Choose how you want to harvest
Loose-leaf lettuce suits small, frequent pickings; heading types need room to form a full head. Read the packet for spacing and expected maturity. Choose one type for a first trial so you can see how it responds to your site.
Sow a manageable amount
Prepare a fine surface and follow the shallow sowing depth on the packet. Keep the seed zone moist during germination without washing seeds away. Thin seedlings to the recommended spacing. Crowding may look productive early but leaves plants competing as they grow.
Plan around heat
Hot weather can lead to bitter leaves and flowering, called bolting. Repeated sowing only helps while conditions remain suitable. Taste and harvest regularly; remove declining plants and plan the next crop around your local season rather than a fixed year-round schedule.
- Choose leaf or heading type
- Mark each sowing date
- Thin seedlings before they compete
Adapt this to your garden.
Use the variety label and local extension recommendations for exact spacing, planting dates, hardiness, and care. This photograph illustrates the plant group; it does not identify or guarantee a particular cultivar. Flower profiles cover ornamental use.
University of Minnesota Extension · Growing lettuce ↗
Editorially reviewed September 26, 2026. How we develop our guides.
