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Growing conditions for lettuce


A Guide to Growing & Harvesting Lettuce

Are you ready to learn how to plant lettuce? This popular salad green is one of the easiest crops to grow in garden beds and containers and is ideal for spring and autumn harvesting. Plus, it’s a speedy crop with baby greens ready to pick around a month from seeding and full heads in two months or less.

In our family, we eat a lot of salads and if you’re buying lettuce at the supermarket, the cost quickly adds up. Growing your own lettuce is an easy way to save on grocery bills and enjoy months of homegrown organic greens. 

Lettuce is a cool season vegetable that thrives in the spring or fall garden.

Types of lettuce

There are many types of lettuce you can plant. I’m a big fan of leaf lettuce because it grows so quickly and you can harvest from each plant for weeks, but there are a lot of varieties available in seed catalogs and on seed racks:

There are many different types of lettuce to grow. I love looseleaf, romaine and butterhead varieties and enjoy all the various leaf colors and textures.

Growing a lettuce garden 

Lettuce is a cool weather crop and is best grown in spring and fall. The seeds germinate in temperatures as low as 40 F (4 C) but its ideal germination and growing temperature is between 60 and 65 F (16 to 18 C). 

To grow great lettuce, find a site that offers at least six to eight hours of direct sun. It is possible to grow lettuce in partial shade (three to four hours of sun), but in low light I would suggest planting looseleaf varieties which grow faster than heading types. Once you’ve picked your spot, prepare the bed for planting by digging in an inch or two of compost or aged manure. If you like, you can also dig in a slow release organic fertilizer at this time.  

Lettuce also makes a fantastic container plant. It produces a shallow root system and can be grown in this cool Vegtrug 8 pocket herb garden, window-boxes, pots, fabric planters, baskets, or any container that is at least four to six inches deep and has drainage holes. 

To get a jump start on the lettuce harvest, I cover my early spring garden beds with fabric or plastic covered mini tunnels. These capture solar energy and protect from cool temperatures and frost.

Lettuce is shallow rooted and can be grown in containers just four to six inches deep.

How to plant lettuce seeds 

There are two ways to plant lettuce seeds: 

  1. Direct sow seeds in the garden or containers.
  2. Transplant lettuce seedlings that were started indoors under grow lights or purchased from a garden centre.

Direct sowing lettuce seeds

When direct seeding heading types of lettuce in rows, space the seeds two inches apart with rows twelve to eighteen inches apart, depending on the variety. Don’t sow the seeds too deeply as they need light to germinate. Cover them with a thin layer of soil. Once the seedlings are growing well, thin to ten to twelve inches.

For a crop of baby lettuce, I like to sow the seeds in bands. You can make narrow bands that are just three to four inches across or wider bands to fit your space. I often sow twelve to eighteen inch wide bands of baby lettuces in my raised beds, trying to space the seeds about two inches apart. You can grow a single variety this way or buy a packet of gourmet mixed lettuces. 

Lettuce can be direct seeded or transplanted into a garden.

Transplanting lettuce

When transplanting lettuce into my garden beds or containers, I typically plant in a grid pattern, spacing each seedling about ten inches apart. This is where you can have a bit of fun if you’re growing multicolored varieties like Salanova Home & Garden Mix. You can stagger the colors to create a checkerboard pattern. 

If transplanting in rows, space seedlings ten to twelve inches apart and rows twelve to eighteen inches apart, depending on the mature size of the variety. Check your seed packet for specific spacing instructions. 

How to plant romaine lettuce

Romaine lettuce is one of the most popular types of lettuce and is very easy to grow. You can grow it as a baby crop and harvest the young leaves for weeks or you can allow the plants to mature to full-sized heads. For the best-tasting romaine lettuce give the plants consistent moisture, plenty of sunlight and cool temperatures. 

Because my garden is a slug haven, I find it helpful to start seeds for romaine lettuce indoors and move the seedlings out to my raised beds a week or two before the last expected spring frost. For full sized heads of romaine lettuce, space them ten inches apart. 

