Diverse Lettuce Varieties

Leafy Varieties

• Leafy lettuce varieties such as Bixby, Lettony, Scottsdale, Black-Seeded Simpson and Lovelock prefer well-drained, loamy soil with pH between 6.0 and 7.0. Lettuce requires adequate soil nitrogen for good leaf production. Seeds planted every two weeks through summer provide a constant supply for the table. Lovelock lettuce has thick, bright green leaves with maroon edge. Lettony’s leaves are spoon-shaped with frilled edges.

Butterhead Lettuces

• Butterhead variety lettuces include the oldest American lettuce still available. Tom Thumb lettuce grows to a 3- to 5-inch head size that is perfect for small garden spaces or container edgings. It comes to harvest 50 days from germination. Icaro lettuce is well-adapted to dry climates for late summer and fall growth. Red Riding Hood butterhead lettuce has large, red-tinged leaves. Other butterhead varieties include Buttercrunch, Grandpa’s Admire and Kragraner. Butterhead lettuces may be planted as early in spring as the ground can be worked. Seeds may be started indoors five to seven weeks earlier.

Romaines

• Romaine variety lettuces have upright growth with crisp, narrow or broad oblong-shaped leaves. Unusual varieties of romaine lettuce include Winter Density, Coastal Star, Green Towers, Fresh Heart and Pinecrest. Lettuce plants in the garden need 4 to 10 inches of space between them for optimum development. Compost-enriched soil gives lettuce the 17 essential nutrients they need to grow and thrive.

Heirloom Varieties

• Bronze Mignonette lettuce was first introduced in 1898. It is a head lettuce with a creamy yellow center and green to bronze frilled leaves. Cimmaron romaine has been grown since the 18th century. It is a slow-bolting romaine with deep red leaves. Heirloom lettuces are open-pollinated and remain true-to-type through generations. Paris White cos lettuce dates from the 1860s. It has light green, crinkled leaves and a white core.