodles whatever foods you love can go into a wrap. You can use any type of lettuce for wraps but some favorites that work well are Butter bib and Romaine hearts.
FAVORITE GREEN SALAD
WITH APPLES & CRANBERRIES
INGREDIENTS
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2 lb. green beans, trimmed
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kosher salt
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1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
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1 tbsp. rice vinegar
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2 tbsp. soy sauce
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1 tsp. honey
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1 tsp. Sriracha or other hot sauce
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1 tbsp. peanut oil
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1 pt. grape tomatoes, halved
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1/2 c. cilantro, chopped
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1/4 c. peanuts, chopped, plus more for garnish
DIRECTIONS
Step1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and 1
teaspoon salt and cook until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Immediately
transfer to a bowl of ice water to cool. Drain.
Step 2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the onion and vinegar. Let stand for 5 minutes, turning occasionally.
Step 3. In a large bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, honey, Sriracha,
and peanut oil. Add the green beans and toss to coat, then toss with the
tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and peanuts
MIZUNA
Mizuna is a Japanese mustard green with pretty, wispy and beautifully shaped leaves. It has a
peppery taste similar to arugula and slightly bitter like frisee, but milder and sweeter than both.
Mizuna is packed with anti-inflammatory properties, and it is also high in vitamins A, C, K,
folate and iron.
Mizuna is great in salads mixed with other leafy greens, but it’s mild
PLANTING MIZUNA
Mizuna is easy to grow, plant direct in prepared soil 2 weeks prior to the last frost. It will growbest in a sunny location, however this plant thrives in cool weather, making spring and fall cropsabundant. Plant seeds ¼ inch deep, spacing 1 inch apart. Water regularly but do not over water.Harvesting Mizuna: use the young tender leaves for salads and the mature older leaves in stir-fries, soups, and cooking. The flowers are also edible. You can harvest all of the leaves from asingle plant about an inch above the soil and the leaves will regrow for a second harvest. Plantevery 3 weeks for continual harvest.
MIZUNA GREENS AND QUINOA SALAD
Texture and flavor abound in this fresh salad. Don't worry if you can't find mizuna greens, kale would be a fabulous substitute.
INGREDIENTS
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2 cups dry quinoa
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4-5 cups mizuna greens lightly packed
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15 ounce can chickpeas
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4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
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¼ cup olive oil
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2 Tablespoons lemon juice
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1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
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salt and pepper
DIRECTIONS
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Cook the quinoa according to the package directions and allow to cool.
2 cups dry quinoa
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Wash and dry the greens. Then roughly chop them into bite sized pieces.
4-5 cups mizuna greens
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Rinse and drain the can of chickpeas.
15 ounce can chickpeas
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Add the cooled quinoa, greens, chickpeas and feta into a large bowl.
4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
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In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, lemon juice, mustard and a healthy pinch each of salt and pepper. Drizzle over salad and toss to coat. Adjust the seasoning to your liking.
1/4 cup olive oil,2 Tablespoons lemon juice,1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
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Cover and chill until ready to serve.
LET'S GROW SOME BEANS
Included in your packet are Provider Bush Bean seeds, an organic, non GMO bush bean with a short maturation cycle of 50 days. Provider is a high-yielding and early producing bean with great disease resistance to bean common mosaic virus (NY15), pod mottle virus, and mildew. These stringless, straight beans of light green, meaty pods germinate in cooler soils, allowing for earlier sowing before most other beans. Provider is a bush bean, vigorous plants may reach 20–24 inches tall. Harvest the beans at 5 ½ inches long and ¼ inch wide. It is one of the best for freezing and canning.
Weather is an important consideration when planting beans. Beans do not transplant well and do best when directly sown into the garden. Sow the seeds when soil temperatures are around 60 degrees Fahrenheit and the ambient air has warmed to at least the same temperature (at least 2 weeks past the last danger of frost). Alternately, bean seeds may be planted earlier if covered to keep soil warm. Beans thrive in full sun exposure.
PLANTING BUSH BEANS
Make a furrow with a hoe, stick or your finger. Plant in warm soil a couple weeks after the last
danger of frost. Sow directly in the ground at a depth of one inch,
spaced 6 inches apart in rows 12 inches apart.
What's a bean?
“Legumes” refers to the whole group of beans, from soybeans to peanuts, peas, lentils and dry beans.
“Pulses” refers to the dried edible seeds of legumes and includes the common beans like the one you find in the seed library.
