Oakleaf
Baby Oakleaf Lettuce is a quick-maturing cultivar that delivers tender, deeply lobed leaves in just 55 days from seed to harvest. Its distinctive oak-shaped foliage sets it apart visually on the plate and in the garden, offering a refined appearance that belies its straightforward growing requirements. This lettuce thrives in full sun and reaches eating size at a compact spacing of just 5 inches apart, making it ideal for small-space gardeners and successive plantings throughout the cool season.
Full Sun
—
?-?
?in H x ?in W
Annual, Biennial
High
Hover over chart points for details
What makes Baby Oakleaf special is the combination of speed and elegance. You're harvesting beautiful, intricately lobed leaves that look more like something from a specialty market than your backyard garden, yet it matures in about eight weeks from direct sowing. The leaf shape isn't just ornamental; those deep lobes mean better texture and easier picking without damaging the plant. Grow it tight in containers or garden beds, and you'll have continuous harvests of tender young leaves perfect for salads from early spring through fall.
Baby Oakleaf Lettuce is harvested and used as tender young salad greens. Its delicate leaves are best enjoyed fresh in mixed green salads, where their distinctive oak-shaped form and tender texture add both visual interest and a pleasant leafy character to the plate.
When seedlings are several inches tall, carefully transplant them to their final spacing of 4 to 5 inches apart in full sun. Extra seedlings from your initial sowing transplant easily, so you can fill gaps or start new rows for continuous harvests.
In cool spring weather, sow seeds directly outdoors in full sun, pressing them 1/4 inch deep into fertile, well-drained soil. Space initial seeds about 1 inch apart in rows or broadcast fashion, then thin seedlings as they grow.
Baby Oakleaf Lettuce reaches harvest readiness in approximately 55 days from sowing. Pick individual outer leaves once they've reached tender, full size, or harvest the entire plant by cutting it at soil level when it's still young and crisp. Harvest in the cool morning hours when leaves are most turgid and flavorful.
Enter your ZIP code to see a personalized growing calendar for this plant.