In a lot of the Southeast, it’s difficult to get good lettuce manufacturing in the course of the summer time. We get a couple of cool weeks within the early spring earlier than the warmth units in, and our lettuce bolts and turns bitter. In years like this, the place sizzling, dry climate lingers, fall manufacturing might be difficult, too. Fortunately, winter lettuce manufacturing is surprisingly straightforward.
Whereas lettuce isn’t technically as cold-tolerant as some of the more durable greens, you possibly can nonetheless produce good lettuce with a little bit of safety and correct care.
Season Extension for Lettuce
In some areas of the Deep South, you get away with rising lettuce within the discipline with no extra safety. Nevertheless, lettuce isn’t extremely frost tolerant, so in most locations, it’s good to present some extra frost safety.
Unheated greenhouses, chilly frames, and excessive tunnels supply probably the most safety whereas nonetheless offering loads of daylight. These are perfect for mountainous areas the place critical chilly safety is required.
That stated, you possibly can normally get away with extra reasonably priced and accessible choices. Row cowl and low tunnels made with clear plastic and wire hoops can provide you an inexpensive, easy-to-install technique of season extension. Observe that low tunnels and row cowl can scale back airflow, doubtlessly encouraging pest and illness points, so it’s essential to remain vigilant and open them when doable.
In very chilly temperatures, you possibly can mix the 2 strategies. You need to use row cowl to supply an additional buffer for lettuce rising excessive tunnels and greenhouses.
Winter lettuce seedlings rising in a low tunnel
Lettuce Soil Necessities
Lettuce is mostly thought of a simple crop, however like all crop, it’s going to carry out higher with optimum soil circumstances, significantly in the course of the winter. It thrives in well-drained soil with a pH between 6.0 and 6.5.
It typically surprises new growers, however lettuce is a heavy feeder as a result of it grows so rapidly. It advantages from soil wealthy in minerals and natural matter, so amending your soil with compost earlier than planting is a good suggestion. You additionally wish to contemplate this when planning your cowl crops and crop rotation.
Particularly you probably have struggled with lettuce prior to now, a soil take a look at is a superb instrument that can help you amend your soil appropriately.
Lettuce Seeding
Within the Southeast, we will get away with seeding lettuce fairly late into the autumn. You possibly can proceed direct sowing so long as your soil temperature must be above 32°F. Nevertheless, that doesn’t imply you’ll get fast development.
Chilly temperatures, cloudy days, rain, snow, and restricted daylight can all have an effect on lettuce development. It might really feel like your lettuce isn’t rising in any respect. It’s common for lettuce to take as much as a further 30 days and even longer to mature over the winter. Getting seeds within the floor within the fall is useful for winter harvests. Moreover, you’ll start seeing sooner development as the times develop longer in February and spring.
When seeding your winter lettuce, sow seeds about 1/4 inch deep. The spacing you want for for rows of lettuce depends upon what measurement you plan to reap your lettuce at.
Typically, when harvesting lettuce in the course of the winter, we harvest it as child greens. This means we get to take pleasure in a harvest a bit earlier. It additionally protects the lettuce. Smaller lettuce is far more frost and cold-tolerant than mature heads. For child lettuce harvests, you will get away with 4-inch row spacing, however nearer to 12 inches for mature heads is right.
It’s also possible to transplant lettuce. Transplanting is a good way to maintain successions going, get seeds began sooner, and fill in any gaps in your chilly body, hoop home, or different mattress all through the winter.
Winter Lettuce Care
Winter lettuce tends to be a bit extra hands-off than spring lettuce, however that doesn’t imply there’s nothing to handle. Weed strain is much less within the winter, however you must take away any fall weeds as these might be harbors for pests and illnesses.
You must also proceed to water lettuce by way of the winter. Because it grows extra slowly, winter lettuce has decrease moisture wants however nonetheless requires periodic watering to maintain the soil moist in low tunnels, chilly frames, greenhouses, and excessive tunnels.
It’s important to maintain water off the leaves when watering, as this could encourage illness and frost points. Water lettuce on the base. Drip irrigation or soaker hoses are ultimate.
You additionally wish to hold your lettuce from overheating and supply good airflow every time doable. On heat and sunny days, vent excessive tunnels, chilly frames, greenhouses, and low tunnels every time doable.
Regardless of the cooler temperatures, pests and illness can nonetheless play a task in winter lettuce manufacturing, partly due to the minimal airflow and moisture related to season extension gadgets. Look ahead to pests like aphids, mites, and white flies, in addition to fungal illnesses like powdery mildew, dampening off, and backside rot and bacterial illnesses like tender rot.
Lettuce Varieties for Winter Manufacturing
When choosing lettuce for the winter backyard, it’s possible you’ll wish to select varieties totally different from what you’d normally choose for gardening within the Southeast. Chilly-hardiness and illness resistance are of the utmost significance throughout for winter manufacturing.
Listed below are a couple of of our favorites:
Winter Lettuce Harvest
As talked about above, harvesting your winter lettuce as child greens is right. If doable, harvest lettuce when the leaves are dry and gently minimize the leaves with scissors or a knife. Particularly in chilly climate, lettuce is straightforward to bruise.
You possibly can retailer lettuce within the fridge, however for greatest outcomes, we suggest harvesting simply earlier than you’re able to eat.
You possibly can develop lettuce all winter lengthy within the Southeast utilizing a couple of fundamental methods. Continue to grow this winter, and revel in recent, crisp salads!