Growing lettuce 101

Red sails lettuce and petunias

Sunday, March 22, 2026

Spring is prime time for salads!  Lettuce is its sweetest and most productive in spring and fall.  Lettuce loves cool temperatures, moisture and lots of nitrogen.  It is a super easy "vegetable" to grow from seed, too, and it self seeds.

When the hot weather sets in, lettuce will go from sweet and docile to bolting and bitter in a week.  For summer harvests, chose varieties that are heat resistant like Summer Crisp, Red Sails, Rouge d’Hiver, Freckles Romaine, Summertime Crisphead, Tomahawk, Butter King, and Loma French Crisp.

Bolt-free, sweet summer lettuces

You can buy many different lettuce plants from nurseries or big box stores this time of year or, to keep yourself in lettuce all summer, practice succession planting and sow seed every 2-3 weeks.  Lettuce is super easy to grow from seed and there are so many varieties to choose from seeds.  I simply just scatter seeds on top of the soil and pat down either in the garden bed or pot.  Keep moist and you will have lettuce seedlings within a week.

Outdoor seed starting tips

Lettuce and all greens love nitrogen just like your lawn does.  We donate our nitrogen rich coffee grounds to our greens and garden beds.  I also use a liquid fertilizer (guano and sea kelp) or other organic fertilizer monthly.  

It is important to keep the lettuce from drying out.  They need consistent moisture.  It is when lettuce is stressed, either through hot temps or drying out, that they turn bitter and bolt.  This is one of the reasons that the Earthbox is such a good pot to grow lettuce.  It has a water reservoir in the bottom so weekly watering keeps the soil moist even in the hottest weather.  Any self-watering pot will work this way, even one you make yourself or buy a kit to transform a favorite pot into a self watering container.

Lettuce in an Earthbox, self watering pot

Bolting is simply when a stalk arises from the middle of the lettuce plant.  It then flowers and sets seed.  When the seeds start to dry, cut off the stalk and remove the seeds.  I put my seeds in a ziplock and store in the frig.  The seeds stay viable for 2-3 years this way.  Save the seeds from your favorites and re-sow to keep yourself in free, tasty lettuce all season long.  You can also let the seeds fall where they may and you will get volunteer lettuce plants throughout your garden.  As volunteers pop up, I move them to where I want them in the garden bed or pot.  

Bolted Red Sails lettuce-cool looking, eh?

Lettuce also does well from fall into winter.  Choose cold tolerant varieties for early spring and fall Fall and winter greens and heat tolerant varieties to sow in late spring and summer.  One thing to remember is that lettuce seed does not germinate well above 75 degrees so you may have to move your seed starting to the shade or indoors in the dog days of late summer. 

In early spring, lettuce likes full sun.  As it gets hotter, lettuce appreciates some shade.  Planting plants in late spring to provide shade for lettuce during the summer can prolong the harvest.

Protection from the afternoon sun helps in lengthening the time before your lettuce bolts.  There are few techniques you can use.  Grow lettuce interspersed with taller veggies to give them shade protection, plant next to a wall that provides afternoon shade, cover with a shade cloth to keep them cooler or grow on the north side of your house.  If growing in a pot, it is easy to just move the pot to a shadier, cooler spot when the temps start to rise.

Harvesting frequently also helps keep the lettuce from bolting.  Harvest the outer leaves consistently and the plant will continue to produce more inner leaves.  I harvest from the same plants for a couple of months this way.

Some, like the Marvel of Four Seasons and Red Sails, stay sweet even when they have bolted.  Give the bolted lettuces a taste to see if it is time to let them go to seed or yank them out to make room for another crop.

I like to grow heat tolerant greens during the summer in addition to lettuces to keep the summer salads going.  

Keep salads going all summer long  

Good companion plants for lettuce are beets, carrots, radishes, marigolds, onions, basil, and peas.  Root vegetables help loosen the soil.  Marigolds repel pests.  Basil can improve the taste of your lettuce.  Peas add nitrogen to the soil.  

