A way for beginners to grow lettuce on a windowsill or balcony

Daria Vorontsova

Reading time: 5 minutes

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Many varieties and varieties of lettuce can be grown year-round at home.

Green leaves serve as a decoration for prepared dishes and as a basis for salads and sandwiches.

The shoots contain a large amount of vitamins and minerals, while being low in calories.

Growing lettuce on a windowsill requires the use of special knowledge and agrotechnical techniques that allow you to get a good harvest even in winter.

Which varieties are suitable for growing on a windowsill?

First of all, you need to find out which varieties of lettuce are suitable for growing on a windowsill. If you have no experience working with this plant, then it is best to pay attention to the leaf varieties; they are less capricious than the cabbage varieties. In addition, it is best to take early varieties that allow you to get a harvest about a month and a half after planting.

Watercress ripens the fastest, which is often grown even without additional lighting. And sometimes he doesn’t even need soil; an ordinary sponge, porous paper or moistened cotton wool is enough.

Of the early ripening varieties, the best options are:

• Snowflake;
• Excitement;
• Golden ball;
• Zorepad;
• Raspberry ball.

It is also worth highlighting lettuce varieties that are resistant to lack of light:

• Ballet;
• Emerald lace NK;
• Celtic.

It is best to take watercress like this:

• Vitamin;
• Ducat;
• Vanka is curly;
• Abundantly leafy.

You can also grow lettuce on a windowsill. The following varieties are optimal:

• Ballet;
• Lunavia;
• Emerald lace;
• New;
• Athlete;
• Sandwich;
• Rosalo;
• Kitezh.

Types and varieties of lettuce

When choosing a suitable variety, it is worth considering taste and resistance to external factors. Lettuce comes in different types - leaf, half-head, head and roman. The following varieties of lettuce are popular:

1. The mid-season variety “Emerald” has small heads of cabbage and is resistant to drought.
2. Early ripening variety "Kritset" - suitable for open ground and greenhouses, ripens in a month and a half.

If you follow the growing technology and care rules, you can get a rich harvest at any time of the year.

How to choose containers and soil for salad

To grow lettuce on a windowsill from seeds, you need to carefully prepare the planting containers and soil. It is best to take pots that are not too deep, but it is best to take cassettes up to 10-15 centimeters deep; they should be wide and mesh. At the bottom you should make a drainage layer of expanded clay, pebbles and small stones, as well as crushed brick. Place soil on top prepared according to one of the following recipes:

• peat with complex fertilizer with microelements;
• a mixture of coconut fiber, garden soil and vermicompost (2 to 1 to 1);
• a mixture of turf soil, humus and sand (1 to 2 to 1).

If the soil is taken from your own plot, then it is advisable to treat it with a solution of potassium permanganate. This allows you to kill all the infection that is in the ground.

Simple thick plastic bags are also suitable for growing leafy and other lettuce on a windowsill. You just need to cut them to the required height and put them in a pallet. Place a damp substrate inside, and make perforations at the bottom so as to get rid of excess water after watering.

Helpful information! How to preserve lettuce leaves for the winter at home

Agricultural technology for leafy lettuce varieties at home: instructions

Planting containers

To force lettuce leaves, we will need plastic boxes 20-25 centimeters deep or pots with a volume of 1-2 liters. There must be drainage holes at the bottom of the containers. If they are not there, you will have to drill them yourself. A salad cannot do without good drainage.

Soil preparation

With soil, as usual, we have two options:

• Purchased ready-made soil mixture. Both universal soils and “vegetable” modifications are suitable.
• Self-cooking. The most luxurious soil is a mixture of coconut fiber and vermicompost in a 2:1 ratio. In general, everything grows perfectly in it without any fertilizing. Another excellent composition is turf soil with humus 1:1. In general, any dense soil is suitable for early ripening lettuce. Garden, from the nearest forest or park, even from a flower bed at the entrance.

It is recommended to pre-disinfect the soil or home-made soil substrate - spill it with a solution of potassium permanganate or Fitosporin.

