subject: Organic Lettuce Seeds [print this page] Can you imagine life without lettuce? Many Americans indifferent to their diet appear determined to achieve this peculiar and self-destructive condition. Most people are raised to think of lettuce as filler the green stuff that plumps up a sandwich, or that keeps us from finding the coveted bacon bits in a salad. But it is one of the best foods in terms of calorie-to-nutrient ratio. It is loaded with thiamin, vitamin B6, and potassium, as well as having abundant healthy dietary fiber. Anybody looking to plant a healthy garden really out to include lettuce seeds in his portfolio.
Iceberg lettuce is by far the most common kind, with Romaine and Red also widely in use. Crisp Head, Butter Head, and Loose-Leaf lettuce are also grown for variety, flavor and nutritional value. Arugula, a tart, spikier variety of lettuce, is favored by many gourmands as a compliment to Italian dishes. It is best served with tangy, slightly aggressive dressings.
Lettuce of all kinds is increasingly used in nutritious smoothie style health drinks. Some types of Asian cuisine such as Vietnamese and Thai use lettuce as an ingredient in delicate, delicious soups. Low-carb lettuce wraps are becoming a healthy stand-in for sandwiches made with bread, and large-leaf lettuce is sometimes used in place of a conventional grain-based wrapper for egg rolls and spring rolls. Sure, the iceberg lettuce in the salad bar is the most commonplace use of this vegetable, but iceberg lettuce is just the beginning of the story and lettuce is about much more than just salads, for all the variety that salads have to offer.
In starting a garden, its a good idea to buy a large variety of lettuce seeds the best being heirloom quality, non-hybrid lettuce seeds. Since lettuce doesnt react well to unremitting sunlight, its best to plant lettuce seeds in a shaded area. Lettuce is best if harvest in spring or early summer; the high temperatures of late July and August will cause lettuce to turn hard and bitter. If you live in a very mild climate, you can plant lettuce seeds practically anytime and harvest a good crop year-round. Lettuce is a fall or spring vegetable in warmer climates.
