The oyster mushroom gets its name from its cap which, some say, resembles an oyster. The stem of the oyster mushrooms is perhaps more distinct; it unfurls something like one of those old-time paper lady's fans. The oyster mushroom has...

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Lettuce Growing Problems: Troubleshooting

Most varieties of lettuce require cool weather or slight shading for best growth. Grow lettuce in the cool part of the year, when temperatures range in the 50s and 60sF. You can plant lettuce as soon as the ground can be worked in spring. Grow leafy varieties where the weather is warmer.

Lettuce grows well in average, but loose and well-drained soil. Don't crowd lettuce; let it leaf out and grow steadily and quickly for best flavor. Lettuce that is crowded or grown in poor soil will be tough and bitter tasting.

For lettuce growing tips see How to Grow Lettuce or Lettuce Growing Success Tips at the bottom of this post.

Here are common lettuce growing problems with cures and controls:

Seed planted in mid summer or warm weather fails to germinate. Temperatures are too high. Lettuce seed has a germination rate of 99 percent at 77°F; the germination rate drops to 87 percent 86°F. Use an organic mulch to reduce soil temperature. Plant varieties that tolerate warm soil temperatures: Black Seeded Simpson, Progress, Great Lakes, Imperial 615.

Seedlings wilt and collapse with dark water-soaked stems as soon as they appear. Damping off is a fungus that lives in the soil, particularly where humidity is high. Do not plant in cold, moist soil. Make sure soil is well drained.

Seedlings uprooted; leaves torn. Birds pull up seedlings to feed on seed. Cover seedlings with bird block or floating row covers until established.

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How to Grow Lettuce

Lettuce is a cool-season crop which must mature before the weather gets warm. Sow lettuce seed indoors 8 to 10 weeks before the average last frost date in spring; transplant seedlings to the garden when they are about 4 inches tall. Direct sow lettuce in the garden 4 to 6 weeks before the average last frost date. Lettuce will be ready for harvest 65 to 80 days after sowing depending on variety.

More about lettuce varieties: click here.

Description. Lettuce is a fast-growing, hardy annual with either loose or compactly growing leaves that range in color from light green to reddish brown.

• Leaf or Looseleaf lettuce form leaves in a loose circular pattern; leaves are yellow, green, red, or purplish. Looseleaf lettuce comes to harvest in 40 to 50 days.

• Butterhead or Bibb lettuce form loose round heads with delicate green to cream-colored leaves at the center. Bibb lettuce comes to maturity in 65 to 80 days.

• Romaine or Cos lettuce form leafy green upright cylindrical or oval heads. Romaine lettuce comes to maturity in 80 to 85 days.

• Crisphead or Iceberg lettuce form firm, compact heads of pale green leaves. Crisphead lettuce comes to harvest in 80 to 90 days.

• Celtuce or Stem lettuce form loose leafy tops on stalks that resemble celery. Leaves are eaten as greens and stalks are eaten like celery. Celtuce comes to harvest in 65 to 90 days.

Yield. Plant 6 to 10 heads per person in the household.

Site. Grow lettuce in full sun or partial shade. Lettuce prefers well-worked, well-drained soil that is moisture retentive. Add aged compost to planting beds in advance of planting. Lettuce prefers a soil pH of 6.0 to 6.8.

Planting time. Lettuce is a cool-season crop which must come to harvest before the weather gets warm. Sow lettuce seed indoors 8 to 10 weeks before the average last frost date in spring; transplant seedlings to the garden when they are about 4 inches tall. Direct sow lettuce in the garden 4 to 6 weeks before the average last frost date. Lettuce will be ready for harvest 65 to 80 days after sowing depending on variety. In regions where the weather warms quickly, start lettuce indoors to get a jump on the season. Sow lettuce in succession. In a mild-winter climates grow lettuce for crops in spring, fall, and winter.

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Planting Lettuce

Lettuce does not like warm days and nights, so the cool time of the year is lettuce season. You can lengthen your growing season dramatically with a lettuce box--that's a cold frame dedicated to lettuce growing. A lettuce box will protect the earliest and latest plantings, and with a light shade cloth cover, use the lettuce box for summer harvests as well.

If frost is not in the forcast over the next 40 to 60 days tuck lettuce into flower-borders. Otherwise in early spring and autumn, use the lettuce box or be ready to give lettuce some overnight protection when frost comes. Lettuce leaves stung by frost can be clipped away and you can keep on growing new leaves from the center.

Planting Calendar. Lettuce is a cool-weather crop that requires 40 to 50 days to reach harvest. Lettuce will send up a stalk and bolt or go to seed in temperatures greater than 80ºF (27ºC). Bolted lettuce is inedible.

Spring crops. Sow lettuce seed directly in garden 4 to 6 weeks before the average last frost date in spring. If your growing season is short or hot weather arrives quickly, sow seed indoors in late winter 10 weeks before the average last frost date and transplant seedlings to the garden early so that they mature before the weather gets hot. Small seedlings can be protected by cloches until after the last frost.

Autumn and winter crops. Sow lettuce in late summer for harvest from autumn to early winter. Protect last autumn and winter crops with cloches or plastic tunnels if necessary. Some varieties will over-winter under cloches or in cold frames. In mild winter regions, sow lettuce in autumn for harvest in winter.

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Red Butter Lettuce

There's a reason they call it butter lettuce: it melts in your mouth. Butter lettuce is buttery and tender from the first bite.

Serve red butter lettuce alone or as a colorful addition to salad greens. Red butter lettuce is a good match to light vinaigrette or lemon and oil mix. It is a colorful addition to salad greens and as a base for sliced fruits or cottage cheese.

Yes, it melts in your mouth, but how will it taste? Try this: scratch a leaf stalk; if it smells sweet, it will taste sweet; if it smells bitter, it will have a bit of a bite.

Butter lettuce heads are loose and the leaves are wavy. A butter lettuce head looks something like an open rose; you can see to its center or heart. The heart of a butter lettuce rosette will be just as tasty as its surrounding leaves. A head of butter lettuce that is not loose will be less tasty.

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Five Types of Lettuce

There are five general types or classifications of lettuce: Butterhead, Crisphead, Looseleaf, Romaine, and Celtuce.

Butterhead and Crisphead types have crisp leaves that form compact hearts.

Looseleaf and Romaine types grow best in cool weather and do not form significant hearts.

Celtuce is a cross between celery and lettuce and is valued for its stem.

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Lettuce

Fresh: there is but one way to eat lettuce.

There are hundreds of varieties of lettuce, and each may peak at a different time of the year, but lettuce served mixed in a salad, topping a sandwich or taco, or braised—as the French seem partial to--is always served within a few days of harvest fresh.

Lettuce is the most popular of the leafy salad vegetables belonging to the same family as chicory and endive.

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