Sowing lettuce seeds

Before sowing, add a small layer of drainage material to the bottom of the container.
They can be expanded clay, broken brick, small pebbles, pieces of polystyrene foam or padding polyester. Fill the boxes or pots with soil, leaving one and a half or two centimeters to the edge. This is necessary so that the growing roots do not push the soil out of the boxes. We level and water the soil. We sow seeds randomly. It is immediately difficult to maintain the distance between the bushes; it is better to thin out later. Cover the crops with a thin layer of soil on top (no more than 1/2 centimeter). Lightly spray the top layer of soil with warm (30°C) water and cover the container with film or glass. It turns out to be a kind of greenhouse. In it, the moisture will not evaporate much, and the seeds will hatch faster. All that remains is to put our home beds in a warm place and wait for shoots. The wait promises to be short - after 4-5 days the first “loops” usually appear.

Care of seedlings: watering, thinning, fertilizing, supplementary lighting

With the appearance of green shoots, remove the polyethylene from the containers and place them on a bright windowsill.
The south, southeast or southwest sides are, of course, preferable, but in reality we put them where there is space. Now the main care of the seedlings will consist of regular watering and lighting. Salads do not like dry soil and dry air, so you will have to water them often (every day or two). When indoor air humidity is low, it is necessary to spray the leaves from time to time. At first, young seedlings can be sprayed more often than watered at the root. The frequency and volume of watering depends on the weather, the location of the containers and the temperature on the window. It is clear that lettuce growing on a southern windowsill will need more moisture. And on sunny days, water evaporates faster, etc. For watering and “showering” from a sprayer, we use settled tap water at room temperature.

The optimal daylight hours for salad are 12-14 hours. This means that in autumn and winter we need to compensate for 2 to 5 hours with additional lighting. We place fluorescent lamps at a height of 60 centimeters above the drawers.

Thin the salad twice. The first time - 7 days after the appearance of the first shoots. We pull out excess seedlings so that there is 1-2 centimeters between neighbors. The second time (with the appearance of two or three true leaves) we leave a distance of 4-5 centimeters between the plants. Density in boxes is harmful: it provokes the stems to stretch, and little greenery is produced. By the way, the removed plants can be planted in separate cups and grown to a full-fledged rosette.

We need to feed salad crops only if we are not sure of the fertility of the soil. Did you bring zemlitsy from the nearest club? Then we’ll feed it once with Humate or universal fertilizer for indoor plants. Did you sow lettuce in purchased soil or add vermicompost to the box? There is no need to feed additionally.

Harvesting

In about 20-25 days we will begin harvesting our home harvest.
Someone gradually tears off the lower leaves, leaving the main rosette to grow. Someone pulls out the entire plant, thinning the plantings once again. About 4-5 weeks after sowing, the lettuce begins to produce flower stalks. It is better not to let this happen, but to tear out all the bushes with roots and store them in the refrigerator. And plant the next batch in the empty boxes!

How to sow seeds

Before sowing, seeds should be disinfected. To do this, use a solution of potassium permanganate. The planting material is left there for several hours.

Then carry out the following sequence of actions:

1. Form a drainage layer at the bottom of the planting container.
2. Sprinkle the drainage with soil and water.
3. Form a furrow 5 millimeters deep. The optimal distance between rows is 10 centimeters.
4. Place the seeds in the furrow and cover with soil, compacting slightly.
5. Cover the container with a bag to create a greenhouse effect. Remove plantings to a dark place.
6. As soon as the first shoots sprout, remove the bag and transfer the salad to the windowsill.

How to plant correctly

You can grow lettuce at home all year round. Sowing is done in stages:

1. drainage is placed at the bottom of the container;
2. fill up the soil;
3. place lettuce seeds in moist soil and sprinkle with a handful of soil 0.5-1 cm;
4. Water carefully so as not to wash the seed. It is better to do this with a spray bottle. Cover with film and place in a dark place with a temperature of 20-22°C;
5. when the first shoots appear (on the 3-4th day), the polyethylene is removed, and the crops are transferred to a well-lit space with a temperature of 16-20°C. Higher temperatures will cause flower shoots to appear prematurely.

You can eat the salad when 5-10 full leaves have formed.

