Lamb lettuce can be sown almost all year round. Since various varieties of lamb's lettuce are also hardy, unused flower boxes on the balcony can sometimes be planted with lamb's lettuce for an early harvest in spring.
How to grow lamb's lettuce?
Lamb lettuce can be grown almost all year round, both in the balcony box and outdoors or in raised beds. Choose the right variety, pay attention to the growing instructions, ensure there is enough water and continually harvest fresh lamb's lettuce.
Wild herbs from the field
Originally, the original form of lamb's lettuce was a wild herb that grew among grasses and herbs in fields. For around 100 years now, this type of lettuce has been bred in such a way that its shape and taste can provide real culinary delights. Growing and harvesting lamb's lettuce does not require a great deal of gardening skill as it is a relatively undemanding vegetable variety.
Choose the right variety of seeds
There are now many different varieties of lamb's lettuce. There are also frost-hardy varieties such as:
- Dark Green Wholehearted
- Elan
- Vally
- Vit
- Gala
These varieties have the advantage that they can be sown even in late autumn. The young plants overwinter under the snow cover and can continue their growth in spring with a huge lead over other types of vegetables.
Growing lamb's lettuce in the balcony box
Since lamb's lettuce does not place very high demands on the soil and location, it can also be grown in pots or balcony boxes. Growing in balcony boxes can be particularly useful if they are only planted with annual flowers during the summer. This means that the balcony boxes can be planted with lamb's lettuce throughout the winter, which can then be harvested in the spring in time before flowers appear again. If you don't particularly value colorful flowers on the balcony, you can of course also cultivate lamb's lettuce in balcony boxes in summer if you water it sufficiently.
Lamb lettuce outdoors or on raised beds
Depending on the variety, lamb's lettuce can also be grown fresh almost all year round outdoors or on a raised bed. However, when selecting seeds, you should pay attention to the cultivation instructions for the respective variety. In addition to frost-hardy and non-hardy varieties, there are also different varieties for cultivation in spring or autumn. If varieties are sown outside of their recommended growing time, they can sometimes have a tendency to bolt.
Harvest lamb's lettuce continuously all year round
A practical feature of lamb's lettuce is that each plant cannot only be harvested once. When harvesting the top leaves, be sure to leave the root in the soil along with the base. This means that the lamb's lettuce can grow back several times and can be continually harvested fresh as needed. Lamb's lettuce is known as a typical winter vegetable due to its benefits and delicate nutty taste, but can be harvested almost all year round with staggered sowing times.
Tips & Tricks
In principle, lamb's lettuce can also be sown in mid-summer months such as July and August. However, you should ensure that the plants have sufficient water supply during the germination phase so that optimal growth can take place.