Plants you should NOT plant next to lettuce are any that are in the Brassica family like cabbage, kale, and broccoli.  These plants put chemicals in the soil that lettuce plants don't like.  Celery, fennel and sunflowers also put chemicals in the soil that inhibits good growth of lettuce.  Be careful of planting anything next to lettuce that will overtake lettuce like mint, indeterminate tomatoes or vining plants.

Growing spinach 101

 

Saturday, March 21, 2026

Spinach is touted as one of the super foods and there are good reasons why.  Spinach is rich in antioxidants, folic acid, betaine, protein, omega-3, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, minerals manganese, iron, calcium, potassium, copper, phosphorous, zinc, and selenium.  

Spinach can be eaten raw, steamed, or sautéed.  A French favorite is creamed spinach.  Spinach contains oxalic acid which is eliminated when cooked.  Alternating between fresh and cooked is optimal.  It has been reported that spinach helps prevent osteoporosis, anemia, heart disease and cancers of the colon and prostate.  Natural News

Spinach was originally an Asian green and first cultivated in Persia (modern day Iran) in the 3rd century and brought to Europe via Spain by the Crusaders in the 11th century.  It was a favorite of Catherine de Medici from Florence, Italy.  She insisted every dish be served on a bed of greens.  Hence the term, “a’ la Florentine” for this style.

The smooth seeded spinach we grow today was known in the 1600’s.  Both the smooth and prickly seeded varieties were grown in the American colonies by the 1700’s.  The prickly seeded varieties are more prone to early bolting than the smooth seeded varieties.

Spinach loves well composted, moist soil and cool weather (below 70 degrees F).  Spinach will often over winter even in the northern states.  In southern states it is typically fall sown for spring harvests.

Seeds should be sown 1/2” deep, 3-6” apart.  Spinach is also happy to grow in pots.  Growing in pots also allow you to move the pot to a shadier, cooler area as temperatures rise, extending the harvest.

For spring harvests, plant in full sun to light shade in early spring (4-6 weeks before the last frost).  Seeds germinate in soil temperatures of 45-70 degrees F.  Spinach also transplants easily so can be started indoors or bought as transplants. 

Frost dates

Plant every 2 weeks or plant a variety with different maturity times (days to harvest) to have spinach into early summer.  Fertilize when the seedlings emerge.  Spinach enjoys even moisture.  This is especially important as temperatures begin to rise in late spring.    The later seeds I sow, I look for heat resistant types like America, Teton, Bloomsdale Longstanding, Space Olympia or Tyee to keep the harvest going as long as possible.  Spinach is ready to harvest 35-50 days.

If you harvest the outer leaves, the inner leaves will continue to grow, allowing you multiple harvests from each plant.

Most spinach will start to bolt when the temperatures reach 80F.  If you want to save seeds, allow the seed to dry on the plant before saving.  Refrigerate in air tight containers or bags.  I use plastic freezer bags to save space in the frig.

There are substitutes for spinach you can plant that love the heat of summer like New Zealand Spinach or Red Malabar Spinach.  Red Malabar is a very pretty vining plant with maroon stems.  They are great to grow just for their looks alone.  For more on summer salad greens:  Carefree summer salad greens

What's happening in the mid-March garden

Daffodils and hyacinth blooming, daylilies sprouting

Sunday, March 15, 2026

Spring in our garden came 2-3 weeks later this year with unseasonably frigid temperatures in February.  Daffodils, hyacinths, forsythias and Bradford pear trees are in full bloom.  Redbuds are beginning to bloom,  lilacs and roses just leaved out.  Peonies are just breaking ground.  Apple trees buds are just swelling.

When forsythias bloom, it is time to apply corn gluten for weed suppression in the garden and yard.  Corn gluten keeps seeds from sprouting and provides nitrogen.  It will also keep grass seed or garden seed from sprouting so use only where you don't want seeds to come up.

In the edible garden, onions, tarragon, garlic chives, garlic, carrots and spearmint are all coming up in the garden bed and pots.  Overwintering arugula, celery, winter cress, strawberry plants, raspberry plants, blackberry bushes, thyme and oregano are growing again.  Chickweed is flowering and growing vigorously.  The garden is giving greens for fresh picked salads.