Caring for young lettuce

In order for the salad to produce a good harvest, it must be properly cared for. If the seedlings are too dense, then you need to thin them out a little. Further care for culture does not present any difficulties. Once every 2-3 days, moisten not only the soil, but also the leaves. It is convenient to use a spray bottle for this.

For watering, you can use a watering can with a long spout. Since there is little light in winter, it is important to provide the salad with additional lighting with special lamps. If it is not possible to purchase them, then a simple fluorescent lamp will do - it is installed at a height of 59 centimeters from the plantings. Daylight hours should last about 12 hours.

If you have free space on the windowsill, you can plant some seedlings in separate cups when the plant has a pair of true leaves. This will allow you to get larger and juicier foliage.

As for fertilizing, it is not necessary if the soil mixture has been selected correctly. But if it is not nutritious enough, then you need to periodically apply fertilizer. Any complex product or solution of mullein, diluted in a ratio of 1 to 10, will do. Water the salad with the latter once a week.

What difficulties may arise when growing lettuce at home?

I’ll share with you a few tips that help me grow tasty and productive lettuce and avoid difficulties when growing it:

1. Small leaves. As soon as the seedlings have two true leaves, I transplant them into separate cups. This allows you to get much larger leaves than when grown in a common container.
2. Stretched landings. “They say” there is not enough lighting for him. Ultraviolet deficiency will result in suppression of the formation of green mass, premature bolting and flowering.
3. Crust on the soil surface. Lettuce has a shallow root system; loosening it is not recommended so as not to damage the delicate roots. To prevent the formation of a dense earthen crust that blocks air access to the roots, I spray the substrate daily with a spray bottle.
4. Late and poor harvest. The main cause of the problem is excessively thick plantings. The plant develops under stressful conditions - with a deficiency of light, soil, nutrition, and moisture. It is logical that it grows slowly and does not produce a large harvest. Therefore, I do not forget to thin out the lettuce in a timely manner, or even better, to transplant each grown seedling into a separate container.
5. Early bolting (appearance of flower shoots). The reason is increased air temperature. In order for the salad to develop optimally, it is necessary to keep it at 15-20 C.
6. Romaine does not form heads. In both garden and home-grown varieties of this lettuce, heads do not form independently. About 2 weeks before the expected harvest, I wrap the outer leaves of the plant, artificially forming a head of cabbage. With this approach, in conditions of lack of light, the inner young leaves are bleached, formed juicy, tender and without bitterness.

Lettuce, as you have seen, is one of the most suitable crops for growing indoors. It does not require fertilizer or loosening, but it is important to ensure regular watering, sufficient lighting and optimal temperature conditions.

Features of growing watercress on the windowsill

Growing watercress on a windowsill does not present any problems. It is enough to select a container for planting in which a clay or peat layer of soil up to 3 centimeters high is formed. Sow seeds on the surface of the ground, gently pressing them into the soil. Pour warm water and cover the plantings with warm paper or black film. You can leave them in a warm place, the temperature in which should be at least +7 degrees. Air humidity should be maintained at a constant level. As soon as the first shoots appear, the film should be removed.

It is necessary to ensure that the soil is always moist. Drought can lead to dire consequences. It is worth noting that if the seedlings begin to rot or break, then there is too much water in the ground. The crop is cut with scissors.

Lettuce growing technology

The future harvest largely depends on well-organized planting of seeds and care of seedlings in the first days after germination. The planting technology consists of the following steps:

• The container with the drainage layer is filled with soil, not reaching 2-3 cm to the top edge;
• The soil is moistened and slightly compacted with a tablespoon;
• Carefully distribute the seeds over the soil surface in accordance with the planting scheme recommended by the manufacturer;
• Sprinkle 0.5 - 1 cm with the remaining soil, spray with warm water from a spray bottle and cover with cling film or glass.

Until the first shoots sprout, maintain the temperature at 20-22 °C. As soon as shoot loops appear on the surface, remove the cover and reduce the temperature to 16-18 °C. Cool air protects the sprouts from being pulled and prevents the formation of flower shoots.

Helpful information

Daria Vorontsova

Amateur gardener. He is interested in growing various greens at home.

The root system of lettuce does not adapt well when transplanted, so it is not picked. To avoid thickening, seeds are sown at the distance indicated on the package.

