Vegetable

Growing lettuce

Lactuca sativa · Asteraceae
By Hannah Price · Updated 12 November 2026

Lettuce calendar

Lettuce sowing, planting and harvest calendar (UK)
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sow indoors		Sow indoors in February	Sow indoors in March	Sow indoors in April				Sow indoors in August	Sow indoors in September
Sow outside				Sow outside in April	Sow outside in May	Sow outside in June	Sow outside in July	Sow outside in August
Plant				Plant in April	Plant in May	Plant in June			Plant in September
Harvest					Harvest in May	Harvest in June	Harvest in July	Harvest in August	Harvest in September	Harvest in October

Timings suit lowland southern and central Britain and most of Ireland. In northern England and Scotland, or in a cold spot, start two to three weeks later in spring and finish earlier in autumn.

Overview

Lettuce is the quickest way to start eating from a new plot or a balcony. Loose-leaf kinds give their first pickings within a month, while hearting types take a little longer and reward you with a crisp, solid head. The trick is to sow small amounts often, because lettuces all mature together and then quickly run to seed.

Varieties to try

'Little Gem' is a compact, sweet cos that suits small spaces. 'Tom Thumb' is a tiny butterhead ideal for pots. For cut-and-come-again leaves, 'Salad Bowl' and the frilly red 'Lollo Rosso' keep producing for weeks. 'Webbs Wonderful' forms a crisp, iceberg-style head and copes with warmer weather than most, and 'Arctic King' and 'Winter Density' are hardy enough for autumn sowing.

Soil and site

Best soil: Moisture-retentive, fertile soil with plenty of organic matter.

Lettuce grows best in fertile, moisture-retentive soil improved with compost. Full sun suits spring and autumn crops, but in midsummer some shade from taller plants such as beans helps stop plants bolting. They are shallow-rooted, so they slot in between slower vegetables and do well in window boxes and containers of peat-free compost.

Sowing and planting

Start early batches in modules under cover from February and plant out from April once they have four or five leaves, hardening them off first. Outdoors, sow thinly in 1 cm drills from April onwards. Lettuce seed can fail to germinate in hot weather above roughly 25°C, so in high summer sow in the evening, water the drill first and give it some shade. Sow a hardy variety in late summer for autumn and winter leaves under cover.

Spacing: Loose-leaf types for cutting can be sown in a band and left unthinned.

Care

Thin or space hearting types to about 25 cm. Water regularly, ideally in the morning, because dry roots make leaves bitter and trigger bolting, while wet leaves overnight invite disease. A liquid feed every couple of weeks helps container plants. Keep the bed weeded and check under leaves for slugs.

Harvesting and storing

Pick outer leaves of loose-leaf types as needed, or cut the whole plant about 3 cm above the base and it will often resprout. Cut hearting types once the centre feels firm. Harvest in the cool of the morning for the crispest leaves, then wash and keep them in the fridge, where they last a few days.

Common problems

Slugs and snails are the biggest threat, especially to seedlings; go out with a torch on damp evenings, use beer traps and avoid leaving debris nearby. Aphids, including root aphids, can stunt plants, and grey mould affects crowded, damp lettuces in autumn, so space plants well and remove dying leaves. Seedlings in cold, wet trays may suffer damping-off.

Read more on the problems that most often hit lettuce:

Not sure what you're looking at? Try diagnosing it by symptom.

Month-by-month reminders

Jobs for lettuce come round in February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September and October. Each month page lists the rest of the garden's jobs for the same weeks.

Grow alongside

Sources

Names follow Kew's Plants of the World Online; timings and spacings reflect UK growing practice and were checked against the references below. Text is our own. See our editorial policy.