How to Grow Corn Salad Herb, Mache

About Growing Corn Salad Plants in Your Herb Garden

Corn Salad herb is a hardy, quick-growing, gourmet salad green. Also commonly called Mache lettuce, it has a mild, nutty flavor with a growth habit similar to buttercrunch lettuce. Corn Salad plants are classified as an herb. But, they are consumed as a vegetable.

Mache has oval, or spoon-shaped outer leaves, and a rosette, loosehead center. Native to Europe where it grows wild, it is a very hardy, cool weather crop. It can be over-wintered in many areas.

Corn Salad is best known as a gourmet vegetable green in salads. It is also good steamed or in stir-fry recipes.

Did You Know? In Europe, sheep graze on Corn Salad, which is also called Lamb’s Lettuce.

Plant height: 1 to 2 feet tall.

Hardiness Zones: 3 – 8

Annual, Valerianella Locusta

Corn Salad Plant Propagation

Corn Salad is grown from seeds. For a spring crop, sow seeds as soon as the ground can be worked. For a Fall crop, sow seeds as the weather begins to cool in your area.

Make your planting in rows, or broadcast sow in blocks.

To over-winter, even in cold areas, sow seeds from late September to October. Plants are hardy to 5 degrees, or lower.

For a continuous crop, make smaller plantings every two to three weeks.

Seeds sprout best when the soil temperature is 50-70 degrees.

Space Mache seedlings or thin plants to 4 inches apart, to allow rosette to fully form.

Final Plant Spacing: Space Mache plants 12 inches apart.

Days to Germination: 7 – 14 days.

How to Grow Corn Salad Plants

Corn Salad plants are an easy-to-grow, cool weather crop. Planting should be made for spring and fall crops.

They grow best in full sun but tolerate partial shade.

Plants grow in almost any soil. For best results, the soil should be high in nitrogen. Add plenty of compost and/or manure before planting. Fertilize every 2-3 weeks, or as needed.

Keep plants well-watered.

Plants are very productive. Harvest large, outer leaves as needed. Allow center rosettes to fully form, before harvesting.

Plants are free of insects and disease.

Tip: Harvest plants while young. The plants lose their nutty flavor as they age.

Ideal pH: 6.5 – 7.0