I often use wire mini hoops covered in fabric or plastic to protect my lettuce from frost, bad weather or pests.

Succession planting lettuce

Wondering how to plant lettuce so that you can have a very long season of harvest? The secret is succession planting! Succession planting is simply planting seeds at different times. I like to plant small amounts of lettuce seed at any one time so that we have enough for our family, but not so much that I can’t keep up with the harvest. 

The successive crops come from the additional lettuce seeds I sow every two to three weeks from mid-spring to early summer. Seeding lettuce over the course of spring or autumn results in a non-stop crop of high quality greens.   

How far apart to plant lettuce 

Once your lettuce seedlings are growing well, you can thin them to allow enough room that they mature into good-sized heads. You’ll find specific variety spacing listed on the seed packet, but generally a spacing of ten to twelve inches is best.

For heads of baby lettuce, you can space the plants a bit closer, at six to eight inches. This technique works well for romaine lettuce which then forms compact heads just six to eight inches tall. 

When transplanting lettuce seedlings into my garden beds, I like to space them ten inches apart for full-sized heads. If I’m growing a band of baby greens, I’ll sow the seeds just a few inches apart.

How to grow a lettuce plant 

Now that you know how to plant lettuce, it’s time to learn a few key growing techniques. The key to a high quality crop of tender, mild-tasting lettuce is consistent moisture. If lettuce plants are heat or drought stressed, the leaves turn bitter and the plants will bolt. Bolting is when the plants switch from leaf production to flower production and a flower stalk emerges. Read more about bolting here. 

I live in a northern climate where spring often takes a few steps backwards and temperatures dip below freezing. Keep row covers handy to protect from frost or unexpected cold temperatures. They can be placed directly over the lettuce plants or floated above on hoops. You can also buy handy fleece tunnels online or at garden centres.

If your spring weather turns from warm to hot quicker than expected, keep lengths of shade cloth handy so that you can create a shady spot. It’s easy to make hoops from half inch PVC conduit, metal wire, or other materials. Lay a piece of 40% shadecloth on top of the hoops, securing it with clips. Shadecloth reduces the heat and light around your lettuce plants and can delay bolting by a week or two. 

If you’ve worked organic matter and a slow-release organic fertilizer into the soil before planting, there’s no need to further fertilize your fast-growing lettuce plants. 

When the spring weather turns warm, I often erect a shade cloth tunnel overtop my lettuce bed. This cools and shades the plants, delaying bolting.

Lettuce pests

In my garden, the biggest threats to my lettuce plants are deer and slugs. To deal with deer, check out this excellent article by Jessica. She also wrote this detailed article on slugs. I find diatomaceous earth effective on slugs. Reapply after rain. You can also use chicken wire or willow cloches to keep animals like deer or rabbits away from lettuce. Or, erect a mini hoop tunnel over your bed and cover with bird netting, chicken wire, or an insect barrier fabric.  

Aphids are another common lettuce pest. Aphids are tiny, soft bodied insects that suck the juices from the leaves, causing curling or distortion. Because lettuce grows so quickly, a modest infestation isn’t usually a big problem. I just give the leaves a quick wash before we make a salad. If there are a lot of aphids on your lettuce plants, you can spray with an organic soapy water spray to kill the insects and their eggs. This may require a few applications. 

How to harvest lettuce plants

Once you’ve got a nice crop of lettuce coming along in your garden, how do you know when it’s time to harvest? There are several ways to enjoy your lettuce:

  1. Harvest as a baby green by picking individual young leaves or harvesting the entire immature plant.
  2. Selectively harvest outer leaves from looseleaf or heading varieties as the plants grow.
  3. Harvest the entire head by slicing it off about an inch above the soil.
When harvesting a whole head of lettuce, slice it off just above the soil level.

For more information on growing greens, be sure to check out these awesome articles:

Do you have any more questions about how to plant lettuce? 

