Admittedly, lettuce may not get you excited, but make no mistake: it is one of the sexiest vegetables you can grow yourself! I'm not talking about the single, wilted leaf that you sometimes get with your steak, but about young, crisp leaves that you can turn into the freshest salad you've ever eaten. Lettuce really has everything going for it: it's easy to grow, grows quickly, and when done the right way, you can enjoy fresh salads from March to October, which you can vary endlessly. If we are going to talk about lettuce, it is perhaps useful to say that you can divide the entire lettuce family into two groups of crops: the cabbage lettuce and the picking lettuce. The names speak for themselves: with cabbage lettuce the classic head is harvested once. Because such a sudden amount of lettuce is not always convenient, the other group, the picking lettuce, has seen a huge rise in recent years. The big advantage can be found in the English name: 'Cut and Come Again Lettuce'. By harvesting only the leaves you need, you allow the lettuce to continue growing. You can harvest several times during the growing season and therefore you need fewer plants and therefore less space. Today I'm going to talk mainly about the pick-your-own lettuce, but don't worry: if you want to grow cabbage lettuce, you can follow the same steps. HOW DO YOU GET STARTED? As always, you must first imagine what your ideal salad will look like. There are many different types of pickled lettuce on the market. You can vary the color and texture, but also think about different flavors. With some rocket salad or mustard plants in it you get a peppery, sharp taste. Or sow some spinach and radishes for a bitter taste. Be sure to look around your garden center and combine to your heart's content. Lettuce is a spring and fall vegetable and does not always like high summer. That's why it's important that when you're sowing or planting soon, you pick a shady spot for your bed or pot. Too much heat and too much sun and your lettuce plants will shift their priorities from creating crisp leaves to creating flowers and seeds. And honestly, lettuce that shot up is no longer a tasty lettuce.
Sow lettuce about an inch deep. you can sprinkle a thin layer of compost on top (because otherwise the wind will blow them away, or birds will get a hold of them), but know that lettuce prefers some light to germinate. If you're going to work in rows, you should officially leave about thirty inches between rows, but honestly: I don't have that space and smaller distances have never caused me any problems. If you're going to sow on the spot, you can "thin out" the seedlings: you remove the small seedlings so that the ones that remain get plenty of room, light and nutrients. Many people find this heartbreaking, but it's necessary. You leave about ten to fifteen inches between each seedling, the same distance if you're working with cuttings. Good, our lettuce is in the ground and going to grow quickly. However, if you want lettuce from March to September, you're going to have to sow several times. Every two to three weeks you sow new plants. You can work with several pots or with several sections in your vegetable garden. Lettuce grows quickly, so when the first batch gives its last leaves, the next one is already ready. With lettuce, a lot depends on the weather: if it is hot and dry, then your lettuce will want to start growing. Therefore, it is very important to make sure that the soil stays moist at all times. You will of course have to water the soil regularly, but adding organic material such as dried grass, straw or wood chips will ensure that the water does not evaporate so quickly. If it does suddenly rain, then such a layer prevents the lettuce leaves from getting covered in mud and rotting. Even the cardboard from all the packages you ordered during the lockdown can be useful here. Just be sure to remove all the plastic and tape from it first! Also fun is to sow some radishes among your lettuce. After all, they are just as fast growers as your lettuce and they add that typical pepper touch to your salad. Radishes can be sown locally and should have a sunny spot. Remove any stones or large pieces of bark from the ground beforehand, so nothing gets in the way of the juicy and hopefully thick radishes you are about to pull out of the ground. Other than that, they pretty much follow all the rules you read about above. Easy right? Harvesting is child's play and is done with scissors. Just wash, dry (with one of your grandmother's old-fashioned but trendy lettuce machines) or dab and the lettuce is ready for your plate. The radishes you just pull carefully from the ground, or you go with your fingers into the earth to get them out. Don't forget to throw in some of your herb garden herbs and before you know it, you'll agree: lettuce is one of the sexiest vegetables to grow yourself. Be sure to try... ...of mixing different seeds together for a real "lettuce buffet ...romaine lettuce, the main ingredient of a Caesar's Salad ...Rocket salad, for a peppery, spicy flavor ...Mascara, a red oak leaf lettuce, with jagged edges ...The watermelon radish, a beautiful radish to decorate your salad with ...New Zealand spinach, which is slower to sprout and therefore stays tasty longer. Did you like it? Please leave a 👍 below & follow my plant adventures on Instagram!
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AuthorCrazy plant lady who likes to inspire others! Everything I write here comes from my own experience, knowledge that I gained by reading books and on the internet. If I would literally copy someone's info, I would do my best to link it of course! Do you spot typos or do you have other concerns, let me know! Have fun reading! I've only just started writing English blogs since January 2021, that's why there are many Dutch blogs and not so many English ones.
I use DeepL to help me translate. ARCHIVES
Maart 2022
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