Crisphead
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Hanson Improved Lettuce is a crisp, mild-mannered green that's been earning gardeners' loyalty for generations. This heirloom cultivar grows into a compact mound of curly, fringed leaves with a distinctive white heart, reaching full harvest size in 70-79 days. It thrives across hardiness zones 2-10 and produces leaves with a naturally sweet flavor that never turns bitter, a rare quality that makes it reliable for spring, summer, and fall crops. The variety's adaptability to full sun and modest 8-inch spacing makes it efficient in small gardens.
Full Sun
—
2-10
10in H x ?in W
Annual, Biennial
Low
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What sets Hanson Improved apart is its unwavering sweetness and forgiving nature. The combination of deep green frilly outer leaves contrasting with a pale, tender heart creates visual appeal on the plate and in the garden. Its ability to produce consistently flavorful crops across most of North America, from zone 2 through zone 10, means gardeners in nearly every region can count on success. The compact mounding habit keeps plants tidy and manageable while still yielding substantial harvests.
Hanson Improved is a salad lettuce through and through, prized for the tender heart that emerges beneath the crispy outer leaves. Its mild, sweet flavor makes it ideal for mixed green salads where delicate dressing can showcase the leaf texture without overwhelming the taste. The frilly leaves also add visual interest to plates and composed salads. Because it doesn't develop bitterness even in warm conditions, it's reliable for harvest throughout the growing season without the quality decline that affects more temperamental varieties.
Direct sow Hanson Improved seeds in the garden 4-6 weeks before the last spring frost, pressing them lightly into moist soil. For fall crops, sow in late summer when soil temperatures begin to cool. Lettuce germinates best when soil is between 60-65°F.
Hanson Improved reaches harvest readiness in 70-79 days from sowing. You can harvest outer leaves individually once they reach a useful size, allowing the plant to continue producing, or wait until the entire head feels full and crisp to the touch, typically when the white heart at the center is well-developed and firm. For the best texture and flavor, harvest in early morning when leaves are fully hydrated. Cut the entire head at soil level if you prefer, or use a succession harvest method by removing outer leaves as needed.
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“Hanson Improved carries a rich identity shaped by multiple names reflecting its journey through American seed culture. Known also as 'Ewing's Excelsior,' 'Gardener's Favorite,' and 'King of the Market,' this lettuce represents the kind of workhorse variety that dominated market gardens and home plots in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Each name signals a different seed company's promotion of the same beloved cultivar, suggesting it became so popular that multiple houses claimed and marketed it under their own branding. This pattern of renaming reveals how prized seed companies held lettuce varieties that performed reliably and pleased customers season after season.”