A Guide to Planting & Harvesting Lettuce

You might not be surprised to find out that the most widely planted salad vegetable in the United States is lettuce. As the foundation of your salad and your garden, lettuce is an ideal garden vegetable. You can tuck it into small areas, it grows easily and it loves cool weather. These lettuce growing tips will keep your garden and salad bowl full of crisp, green lettuce.

How to Grow Lettuce

Lettuce is an easy-to-grow annual vegetable. Considered a spring and fall crop, lettuce thrives when temperatures are between 60 to 70 degrees F. Many varieties reach maturity in as little as 30 days, and some can even be harvested much earlier as microgreens. From your garden beds to patio containers, these simple steps will give you a bountiful supply of crisp salad greens throughout multiple seasons.

    1. When to Plant Lettuce

Lettuce loves cool weather. You can begin planting leaf, romaine and butterhead lettuce as soon as the soil can be worked in the spring. Depending on the variety, lettuce germinates in temperatures between 40 to 85 degrees F. If you plant lettuce in successive plantings, with 10 to 14 days in between, you’ll have an extended harvest. To prevent summer bolt, stop planting one month before warm summer temperatures start. Begin planting fall lettuce in late summer so it reaches maturity when the fall air is cool.

Head lettuce is usually started indoors or in a cold frame and transplanted in the spring after the last frost date. Growing lettuce from seedlings for early spring transplant is a good way to get a head start on the growing season.

    1. Where to Plant Lettuce

The ideal lettuce growing location for spring and fall is in a spot that receives full sun. If you plan on growing lettuce during the summer or in warm planting zones, partial shade can provide protection from the heat. Growing lettuce from seed in late summer may require generous artificial shade to help cool the soil for germination. Once days become cooler, the shade can be removed to give plenty of sunlight to young lettuce plants.

Lettuce grows best in loose, cool soil with good drainage. The addition of organic materials, such as compost or manure, will increase drainage, provide essential nutrients and improve your lettuce growing conditions. If you’ve had trouble with lettuce growth, consider purchasing a soil test kit. Lettuce is sensitive to low pH. The addition of lime can help bring the pH to at least 6. 0.

    1. How to Plant Lettuce

It doesn’t take much work to grow lettuce from seeds. Lettuce seeds are often quite small and only require a planting depth of ¼ to ½ inch deep. Growing lettuce in rows gives your garden a traditional look. Consider alternating rows of green and red lettuce for a whimsical touch.

How far apart to plant lettuce depends on the type of lettuce you’re planting. When sowing seeds directly into the soil, you should plant approximately 10 seeds per foot. Space your rows 12 to 18 inches apart. Thin leaf lettuce seedlings to 4 inches apart. Romaine and butterhead lettuce seedlings require 6 to 8 inches between each plant. Removed seedlings can be transplanted or eaten as delicious, tender microgreens.

Head lettuce is usually grown from seeds started indoors during warm weather for a fall garden. Transplant head lettuce in rows 12 to 18 inches apart with 10 to 12 inches between each plant.

    1. Water Requirements for Lettuce

You don’t need lettuce to develop deep roots. In fact, you want to encourage leaf growth over rooting. Lettuce watering should be light, frequent and consistent. The goal is to simply keep the soil moist. Avoid watering too often – overwatering leads to root rot, disease and stunted growth.

    1. Protecting Against Disease and Pests

Aphids can easily destroy a lettuce patch. Leaves curl and wilt as nutrients and water are sucked away. Aphids also spread disease and create mold issues. You’ll find these annoying little white pests hiding on the undersides of lettuce leaves. There isn’t a systemic insecticide to control aphids, so your best option is to encourage natural predators, such as lady beetles, or to apply a horticultural soap or neem oil.

Snails, slugs and caterpillars also love lettuce. Insecticides are one option, but traps, organic bait and hand picking provide organic solutions to these common pests.

