How to Plant and Grow Lettuce

When you know how to plant and grow lettuce, you’ll be able to enjoy plenty of garden-to-table deliciousness. Lettuce is suitable for small-space gardens and exceptionally easy to grow in cool weather. Plant loose-leaf or head lettuce in early spring, and your table will overflow with tender, flavorful greens six to eight weeks later.

Where to Plant Lettuce

Lettuce is a mainstay of spring gardens. This vegetable loves cool weather (and usually bolts when warm weather moves in). Choose a full-sun spot with loose, well-draining soil. This annual vegetable is easy to grow in containers and small gardens and containers.

How and When to Plant Lettuce

In early spring, sow seeds for loose-leaf or head lettuce.

• Sow loose-leaf lettuce seeds by scattering them by hand into wide rows or over an entire seedbed (this method is called broadcasting). Cover the seeds with ¼ inch of soil. Gently firm the soil and water the seedbed lightly.
• Sow seeds for head lettuces ¼ inch deep and 2 inches apart in rows 6 to 8 inches apart. Keep the seedbed evenly moist. Gradually thin the seedlings so the remaining plants are 12 inches apart. The thinned seedlings can be harvested and enjoyed as baby lettuces.

Although spring is the primary season for lettuce production, this edible annual also thrives in cool autumn weather and winter in mild climates. Plant fall crops in early September after the summer heat passes and winter crops throughout fall in mild climates.

You can also buy nursery starts or start seeds indoors and transplant the seedlings to the garden when they are three to four weeks old.

Lettuce Care Tips

Light

Lettuce plants thrive in full sun (at least six hours a day) but tolerate partial sun in hot areas. Any less light than that causes leggy growth.

Soil and Water

Loose, well-draining soil is ideal for lettuce plants. They require steady moisture, or they might bolt or taste bitter. When the plants are young, you may need to water lightly every day or two during the first few weeks. Later, water whenever the soil is dry to 1 inch.

Temperature and Humidity

This cool-weather crop can’t tolerate a freeze, but a slight frost won’t hurt most varieties. Heat is another matter though. As the temperature approaches 70°F, the lettuce leaves start to taste bitter, and the plant begins to bolt. Some varieties have more heat tolerance than others.

Extend the harvest season by sowing small patches of lettuce every three weeks until late spring and then again in late summer for fall harvest. Handle hot weather by either building a shade structure over your planting beds or planting the lettuce (either in the ground or a container) in an area that receives partial shade. Protect planting beds with row covers or netting to deter birds attracted to the young seedlings.

As long as the soil remains moist, humidity is not a problem for lettuce plants.

Fertilizer

Lettuce needs to grow quickly before the weather warms, so a little fertilizer early on can be beneficial. After the seedlings are a couple of weeks old, begin fertilizing them every two weeks with a balanced liquid fertilizer with a 2-1-2 NPK ratio, following the manufacturer’s instructions.

Pruning

There’s no need to prune lettuce, but a simple trim might encourage additional growth and delay the dreaded bolting that is likely to occur when warm weather arrives. Unlike head lettuce, which is often harvested all at once, regularly harvesting the leaves of loose-leaf lettuce by cutting off the outer leaves encourages additional growth at the center of the plant.

Pests and Problems

Aphids are at the top of a large list of insects that think lettuce tastes terrific, closely followed by several types of caterpillars, thrips, armyworms, and beetles. Vigilance and quick response are necessary to stop these garden pests from devouring your lettuce. Depending on the pests, an application of neem oil or a blast of water from a garden hose will help. Avoid most of these problems by covering the young plants with a floating row cover of insect netting.

How to Propagate

After a lettuce plant bolts, it produces flowers that look like tiny dandelions with immature seeds. When the seeds show white fluff, they are ready for harvest, but they don’t all ripen at the same time. Pick individual seed heads or shake the flowers over a container every few days. Put them in a single layer in a dry place. When they are dry, move them to a paper bag for storage until needed.

