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lettuce article in what to do now
veggiepatch1
Posts: 40
in Fruit & veg
just had a nose in the what to do now section of GW.com. they recommend planting out lettuce??????? This time of the year you dont need to sow lettuce in pots, sowing direct is just as easy, it saves root disturbance and also saves the cost in not buying in compost. if you sow only 1/2 or 1/4 row at a time, you should always have room at the end of the row to sow fresh seeds a couple of weeks later giving a sucessional crop without the need to buy in compost. i dont understand why the recommend having to plant out.????? 
0
Posts
Thats ok , but everything I put in as seed in the ground last year was eaten either by slugs or pigeons. This year everything has gone in as plants started from seed in the greenhouse. At least they have a fighting chance.
Some people subscribe to the idea that lettuce will not germinate in the open ground when it is too hot.
It is easier to shade the seed in a greenhouse than in the open soil. Discuss.
Also planting out the lettuces will enforce sucession as the seedlings recover from planting out. And they can be fitted in wherever they are wanted, in a spare space.
The choice is up to the grower.
If your space is limited it's sometimes more practical to start some plants off in trays and modules, planting them out when the broad beans are over, for example.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.