A Summer’s Worth of Salads – Outdoors

Most gardeners manage one good flush of salad in spring… and then it all goes wrong.

This evening course is about growing salads that actually keep coming — from early spring right through summer — using straightforward crops that thrive outdoors in Irish conditions.

I’ll walk you through 8–10 reliable salad crops that don’t require specialist knowledge, greenhouses, or constant attention. We’ll cover what to sow, when to sow it, how to harvest properly, and how to keep beds productive without endless re-sowing or disappointment.

The focus is on practical systems, not perfection: cut-and-come-again harvesting, sensible succession sowing, realistic crop choices, and how to grow good salads in open ground, raised beds, containers, or small spaces.

We’ll also touch briefly on indoor crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, chillies and aubergines — and explain why they’re a different game, and best covered in a separate course.

What we’ll cover

• 8–10 easy, productive salad crops for outdoor growing
  
• Sowing dates, harvest windows and simple succession planning
  
• Cut-and-come-again harvesting (including lettuce by the leaf)
  
• Soil, compost and basic organic feeding
  
• Managing weeds and common pests without overcomplication
  
• Growing on the flat, in raised beds, containers and grow bags
  
• How to avoid gluts, gaps and bolting crops
  

Who this course is for

• Home gardeners, beginners or improvers
  
• Anyone with a small garden, raised beds or allotment
  
• People tired of growing salad once — and then buying it all summer
  

No prior experience needed.

The takeaway

You’ll leave with a clear, workable plan for keeping salad on your plate from spring to late summer, plus practical notes you can use at home.

Tea, coffee and something from the Bare Acre kitchen included.

When: February 24th 2026 | 7:30PM to 10:00PM

Duration: 2–2.5 hours

Max Group size: 12 people

Format: Talk + discussion + practical planning

Level: Beginner to intermediate

Venue: The Snug | Bare Acre Farm, Loughshinny

TICKETS:  €60.00 with early bird discount for booking before Jan 30th