PLANTING BUSH BEANS
Pulses are an important source of accessible protein and minerals, and are significantly less
expensive compared to animal protein foods. Protein quality matters, particularly for growth
and development. The protein quality of vegetarian diets and plant-based diets is significantly improved when pulses are eaten together with cereal grains. With a low glycemic index, low fat and high fiber, pulses are suitable for people with diabetes. Pulses increase satiety and help to stabilize blood sugar and insulin levels by reducing spikes after eating and improving insulin resistance. When beans are eaten with other foods such as grains, the nutritional value of pulses is even greater as the body is better able to absorb iron and other minerals found in pulses.
TOP HEALTH REASONS TO EAT (PULSES) BEANS
LOW-FAT& LOW SODIUM
EXCELLENT SOURCE OF FIBER
LOW GLYCEMIC INDEX
GOOD SOURCE OF IRON
EXCELLENT SOURCE OF FOLATE
CHOLESTEROL-FREE
HIGH SOURCE OF PROTEIN
HIGH SOURCE OF POTASSIUM
GLUTEN FREE
LET'S EAT SOME BEANS
GREEN BEANS
Beans in their immature stage are called green beans. This the first chance you have to enjoy
your beans. The beans from this Seed Library can be eaten at this stage and regular harvest of
beans at the green stage will encourage more flowering and more beans! Even if you are
planning on saving your bean seeds this year, you should eat a few of your beans green!
SHELL BEANS
This stage is when the bean seeds within the pod are now mature, though not yet dry. You
must “shell” the beans to enjoy them! Beans at this stage have developed more starches and
should be cooked to be fully enjoyed. Boiling them until tender and then tossing into a
summertime salad is one of the best ways to enjoy beans
at this stage.
DRY BEANS
This stage is when your beans are fully mature and dry in the pod. Beans at this stage can be
stored for future planting and eating. Always sort your dry beans cooking to ensure that rocks, twigs or bits of dry shell don’t end up in your bean dish.
INSTRUCTIONS
COOKING FRESH GREEN BEANS (OR SHELL BEANS)
Fresh green beans can be delicious eaten raw straight from the garden, but they truly shine if they are cooked quickly over high heat. Blanching green beans is a true magic trick to keep green beans green even if they are sautéed or stir-fried later on. To blanch green beans:
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Bring a pot of water to boil
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Toss in fresh green beans and boil until desired level of doneness. 3 minutes or so.
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While beans are boiling, prepare an ice bath with ice cubes and cold water.
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When beans are done cooking, drain and add beans to ice water to remove all heat from the beans. This will keep them bright green!
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Once chilled, you can eat the beans like this tossed in a salad or store in the refrigerator for further cooking in a later recipe.
COOKING DRY BEANS
There is a great debate in the world of beans about soaking or not soaking your dry beans. It is largely a matter of two factors; age and available time. Generally speaking, pre-soaking your dry beans makes our beans cook much quicker than not soaking them. There are enthusiastic proponents of both soaking and not soaking; ultimately it becomes a matter of preference. Try it both ways and decide for yourself.
SAVING BEANS FOR SEEDS
Harvest the bean pods when the beans rattle around inside the pods. The pods often shatter at this stage with little encouragement, making harvesting dry beans an interesting challenge. You must harvest dry beans in dry weather. If the extended forecast is for wet weather, you can pull
the whole plants and hang them inside to finish drying. Harvest the pods and lay them out in a single layer to finish drying and store them in a labeled paper bag for shelling later. Once shelled, store your beans in a cool, dry, airtight, pest-free location.
GREEN BEAN SUMMER SALAD
THE PERFECT SUMMER RECIPE
INGREDIENTS
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2 lb. green beans, trimmed
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kosher salt
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1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
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1 tbsp. rice vinegar
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2 tbsp. soy sauce
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1 tsp. honey
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1 tsp. Sriracha or other hot sauce
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1 tbsp. peanut oil
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1 pt. grape tomatoes, halved
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1/2 c. cilantro, chopped
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1/4 c. peanuts, chopped, plus more for garnish
DIRECTIONS
Step1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and 1
teaspoon salt and cook until just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Immediately
transfer to a bowl of ice water to cool. Drain.
Step 2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the onion and vinegar. Let stand for 5 minutes, turning occasionally.
Step 3. In a large bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, honey, Sriracha,
and peanut oil. Add the green beans and toss to coat, then toss with the
tomatoes, onion, cilantro, and peanuts