This was my 1st attempt at lettuce since moving to AL so I bought romaine, bibb and spinach seeds that said heat tolerant. I had doubts but sprinkled the seeds in a shady corner of veggie patch. I wasn't expecting 100% germination, which I got, and now have a very dense patch of lettuce that we keep picking leaves from almost daily. It's been over 90 here every day since mid-April, with many 100+ days lately. Must water almost daily in this drought, tho. Ditto to whoever above said basil leaves make great salad. Salad is whatever you want it to be, whatever you have. I just finished eating salad: a tomato I grew, boiled egg, and avocado with a little fresh-ground pepper and raspberry vinaigrette. I had boiled the eggs yesterday, so it took 5 minutes to construct, cooled me off, was delicious and healthy. Here's another way I love to make use of those tomatoes. Open a plain-flavor bagel, spread a little mayo (I like the olive oil kind,) add half slices of tomato (I leave the hole uncovered for heat circulation,) a few basil leaves if you have them, and cover with a thin slice of mozzarella. Put in toaster oven at 350 for about 10 minutes. I usually need a knife and fork to eat this messy but extremely yummy open-faced sandwich. Here's an extremely easy old-school recipe. Chop up a sweet onion and a cucumber. Sprinkle with a little sugar, about 1 Tbs. Mix in 1-2 Tbs. of mayo and refrigerate for at least 2 hours for the flavors to mingle and the onion to sweeten.

About a week ago I went to Longwood Gardens and they had a Romaine lettuce called 'Red Rosie.' It looked like it was thriving even though the temps were around 90 when I was there. It looked so good in the heat that I took a photo of it so that I could remember to locate seeds. However, I am unable to find a seed source for this particular variety. Has anyone tried this lettuce an, if so, how did it hold up? Cindy

JenPete. Why don,t you try the Jericho lettuce bred to grow in the Israel desert. I,m trying that this year along with malabar and New Zealand spinach. Also try Misome and Mibuna and flowering Bok Choi, they all do well in the summer. They are Asian all season crops and are great for greens. I get a lot from Johnnys seeds or the Kitazawa Seed co. There are hundreds, sometimes thousands of seeds per pack and I,ve had great luck with them. Hope this helps. I live in Sarasota....Dave

LOL sumala about your kids! When Dennis and I first co-habited together and his son moved in with us, it was so funny, his take on me and edibles. Dan soon learned and says today, "If Cindee doesn't grow it, or it ain't fresh, she didn't pick it, or make it from scratch, we would starve. I used to eat Spaghetti-O's, do you believe THAT???" He is always appologizing for adding BBQ or catsup to any of the meals I make. But he always appreciates the fact that what I serve him beats anything he can find in a box. Not that I don't have an occasional D'Giorno's pizza now and then, I just have to add fresh basil, fontina, and mushrooms before it gets my final OK. Sheesh, they call me picky!