Lettuce, Optima

One of the best dark green, Boston lettuces available. It produces large heads and are very heat tolerant, helping it to thrive in our hot summers. It is extremely reliable and easy to grow, in addition to having a fantastically smooth flavor.

Lettuce: Almost synonymous with the backyard veggies garden, lettuce is a great addition to the garden beds. These low, leafy rosettes come in a couple different categories - like romaine, boston, buttercrunch, or oakleaf, - and hundreds of different varieties! They do their best in the spring and fall when the hot summer heat doesn’t tempt them to make flowers and develop a bitter flavor.

Growing Tips: Plant lettuce about 10 inches between heads (6 if they are a miniature variety) and keep them well watered. I like to put down a little straw mulch to help keep the soil moist. If they get very dry or very hot they may ‘bolt’ by trying to build a tall center stem with flowers. When they do they get more bitter so eat them quickly!