How to Harvest Lettuce

by Mike Lieberman on July 27, 2009 · 10 comments

Once your lettuce grows to be about 4-6 inches, you can safely harvest it and it will grow back again.

To harvest, simply place your thumb and pointer fingers about 2 inches above the soil and snap off the leaf. Place in your harvesting basket and continue.

It’ll likely take a week or so for your crop to grow again for another harvest.


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  • http://sustainablelivingproject.co.uk/ Goo

    Lovely lettuces! I hope you've got a salad spinner. They're also an environmentally friendly option for drying out small items of clothing!

  • Mike Lieberman

    Thanks for the comments Amanda. I've got the salad spinner and it gets put to plenty of use.

  • http://sustainablelivingproject.co.uk/ Goo

    Lovely lettuces! I hope you've got a salad spinner. They're also an environmentally friendly option for drying out small items of clothing!

  • Mike Lieberman

    Thanks for the comments Amanda. I've got the salad spinner and it gets put to plenty of use.

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  • Sarah

    Hi, Big fan here! I’m a beginner gardener and I have never grown lettuce before. About how many lettuce seeds do I need to sow if I wanted a salad every day? I live in Colorado so I am doing an indoor, winter, SIP container garden for now. I have lots of 3-5 gal buckets. I am guessing the succession planting would help as well? Thanks!

  • http://www.UrbanOrganicGardener.com Mike Lieberman

    That’s what’s up Sarah! I usually plant one row and then another about 2 weeks later. You can likely stagger your containers like start a new container each week. 

    I usually drop about 2-3 seeds, then an inch or so apart another 2-3. As they grow, I’ll thin them out a bit.

    Keep me updated!

  • Caitlin

    I was wandering if I could plant lettuce in the soda bottles? and is there any herbs or something i can grow in soda cans?

  • http://www.UrbanOrganicGardener.com Mike Lieberman

    Lettuce would do well in the soda bottles. A single plant per bottle. 

    Not sure on the soda cans though.