Apparently all of the lettuce eaten today comes from a single domestication event that happened 10,829 years before in what we now call Iraq. Our salad lettuce that we eat for dinner tonight evolved from this very population of the wild species which still grows in Iraq today.

The form of a lettuce rosette is not far from that of a rose. Like roses everyone seems to favor lettuce which isn’t something you can say about chicory or cabbage. People may push beets or brussels sprouts aside on their plate but it is rare that someone dislikes lettuce. Despite an undeserved reputation for nutritional emptiness, it has a high water content making it a refreshing choice during hot weather. It also provides calcium,potassium, vitamin C and folate. And FAT FREE!

Lettuce is no drama, easy going. Easy to eat and easy to grow. There is no trellis, no trenching, and  no hilling to add to its perfection.

Just good soil, regular water and a little regular organic feeding.  We can grow lettuce year round here in Northern California but If you live in a warmer climate you may do better with it in Spring or Fall. It prefers  a fairly cool soil temperature so during the hottest part of the summer a shade cloth may come in handy. If your lettuce “ bolts”  or sends up shoots due to the heat pinch them off.

You can regrow your lettuce kitchen scraps ? All you need is a little water, a small container and that leftover bit of lettuce that would usually end up in the trash or the compost pile. Slice off the leaves from the stem and leave about 2 inches at the base. The more stem you have to work with the more likely you are to get the lettuce to re grow. Place the stem base in a small vase or jar with the cut side where you sliced off the leaves facing up. Give the lettuce stem a bit of circulation so it won’t rot. Fill your vessel with water half way up the stem. Refill as often as you need to keep the water at that level and keep your water clean.

Place your container on a sunny windowsill in a location where it receives a few hours of light a day. Outside is fine too, just not in the full sun. Watch it grow!

XO, Dundee