We are so fortunate to live in a climate where the growing season pretty much matches the school year. Every year, we look forward to the beginning of local lettuce in late October, and we enjoy it all the way through April. This year, the Family Garden Fair and Organic Farm provided most of the lettuce served in school salads.

In addition to the field lettuce, G.E.T. students grow 150 heads of lettuce a week in their greenhouse! It’s tender and lovely and grows until it’s too hot in there (for lettuce and humans).

We are thrilled that we have also been able to buy aquaponic lettuce lettuce from Traders Hill Farm for school salads this year. Aquaponics incorporates aquaculture (raising animals or plants that grow in the water) and hydroponics (raising plants in sand, gravel, or liquid without soil). Raising the fish creates nutrient rich water that is cleaned thoroughly and then used to grow the lettuce.  Best of all, for us, it can be grown all summer long in the cooled water.  You can learn more about the Traders Hill aquaponics system here.

We are looking forward to year-round local salads in school lunches!