Different Greens


	Greens are an important part of the African-American diet. Most of us eat greens once or twice a week. They are healthy, simple to cook and even simpler to grow. Greens can go from seed in the ground to greens in the pot in 45 days or less. But, for a gardener, the down side is once they come out of the ground, there is nothing growing in that spot for a while. That space in your garden is idle. Nothing is growing there! In the South or other places where it never freezes that could be tolerable. Here where, practically speaking, we have a 7 to 8-month growing season we can't afford to have a space vacant for a month or more. Swiss Chard is a cut and come again vegetable. Chard isn't as robust as collards or as spicy as mustard greens. But, you can cut large full bodied leaves for all of our growing season and still have a productive plant when the frost comes. Chard is a better choice than boc choy. With boc choy, you take out the whole plant. It, boc choy, is great in stur fry. But so is chard. Boc choy doesn't stand up to ham hocks, onions, bell pepper and hot pepper in a pot of greens. Chard does quite well. Chard, or leaf beet, as it is sometimes called, is one of a gardener's best bets for a season long supply of fresh greens from a single planting. There are several colors -- golden yellow, bright scarlet, green, and white - but only two types. Stem chard, usually known as Swiss Chard, has more or less broad stems and large tough leaves. In texture this one is closer to collards. But, chard will come faster and be more prolific than collards. Leaf chard, called leaf beet in Europe, has tender leaves and much smaller stems; its common name is "perpetual spinach" as it will produce spinach like leaves over a long period. Bottom line, the leaves of both kinds make excellent boiling greens. Some people think that the leaf chard is better for salads. If your family consumes lots of greens, a ten foot row should be planted for each member of your family. If you are raising teenagers twelve to fifteen feet would be better. Chard seeds, like beet seeds, are actually a cluster of seeds. They are quite hard. They should be soaked in warm water at least twenty-four hours before planting in the ground. Because they are clusters of seeds, many new plants will grow from one seed. Generally the strongest shoot will grow into your plant. If they haven't differentiated when the plant is five inches tall, remove the smaller plants. Your initial planting should have them about four inches apart. Thin them to be eight to twelve inches apart when they are about ten inches tall. Chard is a wonderful plant that can even be incorporated into your flower garden. It's bright colors and stems add to the over all color in your flower beds. That too is one of the attractions of chard. You would never plant collards or mustard greens in a flower bed. Chard can enhance a flower bed and it's great on the dinner table too!

	Different Greens
	by N. Christopher Knowles, Douglas County Master Gardener