Starting Lettuce From Seed in Missouri

Planting Instructions

• To grow any type of lettuce in Missouri, select a site that receives full sun or partial shade, loosening the soil with a tiller or shovel to a depth of at least 6 inches. To add nutrients and improve soil drainage and tilth, work in a layer of compost at least 2 inches thick. Lettuce does best in well-drained soil -- a raised or mounded bed is ideal. After raking the bed smooth, sow seeds directly on the soil, covering them with 1/8 inch of compost or soil for a spring planting and 1/4 inch of soil or compost for a late summer planting. Press the soil down with your hands to ensure good soil to seed contact, and maintain even moisture during germination. Allow 16 to 18 inches between rows. After the seedlings emerge, keep the soil moist but not soggy. For a sustained spring harvest, you can sow seeds every three weeks. Sidedress lettuce with an additional 1 to 2 inches of compost three to four weeks after planting.

Butterhead Lettuce Planting Dates

• Sometimes called “Bib,” “Buttercrunch,” or “Boston,” butterhead lettuce forms loosely-folded, shiny leaves that are distinctly tender and sweet. Reaching maturity in 50 to 75 days and tolerant of poor soil, butterhead lettuce should be thinned to 6 inches for smaller heads and 8 to 10 inches to make room for larger heads. If you live in southern Missouri get your spring seeds in the ground anytime from March 10 to April 20. Fall planting dates are August 1 through 20. Central Missouri gardeners can plant butterhead lettuce from March 15 to April 20 and again from August 1 through 10. The growing window for gardeners in northern Missouri and the Ozark plateau is April 1 through 20 and July 25 through 30. Butterhead cultivars recommended by the University of Missouri Extension include “Esmeralda” and “Sangria.”

Crisphead Lettuce Planting Dates

• With its solid, tight head and thick, crunchy leaves, crisphead lettuce ( Lactuca sativa capitata) became an early salad staple. To make room for the large heads thin seedlings to every 10 to 12 inches soon after emergence. Recommended cultivars for the state include “Great Lakes,” “Ithaca” and “Summertime.” Because it can take up to 70 days to mature depending on the cultivar, crisphead lettuce only has one planting date. Southern Missouri gardeners can plant from March 10 through 25; central Missouri growers can sow seeds from March 10 to April 25; and those living in northern Missouri and the Ozark plateau have from March 25 to April 5 to get their seeds in the soil. Crisphead Lettuce cultivars recommended by the University of Missouri Extension include “Great Lakes,” Ithaca” and “Summertime.”

Looseleaf Lettuce Planting Dates

• The earliest to mature of all the lettuce types, looseleaf (Latuca sativa crispa) is ready to pick in 40 to 50 days. Good as a "cut and come again" crop, heat-tolerant looseleaf – as its name suggests – never develops a head. Sow seeds in a 2 inch band, thinning to roughly 30 plants per foot. Southern Missouri gardeners can plant seeds from March 10 to May 1 and again from August 1 through 30. If you live in central Missouri, set March 15 to May 10 and August 1 to 20 as your planting dates. Growers in northern Missouri and the Ozark plateau have a long spring planting window: April 1 to May 15, sowing seeds again in late summer from August 1 through 15. Looseleaf lettuce cultivars that can do well in the state include “Black Seeded Simpson,” “Green Wave” and “Tango.”

Romaine Lettuce Planting Dates

• With an upright growth habit that makes it ideal for tucking into small spaces, romaine lettuce (Latuca sativa longifolia) forms dense crispy leaves and is more heat tolerant than other lettuce. Taking from 70 to 80 days to reach maturity, however, means only one planting time is possible in Missouri. Allow 10 to 12 inches between plants for good head development and improved air circulation. Gardeners in southern Missouri can plant seeds from March 10 to April 20, central Missouri growers have from March 15 to April 20 to plant romaine and growers living in northern Missouri and the Ozark plateau can sow seeds from April 1 to 20. Two cultivars recommended by the University of Missouri Extension are “Jericho” and “Paris Island.”

Pests and Diseases

• Two diseases common to lettuce in Missouri gardens include aster yellows and lettuce drop. Aster yellows stunts the plants, turning the leaves yellow. At the first sign of this disease, pull the plant; it cannot recover. Keeping weeds under control in and around the plants helps to control it. Lettuce drop is a fungus that creates water-drenched spots near base of plant, slowly spreading up the leaves. Planting lettuce in a site with well-drained soil helps prevent this disease. Both cutworms and cabbage loopers can be treated with two dousing of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) applied three to four days apart. To reduce pest and disease problems, rotate crops every year.