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Small vegetable garden, big harvest - here's how
Classic winter lettuces are certain lettuce varieties that have been bred to be particularly hardy. However, there are many other types of winter lettuce, such as orchid lettuce, lamb's lettuce, sugar loaf, etc., which can green your bed and plate in winter. In this article, we show you which lettuces you can grow in winter!
Winter lettuce refers to lettuce varieties that can also be harvested in winter. This means that fresh lettuce can also be eaten in winter. Winter lettuces are quite resistant to the cold and can therefore remain in the field almost all winter. In addition to classic winter lettuce varieties such as sugar loaf or 'Baquieu' winter lettuce, hardy spinach or hardy lettuce can also be grown.
The selection of hardy lettuce varieties is quite large. Here is an overview of winter lettuces that you can plant or sow in the garden, raised bed or even in a protected greenhouse.
There are some frost-hardy winter lettuce varieties that are very popular and highly recommended. One popular variety, for example, is 'Baquieu' winter lettuce. It has strong leaves with a slightly bitter, strong taste. Alternatively, you can also choose ' Wintermarie'. An Austrian, traditional variety is ' Neusiedler Gelber Winter'. 'Trémont ' has beautiful red spots of color and can be sown both in autumn and early spring. You can find an overview of lettuce varieties for picking and head lettuce here in the article with other hardy varieties for growing in your own garden.
Most winter lettuces need to be sown in summer so that they have most of their growth behind them by fall. When fully grown, the plants are perfectly hardy. However, you can also sow in late fall, as the seedlings are already hardy. However, the seedlings are usually not quite as large, which is why the harvest is quite small. As it is often very dry in the summer months, you should make sure to water regularly to prevent emergence problems.
In our article on growing lettuce, you'll find more tips on sowing, caring for and harvesting lettuce and chicory.
You can also grow various winter lettuces in raised beds. In addition to lettuce, lamb's lettuce also grows well in raised beds. However, the soil freezes more quickly here as the raised beds are more exposed to the cold from the sides. It can help to wrap the raised beds with insulating fleece or fir branches. Individual heads of lettuce or rosettes can also be covered with fleece in severe sub-zero temperatures. Another problem could arise in summer when sowing, as raised beds dry out more quickly than normal beds. Therefore, always make sure to water regularly after sowing.
With winter lettuces, you can plant and use your bed all year round. They are the perfect successor crop for heavy feeders, as most lettuces are weak or medium feeders. Although the soil is covered, it is not used as much. You can find examples of your planting plan with winter lettuces here.
You can read more about lettuce in mixed cultivation with good and bad neighbors in this article. You can also find tips on crop rotation and crop rotation here.
You can find tips on harvesting winter lettuce here, as you can harvest and enjoy some varieties, such as winter postelein and lamb's lettuce, several times. You can find out what you need to bear in mind when harvesting them below. Winter lettuces such as endive and radicchio, on the other hand, are harvested whole.
Small, rosette-forming winter lettuce varieties such as Postelein or lamb's lettuce can be harvested gradually without cutting off the entire rosette. This keeps fresh lettuce in the garden for longer. Only the outer leaves are harvested so that the rosettes can continue to grow. Of course, the entire rosette can also be harvested, but then nothing will grow back.
Picking lettuce can be harvested in a similar way. To do this, only cut off individual leaves of the winter lettuce approx. 4 cm/ 1,6 in above the ground. This way, the individual plants remain intact and can be harvested again and again.
Lettuces such as radicchio, orchid lettuce, sugar loaf or endive are harvested in one piece. You can either take them out of the ground together with the roots or cut off the lettuce heads approx. 2 cm/ 0,8 in above the ground. With roots, the heads often stay fresh and storable for longer. To do this, you can either wrap endive and sugar loaf lettuce in newspaper and place them in boxes or embed them in boxes filled with damp sand. The boxes should be kept in a cool and dark (cellar) room. All heads of lettuce will keep for several days in the fridge.
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Cover picture by David Will on Pixabay
Isabell studies agricultural sciences and loves to be surprised by nature and its complexity again and again. Herbs - whether gathered wild or in the garden - are her passion.
Learn moreThese are lettuce varieties that can also be grown and harvested in winter. These varieties are usually quite resistant to the cold and can remain in the field throughout the winter.
Which lettuces can be grown in the garden or raised bed in winter?
There are some types of lettuce that can also be grown in winter: Chicory, lamb's lettuce, endive, sugar loaf, winter postelein, radicchio, winter lettuce or some hardy lettuces.
Which varieties of lettuce are hardy?
Winter-hardy lettuce varieties include Baquieu and Wintermarie. Among the sugar loaf lettuce varieties, Stamm Vater and the radicchio variety Rossa di Verona are also hardy.
There are also some hardy varieties of lettuce that can be grown in winter. Some Asian lettuces such as Mizuna or Green in Snow are hardy. The winter-hardy wild rocket can also be grown as a lettuce, as can the oak leaf lettuce Red Lettuce Bowl.