Features of growing arugula on the windowsill

Growing arugula on the windowsill allows you to always have fresh and tasty greens. The best varieties are Rococo, Koltivata, Poker and Solitaire. Landing is not difficult:

1. Pour the prepared soil into planting containers and water.
2. Place the seeds at a distance of 3-4 centimeters from each other.
3. Sprinkle with a layer of soil and water again.
4. Cover the container with film until the first sprouts appear.

Arugula doesn’t really need feeding. If desired, you can add fertilizer, but this is not necessary. The most important thing is to provide constant lighting, and compensate for its deficiency with ordinary fluorescent lamps. Watering should be done once every 1-2 days, it all depends on the speed of drying of the soil.

Moscow salad - main characteristics

This plant has light green leaves with a possible small splash of yellow. The greens of this variety do not form a head, and its weight can reach one hundred grams.

As nutritionists note, Moscow salad has a characteristic taste:

• easy;
• juicy;
• gentle.

This green goes well with various vegetables and is eaten only raw, fresh. It can be added to various vegetable dishes, and also used as a decoration when setting the table.

According to experienced gardeners and gardeners, it can even be grown on a windowsill. By the way, the price of this type of lettuce is also low in the store, so it’s up to you to decide whether to grow a truly environmentally friendly product yourself or buy greens in the supermarket.

Features of growing corn salad on the windowsill

Growing corn salad on a windowsill is not difficult. This culture is generally very unpretentious, so it is suitable for beginners. The basic rule of care is timely watering. It is recommended to plant the roots in wide and shallow pots with drainage holes made of clay or plastic. Sowing occurs in the same way as for any other type of lettuce.

For irrigation, use exclusively settled water. This is carried out as the soil dries, but at least once every 2 days. It is important to additionally moisten the leaves themselves using a spray bottle. Fertilizers are introduced once every couple of weeks; fertilizers should contain a minimum amount of nitrogen.

Growing and care

The salad is unpretentious in care, its cultivation is almost problem-free.

Doesn't like salad:

1. lack of water;
2. excess water;
3. too high temperatures.

Additional sowing should not be carried out on hot days.

Watering is needed moderate but systematic. The soil should be slightly moist, but not wet. However, the root ball should not be allowed to dry out. More water is required while tying the heads.

When grown on fertile soil, intensive fertilizers are not necessary. Sometimes multicomponent fertilizers can be used.

Nitrogen fertilizers should be avoided!

When growing, you should try to delay the appearance of flower stalks as much as possible. For example, fast-flowering varieties should not be planted too late when the days are very long and temperatures are high.

How to grow lettuce variety Kucheryavets Odessa on a windowsill

Growing Kucheryavets Odessky lettuce on a windowsill is as simple as possible, because the variety is very unpretentious. Moreover, it is planted not only in winter, but all year round. You can plant the seeds in a regular shallow container - even a plastic food container will do. You need to fill the soil there and level its layer, make a longitudinal depression in the center and pour a couple of tablespoons of water into it. Place the seeds in this hole and cover them with soil, which should be watered with a small amount of water. The container must be covered with cling film and placed on the windowsill. The film is removed only after shoots appear. Otherwise, care is the same as for other varieties of lettuce.

When to plant lettuce on a balcony or windowsill

Lettuce is different in that it can be planted at home all year round. But under one condition - winter plantings developing in short daylight conditions must be provided with artificial supplementary illumination with phytolamps.

Almost all varieties are distinguished by their unpretentiousness and excellent yield. But it wouldn’t hurt to talk about the features of each of them:

1. Lettuce. Feels great in shallow containers about 15 cm high. Seeds are sown in furrows 0.5-0.7 cm deep. For full development, lettuce is watered every 2 days - after a month it already produces its first harvest.
2. Watercress. The variety is planted in containers 8-10 cm high. Experimenters also successfully use inert substrates - coconut shavings, sawdust and even scalded cotton wool. However, when choosing such alternatives, do not forget to feed the plants with additional fertilizers. The watercress bowls are turned over to the sunlight on the other side every day for uniform development. The first harvest is ready 2 weeks after sowing - as soon as the greens grow to 6-8 cm.
3. Iceberg. To grow head lettuce, choose containers with a height of at least 60 cm. The seed sowing depth is 0.5-0.7 cm, the row spacing is at least 12-15 cm. Prolonged direct sunlight is detrimental to the variety, so plantings should not be placed on southern windows and balconies. Or the seedlings are shaded with gauze, tracing paper, or tulle. Sufficient daylight for Iceberg is 12 hours.
4. Arugula. The seeds are placed at a depth of 1-1.5 cm. Sprouts appear on days 3-5 - after a week they must be thinned out. Regular watering is required for arugula - otherwise tasteless and bitter greens will appear. The variety is good for winter cultivation - 8 hours of daylight is sufficient for it. To continue the development of green mass, the inflorescences must be cut off.

All varieties of lettuce consist of more than 90% water - regular and sufficient watering is important for any variety.

Salad Azart: features and cultivation

By growing Azart lettuce on a windowsill from seeds, you can get a harvest 64 days after planting. The leaves of the plant are very tender and crispy; they can be used to prepare a wide variety of dishes. Interestingly, it is absolutely neutral to the length of the day.

To plant, take a medium-sized pot or container and sow the seeds there. As soon as the seedlings appear, they need to be thinned out, leaving only the most powerful ones. The gap between plants should be approximately 5 centimeters. Lettuce has a powerful root system, so more attention should be paid not to the size of the planting container, but to its depth.

The soil should be watered and sprayed regularly, but not too often. Otherwise, the salad will begin to rot. If the plant is planted in initially fertile soil, then vermicompost is used for feeding once a month according to the instructions.

As soon as the lettuce grows, you only need to remove its outer leaves. The internal ones will continue to form the bush for some time.

Possible diseases, pests and prevention against them

The growing season of lettuce is very short, so pests do not have time to cause significant harm to it. Moreover, the culture is recognized as very resistant to diseases and is susceptible to them only in hot weather.

The main types of diseases: downy mildew, gray and root rot, ring spot. The first signs: withering of the leaves, the appearance of spots, brown bloom and drying out. Prevention measures - creating the right microclimate.

Pests such as aphids or whiteflies can fly in through an open window for ventilation. Preventative pest control measures taken in a timely manner will help protect homemade leaf lettuce: compliance with agrotechnical practices, application of organic fertilizers, removal of affected plants and purchasing disease-resistant seeds.

Romaine lettuce: how to grow on a windowsill

Many people prefer to grow Romaine lettuce on the windowsill, as it can easily be used to prepare the famous Caesar dish. The greens turn out very crispy and juicy, pleasant to the taste. This salad is also very healthy for the body.

Before planting, the seeds, as usual, are treated with potassium permanganate, after which they are sent to containers with soil and watered. There is a gap of about 10 centimeters between the rows. For a greenhouse effect, the planting container is covered with film. Remove it immediately after the first shoots appear.

For proper development of greenery, it is necessary to maintain a temperature of +17 to +21 degrees. In addition, it is important to thin out the plantings. The first such procedure is carried out a week after planting, leaving a couple of centimeters between the plants. The second - after 2 true leaves appear, so that 5 centimeters remain.

It is necessary to water the salad once every 2 days; be sure to spray the greens with a spray bottle. Fertilizing is applied once every two weeks, using fertilizers for indoor plants with a minimum amount of nitrogen.

Sowing lettuce seedlings

You can plant lettuce seedlings at any time of the year, from January to May. In spring, the container is placed on a lighted windowsill, and in winter it is necessary to provide additional lighting with phytolamps. For cultivation, a substrate is taken that contains coconut fibers and vermicompost.

Lettuce is planted in several stages:

1. A drainage layer is laid out in the container.
2. The box is filled with moistened soil.
3. Seeds are planted to a depth of 1 cm.
4. The pot is covered with glass or film, and then put away in a dark place.

When the first seedlings appear, you can remove the cover and place the box in a bright place.