I have been sowing cold season crop seeds outdoors for a while now.  I started in February with snow peas, lettuce and spinach in pots in the portable greenhouse.  I haven't seen any come up.  The soil could have been too wet and the seed rotted.  I've started lettuce and spinach indoors and those are up. I'll transplant from peat pellets to small pots in the next week.  When this next cold spell gets through and the weather looks safe from the 20's, I'll start hardening them off outdoors and transplant them. 

I'm hoping lettuce and spinach transplants will be available at the big box stores this weekend.  I like getting a couple 6 packs to get a jump on spring salads.

Peas and potatoes can be planted as soon as the soil can be worked in the spring.  I planted potatoes a couple of weeks ago.  The ones with long shoots are turning green so far, so good on them.

I have started other lettuce indoors that are heat resistant like Lunix, Solar Flare, Bronze Beauty, Royal Oak Leaf, Red Sails, Yedikule and Butter King.  Also started other summer salad greens in my Aerogarden system: Chinese pink celery, Hilton cabbage, Barese Swiss Chard, Japanese Mountain Spinach (a Swiss Chard), Chijimisai Greens, a fewamaranths, and mixed colors orach.  They are sprouting and the lettuce is ready to transplant into bigger pots.

I only started rosemary, papalo, and bushy sweet basil in the Aerogarden.  Parsley and celery overwintered and I'm hoping for volunteers of dill, cardinal basil, blue spice basil, and purple ball basil.  So far, my garden sage survived the winter along with the gold and green variety.  None of the tricolor sage survived.  I hope they survive this next dip into the 20's!  That's the killer for plants that are susceptible once there has been a warm up and then another cold snap.  It gets my rosemary almost every time.

Early March is an ideal time to mulch.  It's before the self-seeders are sprouting and it adds warmth to soil. I'm still working on gathering the seed heads from the marigolds, zinnias, cardinal basil, cockscomb and Jerusalem artichokes before mulching.  With the frigid temps moving back in tonight, it may be the first of April before adding compost, fertilizer and mulch to the beds.

For growing edibles, you can count on needing at least nitrogen addition unless you are doing nitrogen fixing cover crops.  I have tried a few different all natural nitrogen fertilizers.  Kelp adds a variety of minerals plus it has growth hormones in it so is a great choice for plants you want a lot of height for.  Many of the organic fertilizers use chicken manure as a main component.  We have chickens so I compost their bedding to use in the garden.  I use alfalfa meal and blood meal which are good sources of nitrogen for planting and adding to my greens during the growing season.  For all purpose organic fertilizer I use Espoma Garden-Tone or Re-Vita.

If you are creating new beds, put down cardboard first before fertilizing and mulching.  This added layer will keep the grass and weeds smothered while attracting earthworms.  Earthworms love cardboard!  They not only loosen the soil, but also fertilize it.  A real win-win. 

If you don't have a lot of time this year, transplants are always a great option.  Cool season crop transplants are at the local nurseries and big box stores in the next week or two.  They'll have broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, onion sets, lettuce, strawberries, potato sets, boxed dormant fruit bushes and trees in the first arrivals.  They sit outside so they are already hardened off and ready to plant.

Overwintering cabbage and broccoli

The big box stores will also have herb transplants.  The ones that can be planted now are thyme, sage, garlic, parsley, and celery.  I'd hold off on the rosemary and especially the basil.  If it gets even close to freezing, basil can be killed in the garden.  You can buy and keep them in a sunny window in the garage and they should be fine.

Tomatoes and basil will be in the stores, too.  I'd wait on those.  Tomatoes, basil, peppers and eggplant all need warm days and warm soil to thrive.  A freeze can kill them.  I usually wait until May to plant these summer lovers.

Indoor seed starting week 2

Hydroponic seed starting system
Saturday, March 14, 2026 

Now is the time to get the jump on summer harvests and start the warm weather loving seeds indoors.  Here is what I started indoors in my second week of seed starting.

Summer greens-these are the greens I use for salad after lettuce has bolted in the summer.  Aurora mixed colors orach, Rose orach, Double purple orach, Golden Giant amaranth (for leaves and seeds), Beetroot amaranth, Callelo amaranth, Rainbow quinoa (leaves and seeds).