Harvest Tips

Begin picking the outer leaves of butterhead, loose-leaf, and romaine lettuce varieties when they are 2 inches long. Continue to harvest outer leaves as long as the flavor remains good. You can also cut the entire plant at the base when it reaches the desired size.

Lettuce Types

Loose-leaf lettuce displays an open-growth pattern and does not form a head. Head lettuces, such as butterhead, crisphead, iceberg, and romaine, develop into upright clumps that are loosely packed or tightly bunched.

‘Buttercrunch’

Lactuca sativa ‘Buttercrunch’ has ruffled outer leaves, but it forms a tightly bunched, blanched yellow heart with a soothing creamy texture. This butterhead lettuce grows 8 to 12 inches tall and is ready to harvest in 65 days.

‘Ithaca’

Lactuca sativa ‘Ithaca’ forms a firm, iceberg-type head with good disease resistance. Harvest by taking individual small leaves from the outside of the plant or by cutting the entire plant at soil level. It grows 6 to 12 inches tall and wide and is ready in 70 days.

‘Lollo Rossa’

Lactuca sativa ‘Lollo Rossa’ leaf lettuce bears frilly, dark red curled leaves that are great for garnishes, adding color and texture to mixed salads. Its 6-10 inch center is ready in 65 days, but the outer leaves can be harvested earlier.

‘Parris Island Cos’

Lactuca sativa ‘Parris Island Coz’ is an old-time favorite romaine lettuce with a white heart and stiffly upright green leaves. It grows to 10 to 12 inches tall and is upright. The head is ready in 70 days, but the small outer leaves can be harvested earlier.

‘Marvel of Four Seasons’

Lactuca sativa ‘Marvel of Four Seasons’ cultivar, also known as ‘Merville de Quatre Saison’, has heavily textured, red-tipped leaves that form a loose butterhead that is 8 to 12 inches tall. When kept moist, it doesn’t turn bitter when warm weather arrives. It is ready in 60 days.

‘Red Salad Bowl’

Lactuca sativa ‘Red Salad Bowl’ leaf lettuce is often sold in a mix of red and green forms. It is an excellent choice for a fall crop. This lettuce grows only 6 inches tall but spreads to 16 inches wide. It produces a cluster of undulating leaves and is ready in 45 days.

‘Royal Oak Leaf’

Lactuca sativa ‘Royal Oak Leaf’ is a long-standing green leaf lettuce that tolerates heat well. A red version is also available. This large plant grows to 20 inches tall and is ready in 50 days.

Lettuce Companion Plants

The best lettuce companion plants are vegetables, herbs, and flowers that thrive in cooler weather and appreciate regular watering. However, a companion plant should also benefit the lettuce crop in some way by helping control garden pests naturally or enhancing lettuce’s growth.

Alliums

Alliums, including chives, onions, garlic, and other plants in the allium family, have a strong and pungent odor that repels an assortment of garden pests. When used as lettuce companion plants, alliums can keep slugs, snails, deer, aphids, and other pests away and help you grow blemish-free lettuce leaves.

Beans and Peas

Beans and peas are legumes that provide extra shade for lettuce and keep lettuce plants from bolting early. Beyond that, beans and peas fix nitrogen in the soil, boosting the growth and health of nearby plants. Growing lettuce near legumes helps the lettuce plants produce more leaves and reduces the amount of fertilizer you need to apply to the lettuce crop.

Cucumbers

Growing lettuce in the shade of vining cucumbers shields its leaves from bright sun and keeps lettuce from bolting early in summer. Growing lettuce beneath cucumber vines is also a good way to put empty soil to use and fit more plants in your garden.

Garden Plans for Lettuce

Use these edible garden plans to inspire you to plant and grow lettuce in efficient and beautiful arrangements.

Spring Vegetable Garden Plan

What better way to celebrate spring than by whipping up a salad with fresh lettuce, just-picked spinach, or radishes? Enjoy the freshest flavors of the season with this simple spring vegetable garden plan. 

French Kitchen Garden Plan

The raised beds in this French-inspired kitchen garden plan are filled with a variety of vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers, as a nod to the efficient yet beautiful gardens of Medieval monasteries.