Growing lettuce in the summer heat

growing lettuce in summer

Growing Lettuce in the Summer Heat

You Can Grow Lettuce in the Summer!

It seems unfair—just when we really need lettuce as the foundation of a summer salad, the lettuce wants to pack up and spend its summer in a cooler spot. Here's how you can have your lettuce and eat it too.

Bibb Butterhead Lettuce

Why Does Lettuce Bolt?

Lettuce thrives in the cool days of spring and fall, with air temperatures in the 60s. When summer arrives, lettuce often bolts. In gardening terms, bolting means the plant sets a flower and grows a seed stalk, making the leaves bitter. What causes bolting? Longer days, more sunlight, and hot weather.

Loose Leaf Lettuce

Tips for Growing Lettuce in the Heat

To grow lettuce successfully during the summer, focus on two strategies: creating a cooler microclimate and choosing heat-tolerant lettuce varieties. Here’s how:

  • Plant lettuce in areas with morning sun and afternoon shade.
  • Use shade cloth to protect plants from harsh sunlight.
  • Consider container gardening to move lettuce to cooler spots as needed.
Romaine Lettuce

Heat-Tolerant Lettuce Varieties

Growing heat-tolerant lettuce varieties can make all the difference in summer gardening. Check out these options:

Cool Growing Techniques for Summer Lettuce

Adjust your garden setup to help lettuce thrive in summer:

  • Plant lettuce in part-shade areas or use shade cloth.
  • Grow lettuce in containers to move them to cooler spots when necessary.
  • Install low tunnels to create a cooler environment.

Container Gardening with Lettuce

Growing lettuce in containers allows you to play Mother Nature. Move the containers to part-shade areas during hot afternoons, and grow "cut and come again" leaf varieties for continuous harvest. For more tips, visit our Resource Center.

Conclusion

Whether you grow lettuce in containers, mixed in with your ornamentals, or in a dedicated vegetable patch, these tips will help you harvest fresh, delicious lettuce all summer long. For more resources and tools, explore our Lettuce Seeds collection and other gardening products.

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4 comments

Robb, if you are referring to Agribon, it will not help to cool your plants, you are correct it will hold in heat. You would be better off with shade cloth.

Suzanne at GrowOrganic.com

Can white cloth be used for shading lettuce or does it hold in to much heat?

Robb

Hi,

Are there varieties of iceberg lettuce and cabbages that can grow on low altitudes of less than 1000 feet and temperatures ranging 28 to 33 degrees Celsius along the equator (tropical climate)

Ali

Ali, no not really. One thing you could do to help cool them down a bit is to put up some shade cloth. But for lettuce, I would stick to the romaine varieties; they are the most heat tolerant.

Suzanne at GrowOrganic.com

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