Flowers-Orange King zinnia, Blush hollyhock, Purple stardust, Baby Blue Bouquet eucalyptus, Baby Blue Eyes, Rainbow Loveliness dianthus, Amadeo coneflower, Bluebird Forget-Me-Not, Scarlet echinacea, Platinum Blue, Blue Queen Butterfly Pea Vine, Blue Camas, Raspberry Daiquiri agastache, Sky Dance salvia, Kiwi Blue honeywort, variegated cockscomb, Red Raven cockscomb, Dwarf Coral cockscomb, Copper Spotted petunia.

The large flowers are for the pots in front, the smaller flowers for the pots with edibles, the dwarf cockscomb for around the flower bed perimeter and the perennials for the spots that either had annuals last year or the perennials didn't make it.  I'll also supplement the border with marigolds because they are so cheery, they deter deer, and pollinators love them.

I'll start the larger seeds outdoors at the beginning of April like cucumber, squash, okra, pole beans, melons and flowers.  I still also have seeds to start at our Master Gardener Demonstration Garden when they share the list of varieties they would like to grow this season.

Seed starting tips

Seed starting kit on left, hydroponic system on right

Sunday, March 8, 2026

I start seeds in a variety of ways.  Indoors I use seed starting trays with peat pellets as well as a hydroponic system.  Outdoors, I’ll start directly in the garden or large pot or I’ll use peat pots or rectangular starting pots then transplant to the garden when they have at least one set of permanent leaves.

For hydroponic systems, you just put the seed in the pd and the system turns the lights on/off at the right time and tell you when they need to be fertilized.  There's more to using the seed starting kits for success.  I’ll focus on starting seeds indoors with the kits you find in the big box or hardware stores in this blog.  It took some time to figure out how to have success with the seed starting kits.  Here is what I have learned.

 I have had the best success using a heat mat and grow light that I leave on during the day and turn both off at night.  Many cool-season loving plant seeds won't even germinate at the higher temperatures the heat mat provides.  By turning off the heat mat at night, it gives the cool season crops the temperatures they need to germinate.  The warm temperatures during the day give the summer lovers the higher temperatures they need to germinate.  The best of both worlds!

Another key learning I had was that you don't want your seed starting medium to be too wet.    You want the medium to be moist.  Sopping wet soil can cause the seed to mold instead of germinate.

This year, I have already started seeds outdoors and in the hydroponic system for the smaller warm season seedlings and harder to germinate types.  At the beginning of April, I will start the larger seeded summer vegetables in small pots or peat pellet tray system.

Seed starting steps

1.      The key is starting with sterile seed starting mix, pots, containers and trays.  For the trays and containers, sterilize with alcohol or bleach solution.  You can make your own seed starting mix with peat moss or coir (renewable), compost, and vermiculite or just buy seed starting mix.  If making your own, be sure to heat the compost to at least 150 degrees to kill any pathogens before using to start seeds.  If you use a system with Styrofoam, putting it out in the summer sun will take care of the hard to remove mold.

2.      Place the seeds in the starter mix in the pots after wetting the soil, peat or coir thoroughly from the bottom (watering from the top can dislodge seeds).  You can also pre-wet the soil before putting into pots.  Make sure to eliminate any air pockets in the soil before planting.  You can lightly press down on the soil with your finger or water overhead before planting the seed.  You don't want your soil mix to be completely wet, but nice and damp.  Seeds need oxygen to germinate.  Waterlogged soil can result in rotted seeds instead of seedlings.

3.      After fully moist, you are ready to put them in a catch pan.  Make sure any catch pan that you use has also been thoroughly sprayed with alcohol or washed in a bleach solution so all pathogens are killed.  Rinse well after sterilizing and before using for seedlings.  I use restaurant style baking sheets.  They hold many seedlings and are super sturdy.

 4.      Make sure you label your seedlings as soon as you plant them; you may think you will remember 2 months from now what was where, but likely not!  Now is also a great time to start keeping a gardening journal.  Start tracking what you planted when so you can review next year what worked well to repeat and what didn’t work so well to tweak.

 5.      I put my seed starts in a tray in a sunny window or under LED grow lights.  Using two T8 fluorescent bulbs or grow light bulbs for 16 hours per day should provide enough light to grow sturdy seedlings.  

