I agree. You should get some lettuce seed and try again. I find growing lettuce in the spring to be difficult because lettuce doesn't like hot weather. Some catalogs/seed packs will tell you which variety of lettuce is best in summer and which in winter - generally the winter ones actually have the word winter in their name. When you buy nursery plants, they need to be quite small. Did you notice if they were root bound when you planted them? If it's too hot right now where you live, you should wait until cooler weather to sow seeds. But I just saw a sign at the farm store that this is the last chance to get seeds. Seed will last a couple of years. Sometimes at farmers markets you can find someone selling young plants but even though there is still plenty of planting time left, most gardeners stop buying and plant places stop selling.

If you taste the lettuce, and there is an off taste, don't be discouraged from trying again. When lettuce 'bolts' (as mentioned - goes to seed,) it can have a bitter-like taste. Some people don't mind it, others... not so much lol. Yep, you live, you learn.

Thanks you guys! So for future reference, when harvesting, do I cut the whole plant down and more will grow or do I just take of a few leaves from each plant for salads? These ones weren't from seed, my lettuce seeds didn't take so I bough some little plants from bachmans and put them in. They weren't root bound when I planted them.

Being this is a first garden for my daughter and I, we weren't expecting much and figured if we got a few veggies it would be a plus, like you all said, it was more or less to get our feet wet and a learning experience to prepare for next year:) thanks for all your help, I'm sure you'll be seeing a lot of other interesting questions from me here as things in the garden progress:)

Thsnk you all again!

I have taken leaves from the base of the plant but usually I just pull the whole plants. You have to leave the center because that's what's growing. For example, I have some romaine lettuces that are starting to head up. I can take the loose leaves. Try the seeds again but remember to keep area moist. We're having a drought so this is hard to do. When things don't germinate, I figure I didn't keep the area watered. If you are starting indoors with seed starting mix, make sure that is very moist. Place seed on surface, Spray with water. Add more soil and spray again. I took a seed starting workshop last spring and was surprised how much water the soil needed. I use the trays with a plastic cover on until the seeds germinate.

Regarding harvesting some lettuces don't form a head and they can be used as cut and come again salad. (Pick from the outside like defrost said.) Heading lettuce can be picked over a few times for leaves but if you want a head you must leave it and then harvest whole. I'm only growing for two now and I grow mostly leaf lettuce and pick as needed. I also grow Little Gem since it is a small heading lettuce.

If you have lots of room, you can let those lettuces go to seed so that you can start your own seedlings next year!

Linda

they're beautiful in my opinion! I am not expert, (I am sure many on here are more experienced), but lettuce grows from the inside, so the middle of the plant will have the freshest leaves. I suggest harvesting as you need to, maybe 1 or 2 times per week and have a nice salad, otherwise they will bolt too soon (produce long shoots with eventual seeds). Keeping them cut back in theory halts the bolting, but again I am no expert. I have been spraying mine with neem oil dilution to help with chewing insects. It helps then washes off and the insects come back. I love your greens, very nice!

p.s. as someone else also mentioned about bolting....(i have cut the bolted shoots off) but if you leave them, although you will not get good leaves anymore, you will get little black seeds that drop out and grow back again and again. I had what a termed a "fertility pot" that was producing green leaf lettuce for several consecutive years, all because of the previous years' bolts! They germinate pretty fast and greens are cool weather crops, so plant them again in the fall.

What you are talking about we call spring mix. we grow from a mixed seed that we like with several varieties and colors in it. we spread seed in 2' wide beds X the length you desire. a packet will cover about 2' X 3-4'. Planting it dense makes it easier to harvest. We harvest using a sharp butcher knife leaving about an inch left. We get 3-4 cuttings from each planting. Grows best in cooler temps or can be grown in shade in hot weather.

Older lettuce leaves may be bitter - or not so much. If you don't care for bitter tasting greens, you can cook them & all the bitterness seems to disappear. I've added all kinds of greens like lettuce & endives to soups or casseroles. I hate to waste anything I grow.

For picking the lettuce, use scissors to cut as much lettuce as you want off the plant. I have butter crunch lettuce, I cut all of it off, and it regrows. Lots of lettuce, like butter crunch and mix mesclun, reproduce. My butter crunch has reproduced three times now.