If you notice your lettuce beginning to brown and curl, it could be suffering from a physiological condition known as tipburn. Tipburn is often seen on lettuce when moisture is not consistent. Simply trim the browned lettuce and begin a consistent watering schedule.

How to Harvest Lettuce

You don’t have to worry about how to pick lettuce – it’s one of the simplest vegetables to harvest. Most lettuce can be harvested between 30 to 70 days after planting. When to harvest lettuce depends on the variety and what it will be used for. Really, timing is based on individual preference. Once your lettuce reaches the size you want, it’s ready! Harvesting lettuce in the morning gives you the best flavor.

Knowing how to harvest leaf lettuce is easy. You can either cut the entire bundle off at ground level, or you can remove just a few leaves at a time. Romaine, butterhead and head lettuce are easily cut off near ground level. If you harvest every other lettuce plant, you give the remaining plants room to continue growing.

Growing Different Types of Lettuce

There are four popular types of lettuce grown in the United States: romaine, butterhead, head and loose-leaf lettuce. Although the growing and care process is similar for all types, each lettuce has distinct characteristics in the garden.

Growing Green and Red Leaf Lettuce

Leaf lettuce varieties are the easiest lettuces to grow. Although many people assume red leaf lettuce is grown differently, growing red leaf lettuce is exactly the same as growing green lettuce. You can grow leaf lettuce in rows for nice bundles of loose leaf lettuce, or you can sow it thickly in a garden bed or container for harvest as young, tender lettuce. By harvesting leaf lettuce through trimming it a few inches above the soil, you can get two to three harvests from one planting. Popular cultivars include Red Sails, Tango and Slobolt.

Growing Romaine Lettuce

Romaine, also known as cos, forms tall, tight bundles of thick, sweet lettuce leaves. Reaching up to 20 inches tall, most romaine lettuces take 60 to 80 days to harvest. The extended growing season works because romaine is able to grow without bolting in the warm summers. Growing red romaine lettuce requires the same garden techniques as growing green varieties. Green Towers, Valley Heart and Red Eyes Cos are all interesting romaine cultivars.

Growing Head Lettuce

Crisphead lettuce, or head for short, is the lettuce we know as Iceberg. One of the most popular types of lettuce, salad lovers all over the country often wonder how to grow Iceberg lettuce. Growing Iceberg lettuce requires a bit more care than other varieties. For the best results, plant head lettuce in your fall garden. By avoiding the warm summer weather, you produce sweeter lettuce. In addition to Iceberg, Ithaca, Great Lakes and Crispivo are great head lettuce cultivars.

Growing Butterhead Lettuce

Butterhead lettuce varieties produce tightly folded heads of tender lettuce leaves. The middle leaves are often self-blanching to a delicate white color. Named after the subtle butter flavor, this mild lettuce adds a sweet touch to salads. Try Ermosa, Esmeralda or Nancy in your lettuce garden.

Common Questions About Growing Lettuce

How Long Does It Take Lettuce to Grow?

Lettuce grows fairly quickly. Leaf varieties reach maturity in 30 days but can be harvested as soon as they reach the desired size. Other types of lettuce require 6 to 8 weeks to reach full harvest size.

Can you grow lettuce year ’round?

Garden zones with minimum temperatures in the 60s can grow lettuce all year round. Lettuce seeds germinate in temperatures between 40 to 80 degrees F, depending on the cultivar. Active growth takes place when days are between 60 to 70 degrees. Warmer zones can grow lettuce throughout the winter if you stick to planting lettuce in the fall. Other areas can use modifications, such as cold frames, row covers and greenhouses to extend the growing season.

Can you grow lettuce in hot weather?

Lettuce does not like hot weather. The plant panics and decides that it better produce seeds as quickly as possible. Seed stems develop, and the plant begins diverting nutrients to seed production. This process, known as bolting, produces bitter lettuce.

