Lettuce
Vegetable · cool season
When to plant
- Sow seeds outdoors about 4 weeks before your average last spring frost.
- It can also be grown as a fall crop, timed back from your first fall frost.
- Ready to harvest about 45 days after planting.
- Sow again every 2 weeks for a steady harvest.
Bolts in heat; use shade cloth in late spring.
Frost dates depend on where you live. Enter your ZIP code to get exact dates.
Dates by zone: 3a 3b 4a 4b 5a 5b 6a 6b 7a 7b 8a 8b 9a 9b 10a 10b
Growing basics
- Sun
- Shade
- Spacing
- 6–12 in
- Soil temperature
- At least 40°F
- Time to harvest
- About 45 days
- Containers
- At least 1 gallons
- Plant family
- Lettuce and daisy family
- Harvest per plant
- About 0.5 lb
- Seeds keep
- About 5 years
Companions
Good neighbors: Carrot, Radish, Chives, Strawberry (everbearing)
Keep apart: Horseradish. Horseradish spreads aggressively. Give it its own spot.
Keep apart: Mint. Mint spreads aggressively into neighbors. Keep it in a pot.
Keep apart: Fennel (bulb). Fennel slows the growth of most garden plants. Grow it on its own.
Keep apart: Sunchoke (Jerusalem artichoke). Sunchokes spread aggressively and shade neighbors.
Varieties to try
- Black Seeded Simpson 45 days: loose leaf, fast
- Salad Bowl 45 days: oakleaf, slow to bolt
- Little Gem 55 days: mini romaine
- Buttercrunch 65 days: butterhead, heat-tolerant
- Parris Island Cos 68 days: romaine
Pests and problems
Grow it well
Tips
- Tuck quick crops between slow ones. Radishes, lettuce, and spinach are ready in 4 to 8 weeks, before young tomatoes, squash, or broccoli grow big enough to need the space around them.
- Shade cool-weather crops in summer. Lettuce, spinach, and cilantro bolt (go to seed) in heat. Shade cloth over hoops keeps them growing weeks longer.
- Sow a little every 2 to 3 weeks. Lettuce, radishes, bush beans, carrots, and cilantro all come ready at once. Sow a short row every few weeks for a steady harvest instead of one big glut.
Lettuce seeds on Amazon (opens a new tab)Shade cloth on Amazon (opens a new tab)Floating row cover on Amazon (opens a new tab)Soaker hose on Amazon (opens a new tab)
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