The wonderful world of lettuce.
The humble lettuce plant.
Arguably, my favorite crop to grow, my favorite seed to grow, and my favorite food to eat. They all love cooler weather, but there are some that will tolerate heat more than others. Its
Why lettuce??? So many very good reasons
🥬 It's so expensive and already old when you buy it in the store
🥬 Lettuce is one of the first seeds we sow in the garden and it signals that spring is here.
🥬 It's great to interplant between other larger plants
🥬 You can plant lettuce seeds every two weeks from March to September and harvest lettuce from April until a freeze kills it.
🥬 There are SO MANY varieties!!
So let's break those varieties down.
Romaine or Cos
Romaine prefers cold weather so it's a great lettuce for growing in the early spring or late fall. It's crisp leaves form beautiful heads when given the appropriate amount of space - 6-12" apart depending on how big you want the heads to get. The flavor of romaine is typically sweeter on the inside of the head and slightly tougher on the outside which is why you often find "romaine hearts" or "hearts of romaine" packaged in grocery stores. These are longer season lettuces that typically take 60-70 days to fully matures.
Some varieties are more bolt resistant than others. My favorite varieties of romaine: Parris Island Cos, Rouge d'Hiver Romaine, Spretnak (mini romaine), Winter Density (romain/butter)
Butterhead or Bibb
These small heading varieties are more tender than romaine with softer, less pronounced ribs. The heads are loose, with gently folding leaves. They are typically mild in flavor and have a softer, more delicate texture to the leaves. Butterhead lettuces are less heat tolerant than other lettuces and will become quite bitter in the heat. Quicker to mature than romaine, these take about 55-70 days to harvest full heads.
Some of my favorite butterhead varieties: Marvel of Four Seasons, Buttercrunch, Winter Density (romain/butter), Forrelenschluss, Galisse
Oak, Red, Green Leaf
Some of the yummiest and most colorful lettuces out there, loose leaf is the true cut and come again lettuce. These varieties are the easiest to grow since they don't ever form a head. Like all lettuces they do prefer cooler weather so start planting them in early spring, then again starting in July or August for fall harvests. Since loose leaf lettuce can be harvested at any stage, these are the quickest to mature in just 45 days.
Awesome loose leaf varieties:
Oak leaf: Merlox Red Oak, Tango, Outredgous
Red leaf: Merlot, Drunken Woman
Green leaf: Black seeded simpson, Greenpack
Summer Crisp or Batavian
Summer is the time I think of amazing salads full of juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumbers and sweet peppers. But lettuce doesn't really like hot weather. Cue in the summer crisp lettuce. These varieties are the most bolt resistant varieties out there and also germinate at a higher temperature than most lettuces. They're in between a heading lettuce and a loose leaf lettuce since the outer leaves can be harvested while you wait for the center leaves to form a head. The leaves are crisp, juicy, and sweet. The perfect compliment to summer salads. Since these can be harvested loose or in full heads, they take anywhere from 45-75 days to mature.
My favorite summer crisp varieties: Jericho (romaine), Marvel of Four Seasons, Sunset, Endive, Reine des Glaces
No matter which variety you grow, you can either start seeds directly in the garden or transplant seedlings in. Seeds can be lightly broadcast across an area or spaced evr 4-6". The more room lettuce has to grow, the larger the plant will be.