To reduce lettuce bolting, first look for bolt-resistant lettuce cultivars. Slobolt, for example, can be grown in warmer temperatures. Other gardening tricks to prevent bolting in warm weather include planting lettuce in shady areas, using mulch to cool the ground and conserve moisture, and providing a light mist of overhead irrigation to cool plants.

cultivation in the open field, in a greenhouse, on a windowsill.

Growing lettuce in the open field does not cause any trouble to the summer resident, and there are many benefits from it. Leaf lettuce contains almost all groups of vitamins and many minerals: potassium, calcium, manganese, iron, iodine, copper, molybdenum, boron, as well as organic acids. The use of lettuce leaves promotes proper digestion, speeds up and normalizes metabolism. Only there is a prerequisite - the leaves should not undergo heat treatment, i.e. the faster they are from the garden, the more useful. nine0003

Temperature and humidity conditions.

Leaf lettuce is a cold-resistant, photophilous and moisture-loving culture, like radish. The needs of these cultures are also practically the same. A good solution would be to sow radishes and lettuce in the same bed. They will protect each other from pests.

Lettuce seeds begin to germinate at +4 +5°C, so they should be sown immediately after the snow melts, in slightly warm soil. Seedlings painlessly withstand frosts down to -2 -4°C, and mature plants with 4 - 5 true leaves can withstand up to -6 - 8°C. nine0003

The optimal temperature for plant development is +15 +20°C, it is in this temperature range, subject to sufficient soil and air moisture, that active growth of green mass begins. With an increase in temperature over +20 +25 ° C, the plant gives less greenery, withers and shoots an arrow with seeds. Also, at elevated temperatures, seeds do not germinate well, so you should not wait for this summer to sow lettuce.

Lettuce is picky about the sun and light, does not like to grow in deep shade. It is preferable to plant it in open sunny areas in early spring. If you are late with spring planting, then plant lettuce in shady places. The scorching hot sun completely stops the growth of lettuce, so try to shade the seedlings with other crops. nine0003

Lettuce cannot develop without an abundance of moisture in the soil and air. Therefore, it is advisable to water it every day, and preferably in the evening (after sunset). Moreover, it is better to water by sprinkling, wetting the leaves with water too, but not in the heat.

What soils?

Lettuce is best grown on loose soils with a lot of organic matter and trace elements, while the acid reaction of the soil should be neutral or slightly alkaline from 6.0 to 7.2 pH.

Acidic, saline, heavy clay soils are not suitable for growing lettuce. Otherwise, the salad is unpretentious, i.e. grows well on sand, and on loam, and on chernozem, and on carbonate soils. nine0003

It is necessary to prepare beds for lettuce in advance, from autumn. It is advisable to use those beds on which fertilizers were applied. In autumn, they should be loosened and, if desired, add rotted manure or compost at the rate of a bucket per 1 m 2 .
We leave everything as it is, until spring.

Due to the shallow root system of lettuce, the soil must always be kept loose and moist.

Grades

Outdoor:

In the spring, as soon as the snow melts, we cover the bed with a black film so that the earth warms up faster. After a week, remove the film and sow lettuce seeds.

Important! To speed up the emergence of seedlings over the garden, you can build a greenhouse with a transparent film. Under it will create optimal humidity. When shoots appear, the film can be removed for the day, and covered again at night. nine0003

We make grooves up to 2 cm deep, the distance between the grooves is 15 - 20 cm, depending on the type of lettuce. The more bushy the spreading variety, the greater the distance required.
Water the grooves with warm water and scatter the seeds. You can try to sow so that one seed is 2-3 cm, or you can not bother at this stage, and sow with a continuous tape, and then thin out the seedlings. Embedment depth 0.5 - 2 cm.
Fill the grooves with soil.

Important! It is convenient to grow lettuce as an additional crop in beds with radishes, cucumbers, cabbage, zucchini and other crops. nine0003

Seedlings should appear in 5 to 7 days. After the appearance of 3 - 4 true leaves of the lettuce plant, it is desirable to thin out. Therefore, we pull out the extra ones, leaving one plant at 5-7 cm.

