Lettuces started off in the greenhouse and planted out in my front garden about 5 weeks ago are just about ready to have leaves harvested. This is the gorgeous ‘Flashy Butter Oak’ (above) from The Real Seed Catalogue, looking a little tatty at the edges from slugs and snails, but as it’s survived so far (not all of them did), I’m hoping it will now flourish.Another little beauty from The Real Seed Catalogue is ‘Reine des Glaces’, a cultivar that’s about 200 years old. Lovely crunchy sweet leaves work really well with softer lettuces and its curly spikeyness is so darn decorative in the garden. I love it!
Forellenschluss (meaning speckled like a trout apparently) has similar colourings to the above ‘Flashy Butter Oak’, but it’s an Austrian heirloom Cos lettuce, so will hopefully develop some nice crunchy upright leaves. (I do like a good crunch in my salads these days.) It also looks a lot like Freckles, another delightful Cos, but maybe a bit looser in shape. Seeds available from the ever entertaining Chiltern Seeds. I’ll keep on harvesting just the outer leaves of these lettuces, so they should last me a good couple of months, and I know that it’s time to sow another batch of lettuces right now, although if I get round to this is another matter…
Lettuce seeds waiting in the wings are: ‘Cocarde’ and ‘Red Sails’ (from Nicky’s Seeds) and ‘Crisp Mint’, ‘Really Red Deer Tongue’ and ‘Devil’s Tongue’, (all from The Real Seed Company).
Should I develop a glut of leaves, Nigel Slater has a great recipe for lettuce, pea and mint soup in ‘Tender: Volume 1’. Very tasty and utterly refreshing. I wish I’d discovered this years ago.
My mustard leaves sown at the same time are now going to seed (‘Golden Streaks’ above), and although the leaves are getting spicier by the day, still taste great when used sparingly in salads, as do the flowers.
And Sweet Cicely adds a lovely aniseed note to the mix too.
It’s so lovely to have dinner on my doorstep, with the odd bit of decoration too. (Allium Globemaster just about to come into bloom there.)
And bed no. 2 has runner beans, tomatoes, sweet peas and radishes for more front garden veg (and deliciously scented blooms) later in summer. (Mustard leaf ‘Red Giant’ at the front of the bed, also just about to go to seed.)
You inspired me with the lettuce ‘Freckles’ two years ago and they are still a favourite with more sown.this year.
Hi Sue, Yes I love Freckles too, but can’t help experimenting with a few new varieties each year. Maravilla de Verano Canasta so far is my all time favourite lettuce though.
Great stuff on the growing front. I love Real Seeds too, especially the lettuce collection, but also the Cherokee Beans and many more besides. Happy gardening!
Hi Tish,Those Cherokee beans do indeed look fab. Definitely ones to try next year. Yes, love the RS catalogue-always great veg to try out. Growing a few varieties of their radishes too and can’t wait to see the results. Happy gardening in Shropshire too!
Your lettuce are in such excellent condition. How have you kept the slugs off?
Hi FD, very good question! I lost quite a few small plants after my first planting out (and those that have survived are rather nibbled round the edges) and a few disappeared from my second infilling too (luckily I had grown plenty in modules to start with). Have to admit that I finally succumbed to using slug pellets (very sparingly) to fill in the last gaps. I find that the plants nearest the walls are most susceptible to being completely eaten and these are the small plants I used pellets to protect.
Yes, that Forellenschluss (is that really the name!) has reseeded in my veggie garden and is coming up everywhere. Love it.
Hi TGD, What a perfect veg to have self-seeding! Nigel slater’s soup recipe may come in handy!
Great lettuce selection Naomi, with some new-to-me varieties despite the dozens I’ve tried already. I’ll certainly be trying some of these. I particularly like red deer tongue lettuce – a bold splash of a very tasty lettuce in the salad bowl and slugs don’t find them as attractive as their green lettuce cousins – it’s a win-win!
Hi Michelle, there are always new varieties to experiment with aren’t there. What leaves are you growing this year? I struggled with Really Red Deer’s Tongue the last time I grew it as it was a dry summer and I was crap at watering, but hoping to get better results this summer. Did actually sow seeds on Monday which is always a good start! Nx
I’ve found a packet of ‘Drunken Woman’ in my seed stash and couldn’t resist that one! Not having much success with lettuces thus far (slugs!), I’m hoping to do better when I get back from hols… I’m going to reinstate my beds at home – methinks they need a closer eye kept on them.
Hi Michelle, Drunken Woman sounds an interesting variety-what could it look like I ask? Yes, I’ve had a fair few slug and snail casualties this year, and have to admit that I’ve resorted to slug pellets when all else failed. Hope you have a good holiday and that your veg beds thrive when you’re back!
Looking glorious. I love the different colours and shapes you can get in lettuces. I’m having a bit of a lettuce crisis this year, hadn’t realised how old most of my salad lead seeds were and despite being organised and sowing in the greenhouse nice and early very little came up, I’m actually having to buy lettuce! But it does mean I can justify buying new seed after all, I’m off to the Real Seeds site now…
Hi Janet, I had the same thing happen too. Sowed a few more varieties than I’ve got growing above, but some of them just weren’t viable any more. One can get a bit blasé about the longevity of a packet of seeds (and how to store them), but like you, I saw this as a great opportunity to expand my lettuce repertoire….Hope you find some exciting new varieties to try.
The Reine des Glaces is a true beauty! My love for lettuces started when I was a child, as my granny used to experiment with lettuce all the time. You have a lovely garden!
Thanks Diana. Yes, I think lettuces are a must have in my garden. Even if I planted nothing else, I’d always have to have a few varieties growng for salads (and now soups!). Hope you have some delicious (and stylish!) varieties growing in your garden. V.best Naomi
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I am not good with growing lettuce, spinach or arugula from seed but if i plant a rooted one already it grows very well, thanks for this post! fun to read! all of your blog post, and info is such an inspiration, I use lots of your information all the time, thanks, but I love gardening, too, your such an inspiration to everyone, and I was trying to get people interested into gardening too, I have a horticulture degree! I didn’t know what you thought about My new Gardening video on YouTube about how to grow root vegetables such as carrots, I was wondering if you could give it a quick look and let me know what you thought! Video link https://youtu.be/eZtLbFTCpRI
I enjoyed reading your article about growing lettuces in your front garden. It’s inspiring to see how you transformed a small space into a productive and beautiful edible landscape. I love the variety of lettuces you have chosen, especially the red ones that add a splash of color to your greenery. I also appreciate the tips you shared on how to keep the lettuces healthy and pest-free. I have a similar situation in my backyard, where I grow some lettuce varieties in containers. I learned a lot from your experience and I’m eager to try some of the cultivars you recommended, such as the Nevada Summer Crisp and the Yugoslavian Red. Thank you for sharing your passion and knowledge with us!