Lettuce Baby Oakleaf – Renee’s Garden
Lactuca sativa
Heirloom Lettuce
These pretty little lettuces form dense leafy 7-8 inch rosettes that look like lettuce bouquets. Baby Oakleaf’s elongated, notched, bright green leaves are tender, sweet and succulent and hold salad dressing well because of their unique shape.
Each appetizing head is perfect for a personal size salad for 1-2 people. Heads are quick to mature and grow equally well in beds or containers. You’ll find this lovely little lettuce is both delicious and very ornamental.
| Cold Winters | Mild Winters | Sun/Shade | Sow Seeds | Days to Germinate |
Days to Harvest |
| April-May | Sept.-May |
Full sun Partial shade |
1 in. apart 1/4 in. deep | 7Â – 14 days | 55 – 70 days |
START SEEDS OUTDOORS
In cool spring weather, start seeds in full sun. Sow seeds 1/4 in. deep and 1 in. apart in fertile, well-drained soil. When seedlings are several inches tall, thin to final spacing of 4-5 in. apart. Extra seedlings can easily be transplanted elsewhere.
Container Spacing:Â Grow 3 plants in an 8 in. pot, or 7 to 8 plants in a 12 to 15 in. diameter container.
GROWING NOTES
Lettuce thrives in cool conditions with consistent moisture. Be sure to thin properly and keep evenly moist for sweet tasting, full heads. For a constant supply, make several sowings a few weeks apart until summer weather turns hot. Plant again in late summer for fall harvest. In hot weather, give lettuce some afternoon shade to extend harvest season and check water daily. Keep soil evenly moist and feed with liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks. Consider transplanting lettuce seedlings around the edges of a big pot containing a young tomato or pepper plant. The lettuces will be ready to eat just as the bigger plant grows larger and needs the space.
HARVEST AND USE
Savor young thinnings in your first spring salads. Then harvest plants by cutting mature heads when they feel firm and well-filled out. Pull and discard or compost over-mature plants if they begin to elongate (“bolt”) in hot weather as leaves turn bitter at this stage.
