{"id":1354,"date":"2025-02-18T07:08:42","date_gmt":"2025-02-18T13:08:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theiowagardener.com\/wordpress\/?page_id=1354"},"modified":"2025-03-05T14:33:17","modified_gmt":"2025-03-05T20:33:17","slug":"love-those-lettuces","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/theiowagardener.com\/wordpress\/love-those-lettuces\/","title":{"rendered":"Love Those Lettuces"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Lettuces are one of the earliest crops of spring. And they’re so easy to grow. <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

On a lot of Iowa farms, our grandparents grew just one kind of lettuce, a leaf lettuce called ‘Black Seeded Simpson.’ It was always prepared one way: Wilted lettuce salad with lots of bacon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was delicious, but these days there’s a whole world of lettuces that are interesting and inexpensive to grow. They are ready to harvest in about three weeks, don’t take much space, and are good for you\u2014so have fun!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Black<\/a>
‘Black-seeded Simpson’ leaf lettuce is easy to grow.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
What Lettuces to Grow<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Head lettuces, like a big head of romaine or iceberg, are tricky to grow, even in ideal conditions, and Iowa is not ideal. Ideal conditions for lettuce are what you find in the Pacific Northwest\u2014steady, cool, moist, not unlike a giant refrigerator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So in Iowa, stick to leaf-type lettuces. There are hundreds to choose from. I like the mescluns best, which are mixes of different types of lettuces. I also like red-leaved type (‘Rouge d’Hiver’ is a favorite) as well as the interesting Asian types (tatsoi is delicious). Or go old school and plant Amish ‘Deer Tongue’ lettuce.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can find a wide variety of lettuce seeds at better-stocked garden centers. Or order online. Some excellent sources are Renee’s Garden<\/a> and Johnny’s Selected Seeds.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Grow Lettuces<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n