Lettuce is one of those vegetables that is considered to be highly versatile due to its inclusion in numerous delicacies around the world.
It is also one of the few vegetables that look good not only in a dish but in the garden as well thereby making the growing of it one one’s own backyard lot doubly beneficial.
If you are one of those individuals who do not have any semblance of a green thumb and are learning how to grow lettuce for the first time, here are some steps and tips that will ensure your success with your lettuce.
For someone who is learning how to grow lettuce for the first time, it is crucial to know that lettuce is best planted in temperate climates, in cold, and at the same time sunny, weather.
It can thrive in other climates but the lettuce’s acclimatization will depend on the variety used.
This information is important to remember particularly by those who are finding out how to grow lettuce for the first time since the climate affects the quality of the lettuce.
It is best to buy and plant the seedling when the temperature in the night regularly hits thirty degrees Fahrenheit.
If such weather is months away, it is fine to plant the seeds anyway, as long as the soil can be worked upon.
To know how to grow lettuce properly is to know that soil selection is crucial. Lettuce needs to be planted in soil plots that receive regular sunlight and have an acidity that is around six and seven pH.
This is the most important of all information that someone who is learning how to grow lettuce for the first time must remember since choosing the wrong soil is sure to make one’s seedlings fail miserably.
To plant the lettuce seedling, till the soil properly to break up soil that has clumped together and to remove debris such as pebbles and stones.
Next, put the fertilizer in the soil. Make sure that the fertilizers are around the same acidity level as the soil since too much acidity is not good for the lettuce.
After that, set the seedlings around a foot from each other so as to prevent crowding, which is never good.
It is important to keep the soil lot moist but it is also bad for the seedling to have too much water. To be sure, avoid watering in the evening.
It is easy to know when it is harvest time for your lettuce: just remember that one can harvest them when their leaves are large enough to be used in the kitchen.
Learning how to grow lettuce in one’s backyard will give one the benefit of having a convenient source of fresh, leafy vegetables.