Need extremely basic info to plant lettuce

[Rebecca2009]

Hi,

I have always wanted to plant some vegetables and I think lettuce would be a good thing to start with. We eat a lot of it and from what I have read it grows fairly quickly.

 We don't have the greatest soil here, but at least our back yard is better than our front yard.  We live right on a busy street and our front yard is like sand at this point from all the snow melt stuff, etc.

Anyway....I do not know a thing about this.  Would anyone like to take a minute to tell me the simplest way to start. Thank you!!

[titania8]

Disclaimer: I'm no expert, and have only grown lettuce one year.

If your soil is poor, you can amend it with some compost or even top soil from home depot. Sprinkle the seeds on and keep them moist. You can thin the seedlings to allow the others more space as they grow. Eat the thinnings.

You can also plant in a pot or other container that allows for drainage (like a window box or a hanging basket).

[SuburbanHippie]

Hot weather + full sun = Bitter lettuce

That's my only good tip.  If you're somewhere that is going to really warm soon, get that lettuce planted quick.  Lettuce does best when the temps are under 80.

[Rebecca2009]

Thanks to both of you!

I am in Massachusetts and it is still fairly cold here.  We are still getting frost in the mornings, but I would think soon I can plant.

Maybe I will try a container too.  We have a lot of rabbits and other critters around here.

[limette]

Grow it under something tall, like pole beans. Like the pp said, when it gets hot the lettuce turns bitter and bolts. I kept mine nice all year by growing it in the shade of beans. I do repeated cuttings of the lettuce rather than harvesting a full grown head.

[Beppie]

We grow lettuce every year.  I am in Minnesota.  Lettuce loves the cold --- plant it now!   Once the soil temp is 40 degrees, lettuce is good to go.  They can stand frosts.  I planted my lettuce last week (our last frost is still a month away).

My biggest tip is to make sure you don't plant it too deep!  Lettuce seeds are TINY and need to be no more than 1/8th of an inch from the surface to germinate.  when I was a beginning gardener, my biggest mistake was always planting too deeply.  For lettuce, I just sprinkle the seeds on the surface of the soil, and then sprinkle a little soil over them. 

Hope this helps!