How to grow leaf lettuce on a windowsill and garden bed

Where can you grow lettuce?

Leaf lettuce feels great in the beds. In open ground, you can plant both seeds and seedlings grown at home or bought in a store.

If you do not have a summer house or your own plot near the house, the salad will fit perfectly in a container on the windowsill. You can grow greens from seeds or try rooting a bunch in a pot from the vegetable section.

How to grow lettuce from seeds outdoors

The easiest option is to plant lettuce seeds directly into the ground. So you do not have to mess with seedlings, and the result will be no worse, although a little later. It will be possible to harvest in 25-35 days.

The place is better to choose a sunny, without shading. Well, if last year legumes, tomatoes, cucumbers or potatoes grew there. Thanks to crop rotation - the so-called alternation of plants - the risk of damage by pests and diseases will decrease, the harvest will be better. But sowing lettuce in the same bed for two years in a row is not worth it.

When to plant lettuce outdoors

Early varieties can be planted as early as April-May, while mid-season and late varieties can be planted from April to mid-June. When planting early, the main thing is to wait until the ground warms up enough and warm weather sets in without frost.

Lettuce can be periodically sown again, removing old plants with the root. So you can get a crop all summer.

How to grow lettuce outdoors

Dig up the soil 1-2 days before you sow the seeds. Make parallel grooves about a centimeter deep or slightly less at a distance of 15-20 cm from each other.

Sow the seeds at intervals of about 5 cm, lightly cover with earth and water. If it is cool outside, the beds can be covered with a film until shoots appear.

When the greens look through, it can be thinned out if the planting is too dense.

How to care for lettuce

Weeding, watering and loosening are the main points in care. On hot spring and summer days, you need to moisten the beds with lettuce every 1-2 days. In cloudy, rainy and cool weather, the intervals can be increased. The main thing is not to let the soil dry out completely. It is better to water in the morning or in the evening, and not during the most sunny hours. Moreover, it is desirable to use a watering can so that moisture gets on the leaves of the plant. After watering, gently loosen the topsoil.

It is quite possible to do without top dressing and special fertilizers during growth. It is enough to bring mullein or bird droppings into the ground in the fall, and start planting in the spring. Don't worry if you don't have time to prepare in advance. In fertile and not depleted soil, lettuce will feel good anyway.

Remove weeds as soon as they appear so that they do not interfere with the normal growth and development of plants.

How to grow lettuce from seedlings outdoors

Growing lettuce seedlings makes sense if you want to get the first crop as early as possible. Small plants planted in open ground will grow leaves quite quickly, and it will be possible to start collecting them in one and a half to two weeks.

When to plant lettuce seedlings

It's time to land on seedlings March or early April. If you missed the deadline, do not worry: you can buy young plants for planting in the ground even at the beginning of summer.

How to grow lettuce seedlings

It is better to plant lettuce for seedlings in peat pots or individual cups - a seed in each. So it will be easier for you to move the plant to a permanent place without damaging it.

If you want to plant lettuce in a common box or container, make grooves in the soil 1 cm deep and at a distance of about 5 cm from each other. Sow the seeds at a distance of about 10 cm. A tighter fit will need to be thinned out over time.

Cover the sown seeds with a thin layer of soil and moisten with a spray bottle. Cover with foil and leave for a few days until shoots appear. Do not forget to remove the film every day and air it for at least half an hour, and when the sprouts are visible, remove the cover.

The soil is suitable for universal or special for seedlings. Feeds are not needed.

When to transplant lettuce outdoors

After about 3 weeks or less, when the plants are strong enough, they can be plant in a greenhouse or open ground. At the same time, you need to wait until the earth warms up enough, and the threat of frost recedes.

How to care for lettuce

Caring for lettuce planted in open ground in the form of seedlings does not differ from caring for sown directly in the beds. Depending on the weather, plants should be watered from a watering can in the morning or evening every 1-2 days or less. Also, do not forget to loosen the soil and remove weeds.

How to grow lettuce from seed on a windowsill

Leaf lettuce is a great option for a vegetable garden in an apartment. It is very easy to take care of it, and you can harvest the first crop in about 25 days. It is worth paying attention to early-ripening varieties that feel fine in low light.

Special conditions are not needed, although some points are better to take into account. Ideally, if the windows face east or west and are not too shaded by trees. It will be too hot on southern plants, and there will be little light on northern ones.

In autumn and winter, when daylight is short, you will have to use special lamps. Without them, the plants will be frail and will not please with abundant greenery.

The temperature is suitable for room temperature. But keep in mind that with constant strong heat, the lettuce will quickly release arrows and begin to bloom, and the leaves will be bitter.

For planting, you can take ordinary pots or larger containers, always with drainage holes and pallets. The soil is suitable for store, universal or special for vegetable crops. In addition to it, drainage is needed. It can be expanded clay, broken bricks, small shards of raw clay pots, pebbles, gravel and even foam.

When to plant lettuce on a windowsill

When growing in an apartment, there are no strict time frames. Seeds can be sown at any time of the year.

How to plant lettuce seeds

Put a layer of drainage on the bottom of the container. Spread the soil on top, retreating from the edge of about 0.5 cm. Lightly dampen the ground with a spray bottle, but do not create a swamp.

Sow the seeds not too thickly and cover with a layer of soil no more than 5 mm thick. If you do not want to thin out the crops, place the seeds in the ground at a distance of at least 5 cm.

Cover the container with cling film or glass and leave in a warm, shady place.

How to care for lettuce on the windowsill

Before germination, air the plantings every day for at least half an hour so that mold does not appear.

After 4-5 days, when the first shoots come out of the soil, remove the film or glass. Rearrange the container with plants on the windowsill or loggia. After a week, thin out your plantings so that the distance between plants is about 1.5–2 cm. When 2-3 true leaves appear, repeat the procedure again. This time, leave a distance of about 5 cm. Plants that will have to be pulled out can be planted in a separate bowl.

Rotate the container of lettuce every few days. So it will develop evenly and will not turn out to be one-sided due to the fact that one side will be constantly in the sun, and the other will not.

Don't forget to water. It is needed on average every other day, although it all depends on the conditions. For example, in a warm room or on the southern windowsills on hot days, the earth will dry faster. Therefore, do not leave the salad unattended. At first, while the plants are very small and fragile, it is advisable to combine watering with spraying. Although after, especially in rooms with dry air, this procedure will benefit. In any case, it is better to use water at room temperature or a little warmer, always separated.

Top dressing is not needed if you immediately take high-quality store soil.

How to grow lettuce from the store on the windowsill

Vegetable departments often sell lettuce in pots. Because plants have root systems, they stay fresh longer and are better stored. And after cutting the greenery, the plants can be planted and re-harvested from them.

When to plant lettuce in a pot

You can give a plant a second life at any time of the year, the main thing is to create suitable conditions.

How to plant lettuce in a pot

Cut off all the lettuce leaves, retreating from the ground 1-2 cm. Carefully separate the pot. It is quite thin and brittle, so it can be cut with a sharp knife or scissors.

Place the roots in a bowl of settled water at room temperature.

When the new leaves are 4-5 cm long, plant the lettuce in a pot or container with universal store soil.

How to care for lettuce in a pot

There are no difficulties. Just water the salad about every other day and spray frequently. No need to feed. This is enough to harvest another new crop.