Lettuce

Lettuce

Lactuca sativa

Start lettuce indoors 7 weeks before your last spring frost, then plant out 3 weeks before your last spring frost. Space plants 8 in (20 cm) apart.

Photo: Dwight Sipler from Stow, MA, USA, CC BY 2.0 · source

When to plant

Timed from your frost dates, so it holds wherever you garden. Give yours and every step below becomes a date.

See the dates for your garden

Enter your average last spring frost and first fall frost. Every timing on this site turns into a calendar date. Not sure of yours? Your local extension service or a search for “last frost date” and your town will tell you; the app finds them from your location.

Last spring frost
First fall frost

Saved in this browser only. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Optimal Indoor Start

From seedRecommended
  1. Start indoors7 weeks before your last spring frost
  2. Begin hardening off4 weeks before your last spring frost
  3. Plant out3 weeks before your last spring frost
  4. First harvestabout 55 days after planting out

Optimal Transplant

From seed
  1. Plant out3 weeks before your last spring frost
  2. First harvestabout 55 days after planting out

Optimal Direct Sow

From seed
  1. Sow outdoors3 weeks before your last spring frost
  2. First harvestabout 55 days after sowing

Optimal Fall Direct Sow

From seed
  1. Sow outdoorsabout 11 weeks before your first fall frost
  2. First harvestabout 55 days after sowing

Growing lettuce

Spacing in the row
8 in (20 cm)
Between rows
12 in (30 cm)
Planting depth
1/8-1/4 inch
Sun
Partial Shade
Soil
Well-drained, rich in organic matter, pH balanced.
Germination
7-14 days at 40-70°F (optimal 55-65°F)
Harvest season
Spring, Early Summer, Fall
Mature height
6-12 inches
Life cycle
Annual

Sow seeds thinly and shallowly, barely covering with fine soil.

Watering. Maintain consistent soil moisture; avoid waterlogging. Overhead watering can encourage disease.

Neighbours

The companion chart →

Grows well beside

Feeding

Seedlings
Apply a dilute liquid fertilizer once true leaves develop.
Growing
Apply a balanced liquid fertilizer every 2-3 weeks.
How often
Every 2-3 weeks during active vegetative growth.
Note
Excessive nitrogen can lead to soft, weak growth. Prioritize balanced nutrition for robust leaves.

Your lettuce, planned to the day.

Canopy turns these timings into dates from your own frost data, places every plant at its spacing on your garden map, and tracks it all the way to harvest.

Add lettuce to your planting calendar →

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