Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), Florida, grown lettuce is unique. The area, located on 470,000 acres of land close to Lake Okeechobee has some of the blackest soil you will ever see. It is made of peat muck. The earth was exposed over a century ago when the Everglades were drained to make room for farm land.
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| Everglades Agricultural Area, Fla., grown romaine lettuce |
More and more South Florida grocery stores are carrying lettuce grown in the EAA. The way to spot that your leafy green has been grown in this area is to look for coal-like soil at the base of the plant.
Another way to tell is by taste. It will be saltier than greens grown in other areas of the country.
Other crops grown in the EAA are green beans, carrots, potatoes, beets, sweet corn, rice, and sugar cane.
If you want to see the black soil for yourself, take a ride west on Southern Boulevard past the City of Wellington. When you get to the sugar cane fields, stop and look down to see the black gold of the EAA.
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