Intermediate in nutritional value, it has small loose green heads with blanched yellow interiors and thin, soft-textured leaves.
Crisphead lettuce is the most popular type, appreciated for its tightly folded blanched crisp leaves, though less nutritious than other types. Because it is harder to grow to perfection, we offer varieties that are more adapted for hot regions. Crisphead lettuce should be set out early in the season since it requires a long cool season.
If heads have not formed by late spring, shading with cheesecloth or screening is recommended. Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. Buttercrunch Bibb Lettuce The largest of these lettuce seedlings are developing their first true leaves. Lactuca sativa How to Grow: Lettuce is a cool-weather crop that thrives in the temperature range degrees F, and if thoroughly hardened, most varieties survive temperatures as low as 20 degrees F.
Greenhouse Note: Use heat-tolerant, loose leaf or bibb types. All Our Lettuce varieties Extend Your Lettuce Season : Begin lettuce production early and keep it going later in the season by covering plants with a Reemay blanket p.
Romaine Cos Lettuce Romaine lettuce produces upright, elongated tall heads with thick succulent ribs and distinctively flavored long thick crinkled leaves. Buttercos lettuce has the characteristics of both butterhead and cos. Romaine Cos Lettuce varieties Loose-Leaf Lettuce Loose-leaf lettuce is a non-heading type of lettuce, second to romaine in nutritional value, and generally the easiest type for gardeners to grow.
Loose-Leaf Lettuce varieties Bibb Butterhead Lettuce Bibb lettuce is more tolerant of hot weather than crisphead lettuce. Certified Organic. Especially well-suited to the South-East. From Small Farms. Newsletter Subscribe to receive our latest Garden Guides and event updates.
If you are growing head lettuce, be sure to harvest before the head starts to elongate. That means it's ready to bolt, and the flavor will suffer. Lettuce can be used fresh or cooked. It can be stored in the refrigerator in a plastic bag for up to 10 days.
Growing lettuce in a container is a good option to help protect it from pests. You also can keep the container in a convenient spot for harvesting. Make sure to check the space requirements for your particular lettuce variety. Make sure it has drainage holes. Unglazed clay is an ideal container material, as it will allow excess soil moisture to escape through its walls.
The only pruning maintenance lettuce needs is harvesting its mature leaves. Also, trim off any broken leaves that drag on the ground to prevent them from introducing pests and diseases to the plant. Lettuce is commonly grown from seeds.
But it also can be regrown from scraps. Keep the soil evenly moist but not soggy as the seeds germinate, which should take around seven to 10 days. The soil temperature should be at least 40 degrees Fahrenheit and ideally between 55 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. A quality all-purpose potting mix is typically fine for lettuce.
But a mix marked specifically for lettuce is better, as it usually has components to retain adequate soil moisture. Aim to plant lettuce initially in a container that will accommodate its mature size to avoid having to disturb its roots with repotting. Lettuce is an annual, so no overwintering is necessary. Be sure to harvest in the fall before freezing temperatures arrive. Common pests that might afflict lettuce include aphids , slugs, and snails, as well as wildlife nibbling on the leaves.
Diseases include powdery mildew and downy mildew. Growing lettuce in the environment it likes can help to prevent pest and disease issues. Actively scan device characteristics for identification.
Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. The many different categories of lettuces are roughly classified by their leaf shape, configuration, and how much of a head they form. But even though there are lots of types and varieties, they are all the same species and open-pollinated.
That means they can all be crossed, which results in blending between types, and you will sometimes find varieties don't fit perfectly into only one category. The aptly named 'Fusion' is a classic example in our assortment. Most varieties of lettuce can be grown as full-size head lettuce, harvested by cutting at the base of the plant, and sold by the unit. Mini-head lettuces are either standard head lettuce varieties that are planted at close spacing and harvested early, before they are fully mature, or, they are varieties that mature at a naturally small, compact size.
In either case, the result is a single-serving sized head lettuce. Essentially any lettuce variety can be grown as a "baby leaf" by planting the seed at high density and harvesting the leaves very young.
The varieties we identify for baby-leaf production , however, are particularly well-suited because of their vigorous, uniform growth and thick leaf textures, as well as for their upright growth habit, making them easier to harvest and cleaner to harvest in the field.
These varieties do not produce particularly good full heads if grown to maturity; the heads tend to be loose and lightweight. Baby leaf lettuce is usually harvested at about 3—4 weeks from seeding. Some baby leaf varieties take up to 5—6 weeks to mature, though, even when spring-planted, and definitely when fall-planted.
To harvest, cut baby leaf lettuce 1—2" above the ground, using a knife, shears, or a mechanical harvester. All the varieties identified as suitable for baby leaf production can be used for cut-and-come-again CCA growing systems, meaning they will regrow after the first harvest, provided the basal growing point of the plant is not damaged when the leaf stems are cut.
Some varieties are a little better than others for CCA harvesting, because they regrow faster and more uniformly, hold their flavor, and hold their size. The quality and quantity of the second cut are typically lower than the first. You will want to seed weekly to ensure a steady supply of baby leaf lettuce throughout the season.
Baby leaf varieties primarily include romaine, summer crisp, and oakleaf types. Johnny's also carries several lettuce mixes , comprised of multiple varieties that mature at similar rates.
These mixes create an appealing assortment of color, texture, and loft. Some growers add herbs, edible flowers, baby brassica greens, baby specialty greens, sprouts or shoots to baby-leaf lettuces to create signature salad mixes; for more information, view our Salad Mix Production Guide.
One-cut is an industry term for a type of full-size head lettuce, some of which are best grown for a single harvest and others in a cut-and-come-again fashion.
In our yearly trials, however, we have identified several additional, recently developed one-cut types for production on their own or to pair with Salanova. To learn more about these options and how we select from our one-cut variety trials, see our One-Cut Lettuce Varieties Insert.
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