Soil Amendments
It’s all about lettuce today and how to plant it, grow it, and harvest it! Would you love to grow your own salad fixings? I hope this post helps you choose the seeds that work for you. Lettuce is one of the easiest vegetables to grow. I wanted to show you the different lettuce seeds that I have personally grown. My favorite place for seeds: SeedsNow
I understand that some people can’t have really dark green lettuce or spinach for medical reasons. Maybe one of the lighter colored ones will be acceptable. Here’s the deal, we need to grow as much of our own food that we possibly can. It’s crazy how many types of foods have been recalled, like beef, chicken, eggs, spinach, and lettuce due to Salmonella or E-coli. Who would have guessed that we would have to worry about lettuce, or any other food for that matter.
Have we been taking for granted our food source or the safety of how our food is grown? Are you as frustrated as I am? So, therefore let’s plant the seeds or the plants that work in our community. It’s called being self-reliant, and we can do this, I promise.
Here are some suggestions of amendments you may want to add to your soil when needed. If you are lucky enough to have rich dark loamy soil you may be good to go with what you have. My soil needs all of these.
Unco Industries Wiggle Worm Soil Builder Earthworm Castings Organic Fertilizer, 15-Pound
Miracle-Gro Nature’s Care Organic Bone Meal, 3 lb.
Espoma VM8 8-Quart Organic Vermiculite
Are you wondering what the term pH level is when gardening? Each plant prefers a different level of acidity to grow the very best harvest. The level of acidity varies between each plant. Therefore, you can adjust the pH of your soil by adding lime or sulfur to bring it up or down depending on what your soil needs. You can have your soil tested, possibly by your state extension service, or try and do it your self with a soil tester. pH Tester
Most lettuce variety requires a 6.5 to 7.5 pH level.
This is how I remember Heirloom seeds. They are old well-established seeds as in Pioneer, they have been around a very long time. They are organic and not genetically modified. You can save seeds from all of these varieties. We will talk about saving seeds another day.
This is the typical lettuce we grew up on, right? Iceberg is great for salads and lettuce wraps filled with vegetables and that divine sauce the restaurants put on them. It has a very mild flavor. Iceberg seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds. This variety is a one time harvest.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 60-70 days
Germinates: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them thinly in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and the plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 50-60 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level no lower than 6.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest.
This one has extremely flavorful leaves and continues to grow as the outer leaves are picked, the inner ones keep growing. Excellent choice for salads.
Salad Bowl lettuce seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 45 days
Germinates: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them .25 inch deep in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and the plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 40-80 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level no lower than 6.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest. You can actually sow several varieties together to make a well rounded mixed salad.
This lettuce is just like it says, all year round lettuce. Here’s the deal, it will freeze, so you must protect the leaves from frost. You can cover them with a cold frame, floating frames, or a cloche to help protect them from freezing. These seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 65 days
Germination: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them thinly in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 40-80 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level of 6.5 to 7.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest.
This one is popular because it grows a compact butterhead-type lettuce. This one is awesome because it grows higher off the ground, so the leaves do not rot on the bottom. It can tolerate the cold better most than other varieties. These seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 55 days
Germination: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them thinly in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 40-80 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level of 6.5 to 7.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest.
Romaine is typically my favorite lettuce because I love the flavor. They are large full-bodied heads with leaves that are mild and sweet. These grow about 10 inches tall. They are the most nutritious of all lettuces.
These seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 80 days
Germination: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them thinly in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 40-80 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level of 6.5 to 7.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest.
Chef’s all around the world love this flavorful crinkled lettuce. It’s very popular and easy to grow. It does not require a lot of space to grow this variety. You will see fruits placed on these leaves at restaurants because they are crinkled and very attractive. These seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 65 days
Germination: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them thinly in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 40-80 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level of 6.5 to 7.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest.
This variety has extremely flavorful red leaves. It continues to grow as the outer leaves are picked, the inner leaves keep growing. It’s easy to grow and excellent for salads. These seeds are 100% Heirloom/Non-Hybrid/Non-GMO seeds.
Days to Maturity (ready to harvest): 45 days
Germination: 7-14 days
These seeds can be planted just about anywhere, in the ground, pots, and raised garden beds. Sow them thinly in the soil in rows 1 foot apart and plants 18 inches apart. They prefer the temperature to be 40-80 degrees. This variety prefers a pH level of 6.5 to 7.5. They do not like acidic soil. They like well-rotted manure and soil that is well-fertilized with high nitrogen fertilizer (10-8-4). Plant in early Spring or late Fall for the best harvest.
Are you ready to plant some lettuce? I can’t wait to try and grow lettuce year round. It may be hard to do, but I’m going to do it, one way or another. I’ll keep you posted, my friends. Thanks for being prepared for the unexpected. May God bless this world, Linda
Vegetables To Plant In April by Linda
Where I buy my seeds: SeedsNow
Linda ~ Are any of the leaf lettuce varieties slow to bolt? I worry that growing my own lettuce, while satisfying to me, might go to seed before I would be able to use it up. Also, with leaf lettuce, is it better to harvest the outer (older) leaves and have the plant continue to produce or is it better to harvest the plant and will the root continue to put up new leaves? Most things I am familiar with but growing up we always planted head lettuce (iceberg I suppose).
Hi Leanne, I would read the post again. There are two that only grow one head, Romaine and Iceberg. The others you can pick the outer leaves and let the inside continue to grow. I want you to look at the maturity days because that will help you space the different seeds so they do not bolt. Of course, if they do bolt, you can save the seeds when you see them but I would put only a few seeds in the containers you have purchased. It’s going to be so fun to grow your salad!! Linda
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I’m Linda Loosli. I’m the owner and editor of Food Storage Moms. I’m so happy you’ve found us. Our goal at Food Storage Moms is to help “one family at a time.”
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Soil Amendments
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