  • Lollo Rossa,
  • Odessa Kucheryavets,
  • Riga. nine0035

    In a heated greenhouse, lettuce can be grown all winter, in an unheated greenhouse, you can start sowing from March 1st. The soil is prepared in advance, the sowing is carried out shallowly - 0.5 cm is enough, you can fill it with soil or peat. For growing lettuce in a greenhouse, a thermos greenhouse is quite suitable for you. Which is easy to build with your own hands

    Otherwise, the technology of growing lettuce in a greenhouse is practically no different from growing it in open ground. It is necessary to create an optimal temperature and humidity regime and ensure that diseases do not appear. There is only one feature: the greenhouse must be ventilated. Only when the weather is very cold, the ventilation can be turned off. nine0003

    In open field conditions, the surface of lettuce leaves and the soil dry out rather quickly in the wind. This does not happen in a greenhouse. Therefore, watering must be done drip and keep the soil surface dry. Falling on wet soil, lettuce leaves begin to rot very quickly. And high soil moisture leads to the appearance of root rot.

    Window sill:

    • Red Credo,
    • Odessa,
    • Lollo Rossa,
      • nine0034 Lolo Bionda,
    • Grand Rapids.

    Any early maturing varieties with a not too developed root system can be grown indoors all year round. Only in winter, when the sunny day is very short, it is necessary to illuminate with lamps.

    For growing lettuce on a windowsill, ordinary pots for indoor flowers with a height of at least 10 cm are suitable. and sand. We make small indentations in the ground, no more than 0.5 cm. The distance between the holes is 2–3 cm. We spill them with water. Then we put 1 - 2 lettuce seeds in each hole. Cover with soil and water. Cover the pot with cellophane wrap. nine0003

    It is best to put the pot on a window sill in a glazed loggia, as lettuce does not like too hot air and high temperatures that can await it on the windowsill above the heating radiator. On the glazed loggia will be just right.

    After 5 - 7 days, lettuce sprouts will appear. We remove the tape. Now you need to make sure that the soil under the lettuce does not dry out. We constantly water the plants and arrange a “shower” from the spray bottle. Definitely only in the evening.

    When the height of the leaves reaches about 8 - 10 cm, you can pluck them and eat them. Approximately 5 to 7 weeks after sowing, the entire lettuce bush can be consumed. Then it is desirable to make a complete cut of the bush, leaving only the root. Just a little more, a week or two, the plant will be edible, tender short leaves will grow, but then it will shoot an arrow with seeds. Then we remove it from the pot completely.

    Care

    Care for leaf lettuce crops consists only in timely watering, loosening the soil and removing weeds. nine0003

    Water once a day in dry weather and 2 to 3 times a week in cool and cloudy weather. This is best done by sprinkling after sunset. Do not water the salad from a watering can on a hot day , as wet leaves will wither.

    Feeding is not necessary, as the culture is early. It is better to add all the necessary trace elements in advance. Only in exceptional cases can you combine watering with top dressing by adding a little manure to the bucket and carefully hanging it in the water. nine0003

    Lettuce pests cannot be controlled with chemicals. You can use only natural remedies, garlic infusions, biological products.

    If a disease is found on a lettuce plant (root rot or otherwise), it must be completely removed immediately so that the disease does not spread.

    Harvesting and storage

    Lettuce can be harvested when its leaves have reached the optimal length for consumption, i.e. not less than 8 cm. You can pluck individual leaves and eat them on the same day or pluck the whole plant and store in the refrigerator. nine0003

    Lettuce leaves can be plucked only in the morning in dry weather, because wet leaves are not stored even for one day. After the leaves are plucked, they are carefully placed in a plastic bag and placed in the refrigerator. There they can lie for up to 1 - 1.5 weeks, then they will begin to deteriorate.