When to sow lettuce seedlings

To find out when to plant lettuce in open ground, many turn to the lunar calendar, according to which favorable days for planting in 2022:

• in January - 1, 17, 28 and 29;
• in February - 6–7 and 24–25.
• From 4 to 6 March before lunch, as well as 17, 18, 22 and 23.
• April 1–2 and from 13 to 19.
• May 11, 12, 15 and 16, as well as May 25 and 26;
• in June - 7th and 8th, 12th and 13th, 22nd and 23rd.

Growing lettuce from seeds

High-quality preparation of seeds for planting will help to achieve a rich harvest. First of all, you need to choose the right seed material. It is worth checking the expiration date and tightness of the packaging.

Growing lettuce leaves begins with seed treatment:

1. The seed should be sorted out and damaged seeds should be discarded.
2. Then the seeds need to be placed in a saline solution. Hollow specimens will float. They need to be thrown away.
3. For disinfection, the seed is placed in a weak solution of manganese for 30 minutes.
4. After this, the seeds need to be soaked in a growth stimulator solution.

Having completed all these activities, we plant the seed in previously prepared soil.

Lollo Rossa salad: how to grow

Growing Lollo Rossa lettuce on a windowsill produces juicy greens full of vitamins and iodine. It is recommended to grow it in peas made of wood or plastic; containers must have drainage holes. The soil can be anything - it’s convenient to buy it in the store.

Sowing is the same as for other lettuce varieties; after germination it is important to thin out. Shoots may appear several days after planting. The basic rules of care are timely watering and 12-hour daylight hours. As soon as flower shoots appear (after about a month or more), the plant should be removed from the pot.

Which variety grows well at home?

Watercress, called bedbug sativum, is an unpretentious crop. It is resistant to cold, has good frost tolerance down to -3 degrees and loves light. Most varieties are suitable for growing in an apartment and will bring a minimum of worries to novice gardeners.

Depending on the ripening period, early-ripening plants are ready to “share” leaves 15-20 days after germination, mid-ripening ones on 20-30 days, and late-ripening ones last up to 40 days.

Common varieties:

• Whole-leaf (Dukat, Shirokololistny, Ivan da Marya) with a large rosette of foliage up to 20 cm. It has a spicy mustard taste and is used as an ingredient in sauces and gravies;
• Curly with rugged leaves. Popular types: Openwork and Curly Cress. Add to salads and season soups;
• Sowing with slightly dissected leaves. Ideal for growing at home.

You can grow salad greens without soil, using a sponge or cotton wool moistened with a mixture of complex fertilizers.

Lettuce is a favorite dish for vegetarians. The culture is characterized by early ripening, cold resistance and is not demanding on lighting. The following types of lettuce are suitable for growing at home:

• Lollo Rossa. Corrugated leaves from green to burgundy-raspberry shades are used both independently and harmoniously complement meat, fish and vegetables.
• Batavia. It has a slightly sweet taste, perfectly shading cooked dishes.
• Emerald lace. Medium-early, rapidly growing species;
• Sandwich. Early ripening. Pleases with light greens and delicate taste.
• Firebird. It forms large rosettes of a burgundy-red hue and has excellent taste.

You can pamper yourself and your family with fresh herbs in winter by growing other types of salads at home: Iceberg, Maisky, Moscow Greenhouse and Dubrava.

How to Grow Frillis Lettuce

Growing Frillis lettuce also presents no problems. It is important to remember that the seeds have good germination, so they should not be planted too densely. The optimal soil composition is: 1 part peat, 1 part compost and 1 part garden soil. Otherwise, the planting rules are no different from those that apply to other crop varieties. It is important to provide the plant with enough light and water so that it produces tasty and juicy leaves.

How to choose a variety for sowing

It is best to choose varieties that are most adapted for growing at home, then you are guaranteed to get a harvest. These include the Batavia cultivar. It grows well even in conditions of limited light, can easily withstand high temperatures in hot rooms and will even forgive you if you forget to water it a couple of times.

Photo: Lollo Rossa variety.

An excellent variety of Lollo Rossa. It has the most delicate greenery, literally stuffed with vitamins, and grows well in rooms and balconies.

Another very good cultivar is Lollo Bionda. It can be used both for food and for decorating a room. It forms wavy leaf blades of the most delicate green hue. The taste of the leaves has nutty notes, the lightest, piquant and very appropriate bitterness.

