Plant lettuce & Harvest

Growing lettuce is not difficult: Our expert tips from sowing to harvesting and shelf life of lettuce and tips on proper care.

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. capitata) is one of the most well-known lettuce. Luckily, the delicious lettuce can be grown in almost any climate and is also easy to care for. So that you can always harvest fresh lettuce, we will tell you everything you need to know about lettuce in this article: From the origin to different varieties, cultivation, care and harvest to the use of lettuce.

Origins and properties of lettuce

The lettuce belongs to the garden lettuce (Lactuca sativa). It therefore belongs to the genus of lettuce (Lactuca) and to the daisy family (Asteraceae). Unlike its siblings - iceberg lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. crispum) and batavia lettuce (Lactuca sativa var. capitata) - he doesn't belong to the Crisphead group but to the Butterhead group. Its leaves are therefore, above all, tender and not as crunchy as in other lettuce. This is why lettuce is sometimes called butter lettuce. In Austria they call it "Häuptlsalat". In Germany, lettuce takes second place behind iceberg lettuce with 20 percent of the cultivated area.

The lettuce probably originally came from the Near East. It is said to be descended from wild lettuce (Lactuca serriola), a steppe plant native to southern Europe and the Near East. Lettuce is a herbaceous plant that forms a long taproot and rosette of leaves. In lettuce, the shoot axis is severely compressed so that the leaves overlap around the stem and form a solid head. The leaves of the lettuce are very broad with a soft surface that is slightly oily to the touch. When the lettuce is in bloom, it shoots up and forms an elongated stem on which numerous small, yellow flowers develop.

Popular Lettuce Types

The classic lettuce as we know it has light green, smooth leaves. But it's always worth taking a look at the big variety of lettuce varieties.It is very diverse and extensive. There are also lettuce varieties with red or multicolored leaves.

Recommended lettuce varieties to grow:

• ˈBriweiriˈ: Carries compact, well closed, rather small heads with strong green leaves
• ˈgolden troutˈ: This type of lettuce brings a special play of colors to your garden: the leaves are golden green with old pink speckles and become lighter towards the middle
• ˈIndian Pearlˈ: Brings forth beautiful medium-sized heads that are light yellow on the inside and reddish on the outside
• ˈLunaˈ: Is suitable for spring and summer cultivation and produces large, green heads
• ˈMay Kingˈ: This type of lettuce has a particularly spicy flavor and medium-sized, firm heads with green leaves
• ˈMerveille des quatre saisonsˈ: This variation gives you red-brown colored lettuce with good head formation and good bolting strength
• ˈNeckarriesenˈ: Well suited for spring, early summer and autumn cultivation; forms particularly large, firm heads in a rich green colour
• ˈPiratˈ: Very fast-growing, compact lettuce variety with red-brown leaves; forms a fine, slightly blistered leaf

You can find a comprehensive overview of the different shapes and types of lettuce here.

Buy lettuce plants: you should pay attention to this

Head lettuce can easily be grown yourself or sown directly into the bed. Of course, this takes both longer and is associated with a higher risk than buying lettuce plants that have already been grown. You can buy young plants in many nurseries, garden centers and hardware stores. Specialized online retailers also offer pre-cultivated young plants for shipping.

You should ask yourself the following questions when buying lettuce plants:

• Which variety is suitable for my garden?
• Do the plants look vital and he althy?
• Are the little plants undamaged, aren't there any broken leaves or stems?
• Can I see grazing marks?
• Am I seeing signs of illness?
• Does the root ball smell musty or putrid?

By asking yourself these questions when shopping, you stand a good chance of buying lettuce plants that are hardy and will grow well in your garden.

Plant Lettuce

AtVarious factors play a role in the cultivation of lettuce: both the right location and the right time for sowing or planting and of course the correct procedure are important for the cultivation of the buttery lettuce to be successful. For detailed instructions on planting lettuce, see our dedicated article on the subject.

The ideal spot for lettuce

Lettuce loves the sun. If it lacks light, its growth will be restricted. So always plant it in a sunny location. The soil for the salad should be loose and deep. As a medium feeder, lettuce also enjoys a high humus and nutrient content in the soil. The right pH value is also important, because lettuce does not do well in soil that is too acidic. The pH value should therefore not be below 5.5.

The perfect location for lettuce at a glance:

• Full sun
• Deep, loose soil
• Rich in hummus and nutrients
No pH below 5.5

Tip: Strawberries (Fragaria), peas (Pisum sativum) are particularly good bed neighbors for a mixed culture with lettuce ), beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), beetroot (Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris var. conditiva), onions ( Allium cepa) and Spinach (Spinacia oleracea).

When do you grow lettuce?

You can start growing lettuce early in the year: it is already time to grow lettuce in warm weather from the end of February. From the beginning of April, the tender lettuce can also be sown directly into the garden bed. Late varieties in particular can be cultivated well into October. Lettuce plants that have been purchased or brought forward should be planted out from the beginning of March.

Right time to grow lettuce at a glance:

• Pre-breeding from the end of February
• Non-till from the beginning of April to the end of October
• Planting: early March / April

Tip: When sowing, make sure you use the right seeds for the season. Not all strains are suitable for growing at the same time of year. Varieties for spring cultivation will shoot faster in summer and vice versa. To prevent your lettuce from sprouting, you should always check the seed packet before you start sowing your lettuce.

