For crispy greens: A shallow salad bed

“Lettuce plants prefer cooler temperatures, so on especially hot summer days, a lightweight grow bag makes it easy to pick up your plants and move them to a shady spot for some respite,” notes Espiritu. To do: Fill a round, shallow grow bag with fertilized soil, then nestle in roots of romaine or green leaf lettuce “starts,” which are baby lettuce plants that have already sprouted and can be purchased at the nursery. Set in full sun to light shade and water regularly. Harvest in as little as three weeks when leaves are about 4" long.