Early lettuce varieties can be grown on the windowsill at home as early as February. The seedlings then have to be pricked out after a few weeks. The same is also necessary outdoors when you sow the lettuce densely.

Only one, at most two, plants should remain per seed tray

Why does lettuce need pricking?

Lettuce is pricked out whenever it is sown too densely. This is mainly done when you are unsure how well the seeds will germinate. Seeds from specialist shops usually have very good germination potential and you can be sure that almost all seeds will sprout. However, if you have harvested the seed yourself, it is advisable to sow several seeds per tray to ensure at least two per tray will germinate. If more grow, they must be removed so that the plants do not prevent each other from growing.

When is lettuce pricked?

Lettuce can be pricked out as early as a week or even two weeks after germination as soon as it has formed a second pair of leaves. The plants are then about two centimeters high.

How is lettuce pricked?

All you need to prick lettuce is a steady hand. Select the plants that should remain and remove the rest. If you prick out plants in seed trays, one or two plants per tray can remain. If you prick out outdoors, you should only leave one plant every 25cm. The actual transplanting is very simple: grab the heads of the plants you want to remove and carefully pull them out with their roots. Ready.

What to do with the pricked out plants?

Does it hurt you to just throw away the little plants you plucked out? Planting them back in another pot may work if you do it as soon as possible. Another variant is to wash the plants and eat them in a salad as a substitute for seedling. Young seedlings contain a particularly large number of nutrients.

Avoid pricking

If you want to save yourself the work, you can only plant two seeds per seed tray or, when sowing directly outdoors, keep a planting distance of 25 to 30 cm from the outset.

Key facts at a glance

  • Prick out one to two weeks after sowing
  • Leave one or two seedlings per seed tray
  • keep a planting distance of at least 25 cm outdoors
  • use removed plants in the salad

Category:

Vegetable garden