Growing Lettuce

lactuca sativa : Asteraceae / the daisy family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
    S S S              
      T T T            
      P P P            

(Best months for growing Lettuce in Australia - tropical regions)

  • S = Plant undercover in seed trays
  • T = Plant out (transplant) seedlings
  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden, or start in seed trays and plant out in 4-6 weeks.. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 8°C and 27°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 20 - 30 cm apart
  • Harvest in 8-12 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Carrots, Onions, Strawberries, Beets, Brassicas, Radish, Marigold, Borage, Chervil, Florence fennel, leeks.
  • Avoid growing close to: Parsley, Celery

Your comments and tips

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19 Oct 12, Trudy (Australia - temperate climate)
Have tried to grow lettuce a few times from seed and bought plants. I do OK til it gets to summer when I really want them for salads. My vege garden is in full sun but these leafy things seem to suffer in the heat. Today was 34C. Silver beet is (OK?)... but do you think that lettuce would be better grown in a shade house to stop it going limp every day at lunchtime? Thanks Trudy
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13 Apr 13, Darren (Australia - temperate climate)
Hey Trudy, I am in the temperate zone also and have grown lettuce many ways. I have had some good fortune growing it in shallow pots as the roots don't go deep. Then on the hotter days I can move them to more shaded cooler areas.
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27 Dec 12, Wendy (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I live in Bowen Qld., we have lots of warm windy days here. Grow all my leafy green veges in shade house. Works well. Got a good crop now. Pick off them daily.
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29 May 12, i.bresca (Australia - temperate climate)
only a few of my first plantings took off but now seedlings everywhere....need to space and plant....help running out of room ! also advice on chilli plants...chilli not hot at all. i did buy mild but this is silly !
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02 May 12, alan (Australia - temperate climate)
put a couple of hand full of lime per square meter
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13 Mar 12, Russ (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi, I am trying to grow veg in old but clean broccoli boxes. They are not doing well at all, the Cos did not form a heart and went to seed. The Herbs are stunted. Collies and Broccoli are not doing much. I use good quality potting soil mixed with a bit of zoopoo. Water regularly and protected from the very hot sun when young. I just want to have the pleasure of growing a few veg. What am I doing wrong?
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11 May 12, Catherine (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi Russ - it's all about feeing the soil and creating humus, as small boxes provide limited access to nutrients (even using good quality potting mix) because they get eaten up so quickly by the hungry plants. a worm farm or compost are perfect so you can feed the soil regularly each week as natural fertiliser. also - are the boxes draining from the bottom? when you water, the nutrients run straight out the bottom and the plants cant access them. You can build really simple self watering containers in old broccoli boxes... punch a few holes along a horizontal line, about 1/4 from the bottom of the box. then fill to this line with pebbles or gravel - this creates a water table where water will sit and if too much water is added it spills out through the holes. put the soil on top with lots of compost and worm castings, plant your vegies, and then mulch on top. this system allows the roots to reach water at the bottom, but stops the soil from being water-logged. it also allows you to mulch and build humus within the soil without draining it all away. I even water at the edges of the box so that the water goes straight to the water area without disturbing the humus to stop any nutrients draining away. i hope this makes sense! I read Jackie French's Soil Food Web book which was also really helpful. good luck!
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22 Feb 12, Dean (Australia - temperate climate)
I have planted 2 sorts of lettuce (cos and great lakes) as a first crop in some new planter boxes I just built. I used an organic mix of soil with a layer of horse manure underneath. The lettuces have grown really well from seedlings, with watering every 2nd night, but now they are really to pick, they are "leathery" and bitter. We have had some hot days this summer and I haven't given them any extra shade, they have direct sun for first 3/4 of the day. Should I take them out and start again, or pick whats there and hope they come again? Do you only get 1 growth with lettuces if you cut them out whole, or should I keep picking the leaves? Any suggestions will help, thanks
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13 Jan 12, Narelle (Australia - temperate climate)
I cannot get lettuce seeds to germinate for love or money. I've even tried leaving them on top of the soil/potting mix/seed raising mix without success. I've tried them in a propagator and I've tried them in the open, I've tried them in every single season. What am I doing wrong?
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29 Jan 12, Kate (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Hi! I have found the perfect way to germinate vege & fruit seeds at 100% germination rate. This can be used for all seeds. You'll need: * papertowel - cut it so it can fold in half and fit into a ziplock bag * water * seeds * ziplock bag - wet a papertowel - wring it out so it is just damp - put seeds on one half of the papertowel - fold the papertowel in half so it covers the seeds - put the seeds/papertowel into your ziplock bag -lock the bag - write on the bag what seeds you have in it - now... hang your ziplock bag outside undercover (i use an underwear clothes hangy thing. I can hang upto 20 seed bags at once on the hangy thing. your seed will germinate in half the time of that it states on the packet. You will have to remove them and put them into seedling pots to grow bigger before transplanting them out. Good luck!
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Showing 111 - 120 of 196 comments
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I live on Central Coast and grow lettuce through late autumn to late winter. I raise them in seed trays or scatter them in the garden as soon as the last really hot day has gone by and temperatures are no more than 35 degrees c or below. When I put them straight in the garden I scatter seeds over small area and cover with seed raising mix. I keep them moist with a gentle watering can. When 5cm tall I trans-plant them in to another bed. You could also use this method in flat seed raising trays and a spray bottle. By using sugar cane mulch in the ground surrounding the plants (not touching their stems!) I keep them moist. I also water every to every second day as the weather cools down. My suggestions would be scatter lightly oven baked ground eggshells or hair clippings around the plants to deter snails. if they become a problem. Grow with sweet peas and rocket for great salads. The peas will add nitrogen that the leafy greens will enjoy. Choose a loose head variety so you can pick it as it grows and get multiple harvests the size you want. also better suited to Australia. If you want to try planting lettuce now some tips to stop it bolting are to give it PLENTY of shade, keep harvesting it regularly, (about every second day once it gets going) keep moist (planter boxes might work but could be expensive) and pinch off buds that start to form. In my experience even a resistant variety in a nice shady place with lots of water will go to seed/taste bitter early if planted later than August. But I have seen it done. lettuce is a great to grow easy and rewarding but I would suggest waiting until after Summer. I plant lettuces April on, when you plan depends on your climate conditions. Try companion planting basil and tomatoes together while you wait or growing zucchini plants. If you have a meter square garden bed try planting 16 corn plants, 3 pumpkin or zucchini and once corn is 15 cm high planting a bean seed at the base of each corn plant. Beans are also good for nitrogen that both the corn and beans will need. All of the above I recommend planting now if you are getting the feeling it is already summer. I am not sure if what i have written is relevant to more inland areas of NSW but hope it may be helpful. Good luck with your gardening!

- Ferran

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