6.       Keep moist, but not wet, until seedling emerges.  Water from the bottom so as not to disturb the seed/seedling.  Pour off any standing water to discourage fungal disease.  You can use a spray bottle to keep the seedling and soil damp as well to avoid overwatering or dislodging the seeds.  

7.      Use bottom heat during the day to encourage speedy germination (turn off at night).  As soon as the seedlings have sprouted, discontinue the heat.  Additional heat helps speed germination and reduce the chance of mold or fungal disease.  By only using heat during the day and discontinuing heat after emerging, that has eliminated the dampening off of my seedlings.

8.     Your seedlings will need diluted liquid fertilizer starting 3 weeks after sprouting.  Using a weak fish emulsion is said to help prevent dampening off.  It should be no greater than half strength as these are tiny plants that don't need as much food as a full-size plant.

9.      Don't be too worried if you have leggy seedlings.  Always handle the seedling by its leaves and not its stem.  This reduces the risk that you will bend over, break or crush the stem which kills the seedling.  Once hardened off outdoors, they will strengthen up very quickly.  Once your seedlings have sprouted, gently run your hand over them once a day.  This encourages the stem to strengthen.  You can also use a small fan to blow gently on your seedlings to strengthen their stems to make transplanting safer.

10.    Once the seedling is up and going, spacing them a couple of inches apart helps the plants to grow sturdy stems instead of spindly.  When crowded, the seedlings race to get to the light.  If they are still leggy, it is likely insufficient light.  Make sure you are keeping your artificial light as close to the seedlings as possible (about 2" from the seedlings).  

11.    The best time to transplant is when recommended on the seed packet and when the seedling has nice roots that you can see throughout the soil.  Always harden off before planting.  Make sure the soil is moist and the seedling is fertilized when you plant so it has everything it needs to get growing.

For larger seeds, and seedlings, I start in a 3-4” pot, directly in their garden bed spot or container at the recommended time on the seed packet.  I always start peas and green beans directly in their garden bed spot or pot.  You can grow bush type cucumbers, squash, watermelon and dwarf tomatoes in large pots, too.  Larger seedlings like cucumbers, beans, watermelon, cantaloupe, squash and tomatoes started in a tray, 3-4” pot or peat pellet will need to be transplanted into the garden bed or a larger pot as soon as they have their first set of true leaves.

Seedlings in salad container

 Your seedling’s first leaves are not “true” leaves, think of them as baby teeth.  The second set of leaves are their true leaves.  They are ready to be hardened off when they have their first set of true leaves.  Seedlings must be hardened and not just thrown outside.  You take them out a little at a time, gradually increasing their exposure to sun and cold, only during the daytime.  A week or two should be enough to harden them for the great outdoors.  I try and plant when there is a warm spell and clouds forecasted to minimize the temperature shock and sun scald.

Be sure to keep them watered after transplanting for a couple of weeks to allow their roots to get a good foothold.

It seems I grow more and more varieties from seeds, from flowers to herbs to fruits and veggies.  There are just so many fun varieties out there that you can only get as a seed!  I also have saved seeds from store bought veggies that I thought were cool and tasted great. 

There are great selections of herbs and veggies at nurseries and big box stores nowadays that give you many options, including heirlooms and organically grown.   

You can wait until spring is officially here and pick up plants that looks good in the next month if your first seed starting experiment doesn’t go as well as hoped.  Local gardening centers carry what varieties are best suited for your area.  This is also a great back up if your first seed starting adventure goes a little awry........

What I started indoors this week

Hydroponic seed starting system
Saturday, March 7, 2026 

Now is the time to get the jump on summer harvests and start the warm weather loving seeds indoors.  Here is what I started indoors this week.

Tomatoes-large paste (Italian Red Pear), slicers (5’ Cherokee Purple, OTV Brandywine, Pink Brandywine, red and purple Brandywine), a small fruit (Chocolate Pear), California Tulip, Long Keeper storage tomato, and Tropic VFN and Mannon Majesty from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange that are disease and heat resistant.  

