This one is for Amy. A little birdie told me you are interested in growing lots of yummy lettuce for your family and wanted a few pointers.
First off, let me say that growing lettuce is one of my favorite things to grow. Why? Because almost everyone eats lettuce! Sure, some may only eat it shredded on a taco or leafed on a turkey-burger, but hey, they do eat eat it. And when you are growing something, don't you want everyone to actually eat what you grow! Try that with red veined sorrel. I'll let you know when my family eats it by choice [right now it is part of their "salad" and in winter soups as "spinach"]. I have faith. Actually, I have a lot of determination!
So, back to lettuce. Lettuce is an annual which means it grows fast. Most can be eaten in as little as 28 days - the baby leaves. The average maturity for lettuce is about 55 days, so a little less than two months. The great thing about lettuce is that when you take a knife and cut about two inches above the soil and crown of the plant many varieties will regrow to give you not one, not two but sometimes three full harvests!
Sure, once you have harvested the big, round beautiful head of romaine what grows back is seldom as splendid, but who cares. It is lettuce that we grew - lettuce just waiting for us to use whenever and however we choose! Now that is a real mothers helper - especially at 5:00 pm and there's some school/pta/church function at 6:00!
As for growing lettuce, you need at least 6 hours of sun, regular water, good amended soil and to plant varieties that are suitable for our climate and the season. Most lettuce can be grown successfully in our area in the spring , when temperatures are cooler and weather is more mild. This spring, we are offering the European Mesclun Salad Mix, Little Gem Romaine & May Queen Butterhead heirloom varieties. And since many varieties of lettuce really don't like our summer heat and "bolt" very quickly, we are growing the Mignonette Bronze, Mervielle des Quatre Saisans & Little Gem varieties . On that note, a shade cloth can be your gardens very best friend in the summer, to help protect the leaf/tips of your lettuce no matter the variety.
About soil. Many of you know I can write you a term paper all about the composition of soil, but I don't think that topic is as much fun for you as it is for me. But sorry to say folks, if you want to have the biggest, best tasting, most nutrient dense crops, you are gonna need to know something about soil. You just can't avoid it although many people do try!
To be as brief and concise as I can - COMPOST! For those of you who already have and do compost - not too much needs to be said [although I would keep my eyes open for something to be said at a later date in a upcoming blog!]. For everyone else - may I suggest a road trip to Cherry Valley Nursery in Beaumont to pick up bagged organic compost by E.B. Stone. Add enough to give your veggie bed a good two inches of compost, being sure to dig in in lightly to the existing soil [a couple of inches will do!]
Why add compost? When you are growing veggies, especially lettuce which can be placed tightly in a bed, you must pay extra attention to making sure the soil is very fertile since you are feeding your plants directly from this soil! A soil rich in nutrients [and air pockets, now that you have dug down a bit] allows for roots to grow strongly which leads to healthy, happy, tasty plants for you! It can also mean less pesky bugs since healthy plants [which come from happy soil] don't seem to attract harmful pests like the unhealthy ones do].
In my garden, I like to combine my lettuces from the romaine-types to the oak leaf varieties. I adore the texture, color and form a mixed border has. I do insist though that the placement of the lettuces be in the front of the bed. Chances are, I will be wandering out to pick lettuce in the dark at some point and access is key! [not to mention why night crawlers are called that! - yuck!] . I try to give each lettuce starter a circumference of about 6-7 inches so they can stretch out a bit.
To keep the family stocked in lettuce, it's a good idea to successively plant through out the season. Simply put, start some new lettuce weekly so you can rotate harvesting from the oldest to the youngest. Don't forget to change it up a bit with harvesting a little from here and a little from there. Baby leaves are yummy, too!
Be sure to water your veggies thoroughly! I still love to stand there with a hose and water my garden. I get out of the house and loose myself in the garden. Best part is, no one really comes to look for me there!
So, here's to your best lettuce ever, Amy! By the way, I was thinking. Maybe one day this spring you all would like to swing by and we could plant some veggies together. Sometimes hands on is best! Let me know what you think Cparker@rollinghillsherbs.com .
Enjoy the day!
Carrie-Anne
Carrie-Anne Parker
Grower, Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals
plants available now at Olive Avenue Market, Redlands. Ca
