Franklinton Farms (FF), a nonprofit urban farm in Columbus, Ohio, spans two acres across twelve scattered sites. They received an $8,781 NCR-SARE Farmer Rancher grant to determine how to maximize the use of winter high tunnel real estate for winter salad mixes.
“Midwestern winter growers, especially as they’re starting out, may struggle to find information that will allow them to optimize their winter salad mix production,” said Michelle Nowak, former farm manager with Franklinton Farms. “Research has confirmed that babyleaf brassicas and lettuce are among the top choices for generating income with winter growing, but with so many choices on the market, it’s hard to know which varieties generate the best returns.”
In November and December 2023, FF direct-seeded eight varieties of babyleaf brassicas, two lettuce varieties, a lettuce mix, and arugula in unheated high tunnels. After harvesting in February and March 2024, the top-yielding varieties were three brassicas (‘Carlton’, ‘Koji’, and ‘Vivid Choi’) and two lettuces (‘Green Salad Bowl’ and ‘Wildfire Lettuce Mix’).
Top 5 Yielding Varieties
- ‘Carlton’ (Babyleaf Brassica) – Multiple harvests, steady growth
- ‘Koji’ (Babyleaf Brassica) – Fast-growing, single but high-yield harvest before bolting
- ‘Vivid Choi’ (Babyleaf Brassica) – Strong, steady yielder, slow to bolt
- ‘Green Salad Bowl’ (Lettuce) – Surprising winter performance, strong March yields
- ‘Wildfire’ Lettuce Mix – Excellent March yields from December planting
Key Takeaways
- Timing Matters – Similar varieties, such as ‘Koji’ and ‘Carlton’, had different growth speeds and bolting times.
- Lettuce Performed Better Than Expected – Strong March yields from December planting.
- Disease Impact – November-planted lettuce in the high-disease tunnel succumbed to Sclerotinia.
Tip: Staggered planting helps extend harvests and balance yields. December can be a reliable time to plant lettuce mix for March harvests. Babyleaf brassicas are less reliable from deep winter planting because they can bolt before yielding much.
"NCR-SARE's support of this project allowed us to spend the necessary time and resources to methodically plant these varieties and track their yields," said Nowak. "The data we collected challenged some of our previous casual observations, and will be critically valuable in helping us optimize our winter variety choices going forward, and we believe it will increase winter profitability for us and other growers."
View Related SARE Grant:
- How can Midwestern growers make the most of winter high tunnel real estate for winter salad mixes? (FNC23-1365)