Speckles Heirloom Lettuce is a loose-leaf variety that delivers tender, flavorful greens in just 50 days from direct sowing. This heirloom cultivar thrives in full sun with moderate water and slightly acidic to neutral soil, making it accessible to gardeners at any experience level. Space plants 10-14 inches apart in rows 16 inches wide, and you'll have harvestable leaves throughout the season if you pick regularly and plant succession crops every few weeks.
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Full Sun
Moderate
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Moderate
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This loose-leaf heirloom produces leaves ready to harvest in half a century, rewarding patient gardeners with the kind of tender greens that define spring and fall salads. The beauty of loose-leaf varieties lies in their flexibility: you can pinch individual outer leaves to extend the harvest, or cut the whole plant down and get regrowth from the crown. For gardeners practicing seed saving, heirlooms like this one are the real treasure, unlike hybrids, every plant can become your source for next year's seeds.
Speckles Heirloom Lettuce is grown for fresh salads and tender leaf harvests. The loose-leaf structure makes it easy to pick individual leaves for everyday salads or to harvest the entire plant when it reaches full size. Loose-leaf varieties are particularly valued by gardeners who want continuous harvests over a long season rather than a single large head all at once.
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Start seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before your anticipated transplant date.
Transplant seedlings outdoors after the indoor start period. Handle gently, as lettuce roots are delicate. Space transplants 10-14 inches apart in rows 16 inches wide.
Direct sow seeds where they will grow. Use row cover to improve germination and prevent soil crusting. Once seedlings emerge and develop 2-3 true leaves, thin to 10-14 inches apart.
Begin harvesting individual leaves from the outside of the plant once they reach harvestable size, allowing the inner leaves to continue growing. This method extends the productive season significantly. Alternatively, you can cut the entire plant about 1 inch above the soil line for a full harvest, which may produce additional regrowth. Harvest regularly and check plants daily, as lettuce eventually becomes bitter as it begins to bolt. Pick leaves while they're tender and before the plant flowers.
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