#container lettuce

Winter is the season when I’m able to grow the best lettuce. It thrives in the cool weather and short but sunny days here in SoCal. I usually grow a half dozen different kinds of lettuce for a variety of colors and textures.

Summer lettuce is a different matter. Over many years, my success with summer lettuce has been limited. You can read the post reviewing my failures in Summer Lettuce Retrospective. The following summer was better and reasons for the success are in Summer Lettuce, Finally.

This spring I grew Jericho, Cimarron and Cardinale lettuces from seed. The photo above shows Jericho and Cimarron growing in part sun.

I had some Jericho seedlings leftover and put them in a 10-inch container only six inches deep.

Here’s the lettuce bowl one month later. It wasn’t perfect—some worms and too much sun but it was lettuce for salads and sandwiches.

Perhaps the easiest way for me to grow summer lettuce is the mesclun way, in a 12-inch container. Here, I took an assortment of leftover summer lettuce seeds and sowed them thickly. I cut lettuce as needed and moved the container from sun to shade when the days were warm.

Leave a comment to tell me about your successes (or failures) with summer lettuce in SoCal or other regions where the days are warm.

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March 28, 2013

You can grow vegetables in containers. It's a simple, low risk, low investment option. A sunny patio, porch or balcony will do. Six hours of sun is ideal but some crops, like lettuce will thrive in less. If you live where the weather is still cool, lettuce is a good choice.

In summer, what could be easier than a tomato? Stupice is one of my favorites and does well in containers and on the coast. There's cherry and grape tomatoes too. Most nurseries sell tomatoes that do well in pots. (Photo credit: Renee's Garden)

To get started, read a brief garden article from LA County Master Gardeners, GROW VEGETABLES IN CONTAINERS.

Here's my son's winter rooftop vegetable garden in Downtown LA. This tub works for shallow-rooted crops. Read the "how to" here.