This fall we had an excellent crop of lettuce in the Demonstration Garden at the Extension Office! In October, the Master Gardener Volunteers and I planted a lettuce trial to find out which varieties of lettuce grow well in Williamson County. We chose ten varieties that are sold in local nurseries and farm stores including Black Seeded Simpson, Nevada, Buttercrunch, Prizehead, Giant Caesar, Crawford, Red Salad Bowl, Igloo, Burpee Bibb, and Limestone.
October 17, 2018
Following the recommendations for planting lettuce, we prepared our garden beds with compost worked into the soil. Lettuce is a very small seed that needs to be planted at a depth of 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch in rows that are 12 inches apart. We just used our fingers to lightly draw a line down the row and sprinkled in the lettuce seed. We covered the seed with a light layer of soil and watered by hand to keep the soil moist.
October 30, 2018
Lettuce is a fun crop because it’s easy to plant and germinates quickly. Most of our lettuce germinated within a few days. You can thin the crop to about 8 inches between lettuce plants if you want to grow full-sized heads of lettuce. We decided to harvest the lettuce when it was young to have “baby greens” like you often see in the stores, so it was not necessary to thin the lettuce. Lettuce should be fertilized three weeks after planting, and nitrogen is important for lettuce to grow and produce a high-quality, dark green product.
November 19, 2018
Lettuce is harvested by cutting it at the base of the plant to get a full head of lettuce. You can also trim the outer leaves and leave the center leaves to continue growing. Lettuce gets bitter as it matures, so it’s best to pick it when it is young. Lettuce keeps in the refrigerator for up to 10 days in a loose plastic bag. Be sure to wash it well.
December 5, 2018
You can plant lettuce in the fall through early spring. Lettuce can handle a light frost, and you can use a row cover to protect it from a harder freeze. Lettuce does not do well when temperatures get about 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
Lettuce has some great health benefits. It is naturally low in calories and sodium, with about seven calories per cup. Lettuce contains Vitamin A, Vitamin C, beta-carotene, calcium, folate, fiber, and phytonutrients. Plus, lettuce is usually eaten with other fruits and vegetables in a salad or wrap, so you get the added benefit of extra nutrients.
We had a great lettuce harvest from our trial, and we continue to harvest! All the varieties did well, except for Nevada and Crawford. Our trial had poor germination rates for those two varieties, but the few that did germinate were very tasty. I am a little bit of a stubborn gardener, so we just might have to try again with those varieties!
Please stop by to see the lettuce trial at our Demonstration Garden at 3151 SE Inner Loop, Georgetown, or call Kate Whitney, Horticulture Extension Agent, for more information at 512-943-3300. Be on the lookout for our next variety trial!