Varieties such as Vitamin and New Year's have proven to be very good for growing lettuce at home; they usually do not leave you without a harvest.

What are the beneficial properties of lettuce?

Lettuce is a vegetable crop whose chemical composition is 95% water and protein. The remaining 5% comes from fiber, amino acids and carbohydrates. Vegetable crop is low-calorie, energy value 100 g is 14 kcal.

Green salad lovers, I have prepared an article especially for you on how to easily grow onions at home to prepare a vegetarian salad with greens.

I would like to highlight the most important minerals: potassium, magnesium, calcium and iron. Micronutrients are important components of a healthy diet. Potassium and magnesium strengthen the heart muscle, calcium is responsible for the condition of bones, and iron is responsible for hemoglobin.

It has been scientifically proven that lettuce leaves improve the digestive process, normalize blood glucose levels, remove bad cholesterol from the body and protect against the effects of free radicals that cause cancer.

Also, the vegetable crop is an excellent means for losing weight, increasing male potency, strengthening the immune system and preparing medicinal masks for baldness. Lettuce is an effective product in the fight against atherosclerosis, insomnia and hypertension.

Watch the video on how to preserve the beneficial properties of salad for a long time:

Basic recommendations for growing

So... A little about the basic recommendations and requirements that must be taken into account when planting Moscow lettuce.

It is quite productive - from one square meter of usable area you can harvest at least two and a half kilograms of plants, and sometimes up to four kilograms. The ripening period is approximately forty days.

In general, the variety is intended for cultivation specifically in greenhouses, but many gardeners successfully harvest this plant in open ground.

Features of plant sowing are as follows:

• sowing must be done in several passes at intervals of two to three weeks;
• sowing in greenhouses is carried out from March to September;
• seeds are planted to a depth of one centimeter;
• the distance between rows should be about twenty-five centimeters, and between seeds - six centimeters.

Advice. Please note that these greens are demanding on the amount of moisture - if there is not enough water, the salad will develop an unpleasant bitterness and then the entire harvest can be considered spoiled.

Since greens can be grown not only in greenhouses (greenhouses), but also in open ground, many people get a harvest even on a windowsill, using greens as an indoor crop.

Lettuce pests

The advantage of growing lettuce on the balcony is that you are unlikely to encounter such a problem as controlling lettuce pests. But it doesn’t hurt to know about their existence and methods of struggle.

The most common pests that plague a delicate plant are slugs and aphids, cruciferous flea beetles and wireworms. Since chemicals will be absorbed into the leaves, they cannot be used, so it is recommended to use folk remedies:

1. Holes on the leaves indicate that the plant is being eaten by cruciferous flea beetle . Good preventative measures are weeding and regular watering (flea fleas do not like moisture). Planting marigolds, calendula, tomatoes, and garlic nearby will repel the pest.
2. Lettuce aphids feed on plant sap, the leaves of which begin to darken and curl. This insect will be repelled by onions planted nearby. You can get rid of the white-winged insect using an infusion of young potato tops, dandelion leaves or onion peels.
3. Slugs eat the lower leaves, which result in large holes. Traps are made for these pests: disposable cups are dug in the garden bed, into which a little syrup, juice or beer is poured. The best remedy for slugs is beer, which is harmful to them. However, pests love this drink very much, so if the traps are set in the evening, in the morning you will see many dead slugs in them.
4. The wireworm eats the roots of plants. There are many traditional methods to destroy these pests.

When to Harvest

Harvesting of Moscow lettuce begins the moment the rosette is formed. This moment cannot be missed, because after the rosette is formed, the stems lengthen quite quickly, which leads to a change in taste properties. When harvesting greens, it is necessary to pull out the lettuce along with the roots.

Harvesting

An hour before harvesting, I water the bushes with water, completely cut off the leaves, leaving the root. Then I feed it with urea to harvest it 2 more times. Cut off the leaves immediately before eating or preparing a vitamin salad.

Lettuce was harvested and sorrel grew in the garden. Read, I told you how to store sorrel at home to use for food in winter.

The lettuce has grown and is cut with a knife or scissors.