Shade Your Lettuce.. It Will Bolt

Choosing the right crop for the season, may be the difference between success and failure. Hydroponic fruits and vegetables have the ability to grow 40% faster, while using 90% less water, and no soil. Planting the wrong crops though could completely negate the benefits of this urban farming solution.

Here is some lettuce that we planted in our living edible wall. It began to bolt, but luckily we caught it early enough and it didn't become bitter. Bolting is when a vegetable rushes to seed due to stresses caused by the environment. Typically, when a vegetable bolts, it becomes inedible. In this case, bolting was caused by the heat. This could have easily been avoided by merely keeping the lettuce out of direct sun during our unseasonably warm heat wave, while also making sure our water temperature maintained a low temperature as well. Lesson learned!

If you are interested in learning more about designing an edible living wall for your home or business, let us know. We can help you grow.