by Christine D’Angelo
I haven’t bought lettuce in a year and I’m eating a lot more salads. That can’t be a bad thing. I live in an apartment building, so open ground I can call my own is at a premium. But last spring I inherited a bunch of planter boxes. Now, I’m a rose freak, but these were the wrong vessels for roses. So I decided to try growing lettuce, which I figured would work in the shallow growing beds of these boxes.

I started from seed using seedling starter kit…basically little pots on a tray. I had butter lettuce and a packet of mesclun, which includes red and green leaf lettuce, frisée, mizuna, mâche, escarole and chicory. Since then, I’ve expanded to spinach, green onions, arugula, and red and green romaine. I try to start a new batch of seeds every three weeks or so, rotating out different things so I constantly have lettuce ready to eat. At any give time, some of the plants are small, just starting out, while others are mature.

I like to pick a few leaves from the outside of several plants, and just what I need for that day. (Store-bought lettuce must have something sprayed on it, because garden lettuce goes bad a lot more quickly.) This is called “Cut and Come Again” and also helps keep the lettuce plant from bolting, which means going to seed. Once it has gone to seed or formed a firm core or center stalk, the leaves become tough and bitter and it’s time to pull out the plant and replace it with a seedling. You can leave the roots in your soil though, they are nutritious for other plants and help aerate the soil.

I like to mix different kinds of greens, not just for color, but also for flavor as some of the lettuce is quite bitter and some is mild. I have gotten a taste for the more bitter varieties, I will say.

Here are some good references for growing your own lettuce. Honestly, it doesn’t require a lot of research to grow your own lettuce, just put some seeds in the ground or a planter, water and enjoy. One thing you should know (and you’ll find out if you check out the websites below) if you’re inspired to start some lettuce now: it prefers cooler weather, so start your seeds in a shady spot, water frequently and keep your seedlings and plants in less sun during the summer than, say, tomatoes. The heat and sun encourages lettuce to go to seed more quickly.

• Lettuce Growing Tips
• Organic Gardening
• Summer Lettuce
• Growing Lettuce

Have fun and good eating!