    Lettuce is not stored at room temperature. Only at low. You can wash the leaves just before use and it is advisable to dry them immediately, otherwise they will lose some taste. nine0003

    Lettuce is a spring-autumn plant. Growing it in summer in hot weather is quite difficult, and not necessary. By that time, a sea of ​​​​other useful and tasty herbs is ripening. But in early spring, lettuce is a salvation from beriberi and spring depression.
    Sow and eat to your health!

    Share on your social network or leave your comment.

    Lettuce Growing Technology

    Roma is more suitable for growing in winter due to its cold tolerance. Basically, lettuce produces up to three crops per year in the open field. nine0003

    When choosing a lettuce variety, consider its growing season, because each variety is adapted to certain growth regimes and conditions. Lettuce cultivation takes place in a 3-4 year crop rotation with a mandatory two-year interval between growing seasons due to the accumulation of soil infection. Lettuce is best planted in areas where cereals, potatoes, cabbage, leeks, or celery grow.

    To ensure good and uniform seedlings, it is worth using peeled, fungicidal-coated seeds of the same shape and size. nine0003

    Lettuce cultivation technology is:

    • Lettuce cultivation techniques
    • Protection and hardening of seedlings
    • Planting lettuce
    • Seedling care
    • Watering lettuce
    • Fertilization
    • Lettuce diseases
    • Harvest and storage

    Methods of growing lettuce

    There are two ways to grow lettuce: by sowing seeds and seedlings. Before planting, it is necessary to prepare the soil. Lettuce is suitable for loose, moderately moist soil with a light texture. Excessively moist soil is more prone to the development of diseases. Outdoor soil with a pH of 7.0-7.5 is most suitable, as lettuce will not grow in acidic soils. nine0003

    Before planting, it is also necessary to apply calcium-ammonium nitrate to saturate the soil with nitrogen (ratio 80 kg per 1 ha). The soil is prepared with a rotary harrow.

    Lettuce is grown in stages:

    • Early varieties - April - May;
    • Middle and late - April - mid-June;
    • Romain is sown for autumn in the first half of July;
    • Lettuce is sown for the winter in late October, early November.
      • nine0052

      You can get an earlier harvest in the open field by stretching the film over the lettuce. Under the film, along with lettuce, you can grow Chinese cabbage, since its cultivation method is no different.

      Lettuce is sown in rows across the beds:

      • Row spacing - 18 cm;
      • Distance between seeds - 1.5 cm;
      • Seeding depth - 0.5-1 cm;
      • Seeding rate - 1-3 g per square meter. nine0035

      Head lettuce planted in single rows 45 cm apart.

      Lettuce can be sown throughout the summer, in rows 15-20 cm apart. More dense plantings lead to coarsening of plants. If you are growing lettuce from seeds, then you need to plant it at a depth of 1-1. 5 cm only in moist soil. After the start of seedlings, they need to be thinned out so that there are 6-8 cm (for leafy) and 10-15 cm (headed) distances between them. Crispy lettuce is usually planted according to the scheme 30x40, 40x40 cm.

      If you are planning an early harvest, then opt for head lettuce to be planted in seedlings.

      For sowing in boxes, it will be necessary to water the soil mixture and place the rows in a line every 6-8 cm. The depth of the furrow is 1.5 cm. Then the grooves are covered with soil, and the box is covered with film or glass until the first shoots.

      As soon as the plants have 1-2 true leaves, the rows should be thinned and one bush should be left after 6-8 cm. Extra plants can be transplanted into other containers, as the lettuce tolerates transplants well. The next batch can be sown after the appearance of 3-4 true leaves from the previous one. nine0003

      If planting lettuce in cassettes, cover them with vermiculite after planting to avoid drying out. If the substrate is too acidic, add perlite.

      Protection and hardening of seedlings

      To protect seedlings from fungus, treat them with Alyette or Previkur solution. Remember that there is not one on the lists of approved drugs that is allowed for processing lettuce.

