Leafy greens · cool season
Leaf lettuce
Lactuca sativa
Ohio’s easiest salad crop. Spring and fall are prime; summer heat turns it bitter.
- When to plant in Ohio
- Direct sow March–May and again August–September
- Harvest window
- April through June; September through November
- Days to maturity
- 30–45 for baby; 45–55 full
- Spacing
- 6–8 in. for heads; 1 in. for baby mix
- Light
- Full sun in spring; afternoon shade in May
How to grow it
Broadcast or sow shallow rows. Keep seed moist until it pops. Cut-and-come-again every week, or thin to heads. Black Seeded Simpson and oakleaf types handle bolting better. A shade cloth in May stretches the spring crop.
Related leafy greens
Romaine lettuce 60–75
Spinach 37–50
Kale 50–65
Swiss chard 50–60