Prefer lettuce

Head lettuce is very good at itprefer. To do this, sow the seeds in seed trays. The light germs are then only very lightly covered with soil and watered. The lettuce germinates at temperatures between 15 and 18 °C. If the temperatures rise above 20 °C, the seed can no longer germinate. Once the seeds have sprouted, you should separate them into individual pots. As soon as the young plants have four to five leaves and it is warm enough outside, the lettuce plants can move into the bed.

Tip: If you want to start growing your lettuce very early, but it is still a bit cold at night, it is worth protecting the young lettuce seedlings at night with a cover fleece.

Sowing and planting lettuce

Lettuce can be sown directly into the bed. Or you plant purchased plants in your garden. We have put together a step-by-step guide to show you exactly how to do this.

Instructions: Sowing and planting lettuce

1. Loosen the soil well
2. Incorporate compost or a slow release organic fertilizer
3. Create seed furrows
4. Row spacing: 25 - 30 cm
5. Cover the seed lightly with soil
6. Cast on
7. Ideal germination temperature: 15 - 18 °C
8. Separate after rising
9. Planting distance: 25 - 30 cm
10. Do not put lettuce plants too deep in the ground

Caring for lettuce: watering and fertilizing properly

The first rule when caring for lettuce is: the soil must always be sufficiently moist. If the lettuce does not get enough water, the leaves will become limp and droop. To avoid this, you should water regularly, especially in summer and on hot days.

Tip: Mulch your lettuce, for example with green waste or straw. This keeps the soil moist longer and suppresses weeds.

If compost or a fertilizer with an organic long-term effect was worked into the soil during planting or sowing, your lettuce will be optimally supplied with nutrients. Our Plantura organic universal fertilizer releases its valuable ingredients slowly and gently into the lettuce, providing it with everything it needs to grow in the long term. Further application of fertilizer is therefore not necessary.

Caring for the buttery lettuce also includes regular chopping in the rows. You can also pile up some soil around the lettuce heads. This eliminates weeds and keeps the soil nice and loose. Unfortunately, the fact that snails love lettuce is not just a rumor, but reality, as surely every hobby gardener andevery hobby gardener can confirm. To ensure your lettuce is eaten by you and not by pesky slugs, protect it or fight slugs.

Overview: caring for lettuce

• Water enough
• After basic fertilization before sowing/planting, no further application of fertilizer is necessary
• Chop regularly and pile up soil around the heads of lettuce
• Protect lettuce from snails or fight snails

Grow Lettuce

Growing lettuce yourself is no easy task. We therefore recommend that you use purchased seeds to save yourself the trouble of seed propagation. However, if you still want to try it yourself, we have prepared a guide below.

Step-by-step instructions: Propagating lettuce

1. Do not harvest some heads of lettuce, leave them to seed
2. The lettuces selected for propagation must flower
3. Regularly remove the brown, withered and rotten leaves from below
4. Seeds are ready 12 - 24 days after flowering
5. Punch seeds in a bowl
6. Dry the seeds well in a cloth bag in an airy place
7. Clean seed
8. Label
9. Store cleaned seed in a cool, dry place

If you want to learn more about lettuce propagation, you can read more about it here.

Harvesting and Storing Lettuce

If you can't wait for your lettuce to be harvested, start cutting the first, still small heads five weeks after sowing. The heads are then fully mature eight to ten weeks after sowing. The whole heads are harvested for the buttery salad. It is best to use a sharp knife and cut off the stalk of the lettuce just above the ground. It is best to enjoy your self-harvested lettuce fresh and as soon as possible, because the delicate lettuce leaves cannot be stored for very long. They stay fresh for a maximum of two to three days in the fridge.

Overview: Harvesting and storing lettuce

• Harvest: 8 - 10 weeks after sowing
• Cut off the whole head just above the ground
• Best use fresh
• Can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days

How to harvest lettuce correctlyand store, we have summarized for you in our article.

Lettuce: Ingredients and Use

Head lettuce is not only delicious, it is also rightly considered he althy. First of all, the tender lettuce consists of 95.5 percent water. That's why lettuce only has 13.8 calories per 100 grams. It also contains minerals and vitamins.

100 grams of fresh lettuce contains on average:

• 1.25 g proteins
• 2.4 g carbohydrates
• 0.21 g fats
• 0.5 g fiber
• 7 mg Sodium
• 11mg Magnesium
• 26 mg Phosphorus
• 260 mg Potassium
• 35 mg Calcium
• 8mg Vitamin C

The lettuce tastes best fresh with dressing. Prepared as a leaf salad with a light yoghurt dressing or a classic vinaigrette, it is appreciated by many. In northern Germany, lettuce is enjoyed as a sweet variant with cream, lemon and sugar. No matter how it is prepared, lettuce can be eaten as a fresh appetizer or as an accompaniment to main courses. It is popular, for example, on the plate next to fish dishes or schnitzel.
It can also be used as a crunchy layer on bread or sandwiches. If you like something a little more exotic, lettuce can also be used in Asian cuisine. It tastes particularly good in dishes such as fresh Vietnamese summer rolls or rice noodle shells.