Eggplant-AO Daimura, Antigua, Shiromaru, Amadeo, Qi Ye Round, Italian pink bicolor

Potatoes-Yukon Gold in the potato boxes

Snow peas outdoors in pots with peppers and eggplants

Dragon Tail radish

Cabbage-Hilton Chinese cabbage and 2 Savoy Perfection

Spring Greens-Lettuce (Royal Oakleaf, Butter King, Bronze Beauty, Red Romaine, Yedikule, Red Sails, Chinese Narrow Leaf, New Red Fire, Rouge d'Hiver, Lunix, Solar Flare), Spinach (Spiros F1, Galilee)

Summer Greens-Orach, Amaranth, Japanese Mountain Spinach, Chijimisai, Barese Swiss Chard, Bokoboko Spinach waterleaf, Jewels of Opar, Feaster Family Mustard

Herbs-Rosemary, Pink Celery, Marjoram, Borage, Oregano, Sweet Basil, Papalo

Sweet peppers-Doe Hill Golden Bell storage, burgundy from saved seed, Nadapeno, and a meaty red pepper from saved seed

Strawberries-Alpine varieties Mignonette and Regina

Fruit-Schwartzenbeeren Blackberries (huckleberry), Chichquelite Huckleberry, New Hanover and Mary's Niagara Ground Cherries.

 

I'll start the larger seeds outdoors in another month like cucumber, squash, okra, pole beans, melons and flowers.

What to start 4 weeks before frost (this week)

Starting seeds in peat pods and Aerogarden

Sunday, March 1, 2026

For indoor seed starting, it is time to start the ones that love the hot weather.  You can also continue to succession sow lettuce for continuous harvest into summer.  For outdoors, you can still plant the cool season lovers.  

For our zone 7 garden, here are the ones you can sow indoors now: 

Herbs 

*Basil

*Cilantro

*Culantro

*Dill

*Feverfew

*Navajo Tea

*Butterfly Form Papalo (tastes like cilantro but loves hot weather)

*Red Shiso

Veggies/Fruits

*Amaranth

*Artichoke

*Arugula

*Basil

*Bok Choy

*Broccoli Raab

*Chinese Cabbage

*Cucumber

*Cultivated Dandelions

*Fennel

*Huckleberry

*Lambsquarter

*Leeks

*Lettuce

*Melons

*Mustard

*Okra

*Orach

*Peppers

*Pumpkins

*Radicchio

*Red Malabar Spinach

*Sorrel

*Soybean

*Summer and Winter Squash

*Tomatoes

*Watermelons

Flowers and Ornamentals

*Amaranthus

*Aster

*Blue Fescue

*Cosmos

*Fountain Grass

*Hummingbird Vine

*Hyacinth Bean

*Love in a Mist

*Luffa

*Lupine

*Marigold

*Morning Glory

*Nasturtium

*Platinum Blue

*California and Corn Poppies

*Zinnias

Few of the veggies and herbs listed are cool season producers.  For more on cool season gardening, see A spring edible garden. At this point, we are adding more of the staples of the summer garden like tomatoes, basil, melons and squash.  For more on summer gardening, see  All about the summer edible garden 

For indoor seed starting how-to and tips:  Indoor seed starting how to and tips

For making your own seed starting pots:  Make your own peat pots 

If you are transplanting seedlings from indoors to outdoors, be sure to harden them to the conditions they will be transplanted to.  If in a greenhouse, cold frame or hot bed, you can take outdoors when temperatures are warm or maybe an unheated garage if the temps are close to the covered location you will be placing them.  "Hardening off" seedlings 

Here are the crops you can sow outdoors this week.

Seeds to sow outdoors

Here is a list of the cool season crops you can sow seeds this week in the outdoor garden 4 weeks or less from the last forecasted frost.

Arugula

Beets

Bok choy

Broccoli

Cabbage

Carrots

Cauliflower

Celery

Chard

Chervil

Chives

Collards

Corn Salad

Cultivated dandelions

Endive

Fava beans

Garlic

Kale

Kohlrabi

Leeks

Lettuce

Mache

Mustard greens

Onions

Pac choi

Parsley

Parsnips

Peas

Potatoes

Radicchio

Radishes

Rhubarb

Shallots

Sorrel

Spinach

Turnips

Snow pea seedlings started outdoors in February