Are you really short on space? Maybe you don’t have any dedicated outdoor floor space. Or maybe one more pot on your balcony will make it so there is no more room for you. No worries! Almost everyone has room for a hanging basket or two. You could grow everything you need for a salad in one basket. Lettuces, spinaches and salad accouterments are great for hanging baskets.
Here are two different ideas for a hanging salad bowl…er, I mean basket. If you’ve never planted a wire hanging basket before, here is a good overview.
Spinach and Strawberries
- You will need a wire hanging basket, a natural basket liner like moss or coconut fiber, potting soil, spinach seedlings or seeds, and strawberry plants.
- Fill the bottom of the pot with soil. In the sides of a large wire hanging basket, plant five strawberry seedlings. In the top of the basket, plant three spinach seedlings, or sow spinach seeds and thin to three plants. Try to get them in a triangle layout to give each plant enough room. Fill in between the spinach plants with potting soil.
- If you don’t care for spinach, substitute a lettuce with soft leaves, such as ‘Salad Bowl’ (as opposed to a lettuce like Romaine that is on the crunchy side).
- To make a salad with the contents of your basket, harvest the outer leaves of the spinach and a handful of strawberries. Clean the spinach and strawberries as needed. Remove the stems from the spinach and chop or tear it into bite sized pieces if necessary. Remove the top of the strawberries and cut each one into three slices. Toss the lettuce and strawberries with a balsamic vinaigrette. Sprinkle slivered almonds on top if desired.
Dinner Salad
- You will need a medium-large hanging pot, potting soil, a tomato plant (one suitable for containers, such as ‘Micro Tom’), your favorite lettuce seedlings and whichever carrot (preferably a shorter variety) and radish seeds you prefer.
- Fill the pot halfway up with potting soil. In the back of the pot, plant the lettuces. In the middle of the pot, plant the tomato. Fill around the lettuce and tomato with soil. In a half circle around the tomato, sow the carrot seeds. in a half circle around the carrots, sow the radishes. Be sure to leave enough room between the radish and carrot rows for each plant to grow to its potential. Thin the carrots and radishes as indicated on the seed packets.
- To make a salad, pick a handful of tomatoes, the outer leaves of the lettuces, and a few carrots and radishes (sow new seeds in their place). Wash the vegetables and lettuce . Chop or tear the lettuce into bite sized pieces. Slice the carrots and radishes and toss in the salad. Use the dressing of your choice.
