Lettuce has the advantage, especially for smaller households, that it can be harvested leaf by leaf. Sow lettuce in balcony boxes or in the open ground so that you can harvest from the same plants for months with a skilful harvesting technique.

Colorful variety from the bed to the plate

Lettuce is particularly attractive not only because of its particularly delicate taste, but also because of its visual advantages. With red and green leaves in jagged, panicle-like or oak-leaved form, pickle lettuce can be used as an elegant garnish for exquisite dishes. Since the individual varieties can also be grown mixed without any problems, a varied look can be created in the bed or balcony box.

Different seed varieties for summer and autumn harvest

When selecting the seed, make sure not only to pay attention to freshness and germination capacity, but also to the recommended time for cultivation. After pre-cultivation indoors, early varieties can be planted outdoors under fleece from around mid-May and harvested from June. Later varieties, on the other hand, should not be sown directly outdoors until June and July and harvested from August to October, otherwise they tend to bolt if planted earlier.

Leave the strong heart shoots when harvesting

Lettuce leaves do not develop heads and can practically be harvested leaf by leaf. However, they usually have central heart shoots or heart leaves, on which the lateral leaves form. Numerous varieties can thus be harvested several times if only the lateral leaves are carefully cut off or plucked off:

  • oak leaf
  • Venetian brown
  • Australian Yellow

But be vigilant if the lettuce goes into a flowering phase. Then harvest the entire plant in time, as one bloom will make the leaves taste bitter.

Watch out for night frosts

The young plants need to be protected from night frosts with a fleece not only in spring. OUTDOORS and on the balcony, the different types of lettuce should not be exposed to temperatures well below zero degrees Celsius, even in autumn and early winter. Otherwise, harvest all remaining lettuce leaves in good time, as these, with their delicate leaf structure, are severely affected by frost.

tips and tricks

Especially on the balcony, the danger of too much sunlight for the lettuce is very high. You should therefore protect lettuce on the balcony in August from excessive heat with a parasol or special shade nets.

Category:

Vegetable garden