Iceberg Lettuce Seeds

One cup of lettuce contains almost 96% water. You can add lettuce to your diet to increase your water consumption. Because of its high water content, lettuce is a refreshing vegetable to consume during summers. This leafy green is also very low in calories making it a favorite of every weight watcher! With regular watering, shade from the hot sun, and succession planting, you can enjoy home-grown lettuce almost year-round in much of the country. From baby leaf lettuce to big, crisp heads.

Note: Used as seeds only and not for consumption. Seeds to be sown before the expiry date.

Planting:

• To sow your lettuce seeds choose a seedling tray with medium-sized cells and drainage holes at the bottom.
• Fill the cells/cups with a moist coco-peat medium
• Lettuce seeds are very small. Sow 2 seeds per cell/cup. Do not sow them in too deep.
• Place your seeds on the surface of the medium and use the inside with the tip of a pencil and cover the surface with coco peat ensuring that the seeds are covered.
• Alternately, you can also make shallow depressions in the medium using the back of a pencil and put your seeds inside these depressions and cover them up with coco peat.
• Keep the seedling tray indoors till the seeds germinate.
• Keep the seed tray in a box or cover it with paper for the first 4-5 days to encourage faster seed germination.
• For the first week, water the seeds two tablespoons of water every day. Or keep the seed tray in another tray full of water for half an hour so that the water will be absorbed by the seed cells from the bottom, via drainage holes.
• Outdoors, make sure that you protect your seedbeds from direct sunlight and rainfall.
• Cover your seedbed by making a temporary roof of a plastic sheet. Water it in the form of a light shower using a watering can.
• Use a well sieved fine soil as a sowing medium.
• The best season to sow your lettuce seeds in winter. Fill the cells/cups with a moist coco-peat medium

Special Pride Care:

• Lettuce seeds will germinate within the first 6 – 8 days and you will notice tiny sprouts.
• Once your seeds have germinated, place your tray in a partially sunny spot, like near a window.
• The second week onwards you will notice that your seedlings have begun to grow into a small plant. At this stage expose your seedlings to more sunlight for better leaf growth.
• After the second week, keep only a single seedling per cell/cup. Cut off the weak, small & lagging seedlings with a pair of scissors.
• 30 to 35 days after the seed sowing your seedlings will be ready for transplantation.
• To transplant, your seedlings choose a container that is a minimum of 8 inches deep and has a bigger spread area like big trays or crates.
• Make sure that you are transplanting the seedlings along with the root ball or a medium.
• Plant the seedlings minimum of 1.5 feet apart (45xx45 cm), from each other on raised beds or in a container.
• In winters, Lettuce grows best under full sunlight, so choose a spot for your content accordingly.
• Water your potted Lettuce plant every alternate day in winter.
• Use a watering can to ensure your plant gets watered with an even shower.
• You can also make provision for watering by drip irrigation system for your raised beds. Make sure that you are not overwatering your plant.
• Before transplanting the seedlings, add a good quality of organic manure to the soil in a 2:1 ratio.
• Organic fertilizer can be well rotten cow dung manure, farmyard manure, compost, or Vermicompost.
• After transplantation, apply balanced liquid fertilizer or a handful of vermicompost to each plant, every 15 days.
• 70 to 80 days after transplantation ( or 100-110 days from seed sowing), your lettuce heads will be ready for harvest! Harvest lettuce when it is full-sized, firm, and solid.