Lolla Rossa Lettuce – 200 Seeds

Lolla Rossa Lettuce is also known as Lollo Rossa and Continental Red lettuce. It is is a cut-and-come-again lettuce. The lettuce is small to medium in size, averaging 15-20 centimeters in diameter, and grows in a tightly compact, rosette shape. The frilly and curled, fan-shaped leaves are light green in the center and transition to a deep copper red around the edges. Connected at a central base, the leaves do not form a head and are made up of single branches. The leaves are tender, crisp, and chewy with a sweet  and nutty flavor.

Growing Lolla Rossa Lettuce

Indoor Sowing: Early Spring and Autumn.

Direct Sowing: Early Spring and Autumn.

• Sow the lettuce seeds in early spring or in autumn when the temperatures have started to cool after the heat of summer. In greenhouses, lettuce can be planted throughout the year.
• Surface sow the seeds and barely cover with a thin layer of soil, as lettuce seeds need light to germinate, so don’t cover them too deeply.
• Keep soil moist until germination.
• Optimal soil temperature for germination is between 8°C and 20°C.
• When plants have two or three true leaves, thin to 30cm spacing for crisphead varieties and 15 – 25cm for other types.
• Lettuce has a shallow root system. Keep soil moist to keep plants growing continuously. Mulch to retain moisture and suppress weeds.
• Lettuce is tolerant of a wide range of soils, but prefers well-drained, cool, loose soil with plentiful moisture and pH 6.2 to 6.8.
• The four main types of lettuce have different growth and maturity stages and times.
  Iceberg lettuce: 10 to 12 weeks from planting to maturity.
  Butter lettuce: Six to 10 weeks.
  Romaine lettuce: 10 to 12 weeks.
  Loose leaf lettuce: Can be cropped continuously for extended harvest periods from about five to six weeks onward.