      Plant hardening is very important when planting early. If the seedlings were grown in another region, then the seedlings received (14-18 days) must be set up for adaptation, and planting should be carried out only after 3-4 days. nine0003

      Planting lettuce

      All seedlings are easily removed from the cassettes together with the soil. Roots should be white and abundant. Only young seedlings with active white roots should be used.

      When planting, place only ⅔ of the soil into the soil so that the lower leaves are ventilated and do not pick up a fungal disease. The density of plantings depends on the season and variety of lettuce. Remember that plants always grow smaller in summer, so thickening can be practiced. Up to 80-86 thousand plants are planted per hectare according to the scheme 25x25 or 28x28. In spring and autumn lettuce is larger, so the density is reduced to 70-75 thousand plants per hectare. Depending on the variety, from 6 to 16 plants are planted per m 2 .

      Care of lettuce seedlings

      Immediately after planting, it is better to water the seedlings with a solution of Humate or Growth Concentrate in order to significantly improve engraftment. If the plants are planted early, they are covered with agrofibre and perforated film. The earliest plantings are best covered with both and immediately after planting. Agrofibre on the bottom, film on top. The film is removed after 2-3 weeks, and the agrofibre 10-12 days before the start of the harvest. If you cover the plantings, then this speeds up the harvest by 2 weeks. Covered plants can be watered over the covers. If the landing area is uneven, then watering is carried out first, and then sheltering. nine0003

      Temperature control under the coating must be constantly monitored. At temperatures above 25°C, the coatings are removed. Due to too high a temperature, there is a risk that the head will not form or remain loose. Depending on the weather conditions, the covering material is left on the plants for up to 4 weeks. It is better to remove agrofibre in cloudy, calm weather, as the risk of sunburn is minimized.

      If you apply the herbicide under agrofiber, then the application rate of the preparation should be reduced by 30-40%. nine0003

      Due to the high humidity under the agrofibre, it is necessary to regularly inspect the plants for the presence of powdery mildew. It is recommended to remove the covering material and ventilate the plants, loosen the soil and remove weeds.

      Watering lettuce

      Timely and uniform supply of moisture is the key to successful cultivation, both lettuce and any other crop.

      Today, drip irrigation is the most optimal for lettuce. Drip pipes need to be hidden 2-3 cm into the ground. It is necessary to constantly monitor the level of moisture and prevent drying out. nine0003

      Frontal irrigation systems (sprinklers, coils, sprinklers) also do an excellent job of this task. Watering lettuce is carried out often, but with a small amount of water. As soon as heads of cabbage begin to form, the frequency of watering should be reduced to avoid rot. The need for watering is determined by weather conditions and the condition of the plants.

      If there is no precipitation, then lettuce water rate for the entire period is 140 mm. To avoid head necrosis, it is recommended to water at night. nine0003

      Lettuce fertilizer

      If you do a soil analysis, you can easily determine the right fertilizer.

      The best fertilizer for lettuce is rotted manure, which is applied in September or compost/humus at 4-5 kg ​​per 1m 2 . From mineral fertilizers, nitrophoska or simple fertilizers are applied at 60-70 g per 1 m 2 .

      Weekly lettuce should be fed with a complex fertilizer with a high percentage of nitrogen. Seedling Master or Plantafol 10/30/10 will work best. It is better to dilute the fertilizer solution 1.5-2 times weaker than recommended. You can also use a solution of urea or ammonium nitrate, 2-3 g and 3-4 g per liter of water. nine0003

      Unfavorable soil or weather conditions cause physiological disturbances in plants. They appear as vitreous, burns or necrosis. High doses of nitrogen and stress should also be avoided. A light treatment with copper and boron is recommended.

      Lettuce diseases

      Lettuce, like other cultivated plants, is susceptible to diseases. The most common are:

      • Gray mold;
      • Black leg;
        • nine0034 Downy mildew;
      • Rust.

      To prevent these diseases, it is necessary, firstly, to follow the cultivation technology, and secondly, to clear the field from the remains of previous crops on which pathogens can overwinter.

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