1846 



LETTSOMIA 



LETTUCE 



LETTS6MU Uohn C. Ix-tUoin, 1747-lSir), English 

 |iliysui;iii ami Ixitiiftistl. Cotivolrulaccr. About :{() 

 siHH-ios of scjuuiont sliruhs of Trop. Afr. anil K. Asia, 

 which may oocur now at\il then in oollrctions in I'la. 

 AlliiM to ArgjToia, ilifTorinp in ovary ■J-ctllcil rather 

 than -t-tx^lKtl: Ivs. alternate, umlivideil; lis. mostly 

 pimilo or rose-color, in cyn\es or heads; corolla tubular 

 to funnelforni, the stamens exserted or included: fr. 

 an indehiscent caps. 



capitita, Miq. (L. strigAsa, Roxbg. Coiivdlvnlus aipi- 

 tiihis, N'ahl. Argi/rHa capilAta, Choisy). A beautiful 

 vine with handsome Ivs. and deep pink fls. : stioii}; 

 climber, with hispid branches: Ivs. cordate-suborl)icu- 

 lar, short-acuminate, somewhat hispid, 5 in. long: fls. 

 hispid without, capitate on peduncles 2— t in. long; 

 corolla 2 in. long. India, Java. Grown in S. I'la. 



L. II. B. 



LETTUCE. The lettuce i)lant is botanically Lactuca 

 salmi (which see), which is i)robably derived from Lac- 

 tuca Scariola. It is an annual with milky juice, and 

 has been greatly developed for its root-leaves. These 

 leaves, much enlarged and modified, eomi>rise the most 

 popular of the plant 

 salads. It has been 

 in cultivation for 

 more than 2,000 

 years, according to 

 De Candolle. The 

 varieties are many; 

 in 1SS9, •'.\nnals of 

 Horticulture" listed 

 119 varieties offered 

 by .\merican dealers. 

 TTic two general 

 forms are the head 

 lettuces and the clu.s- 

 ter or open-leaf let- 

 tuces (Tigs. 21.30. 

 2137). There are al.s<j 

 spring lettuces and 

 summer lettuces, the 

 latter being de- 

 veloped to withstand 

 more heat, for let- 

 tuce usually thrives 

 best in the cool 

 weather of .spring. Of 

 late years, kinds specially adapted to forcing have been 

 secured, as the growing of the crop under glass has now 

 assumed large proportions. See Forcing, Vol. Ill, p. 

 \2-,h. 



The lettuce plant is quite hardy to cold, comes 

 nuickly to edible maturity, is not much subject to 

 aiaca.se or in-scct injury and, though it (|uickly succumbs 

 to dry hot weather, is generally of the easiest culture. 

 Even a fanner's wife, who, because of hou.sehold cares, 

 cannot take the time to plant a garden or even to gather 

 and prepare a mess of p(;as or beans, can make and care 

 for a planting of h:ttuce, and a few heads cut in the 

 early morning and placed where they will be kept cool 

 are e most apjK-tizing iwldition to the noonday meal. 

 From 1 to 2 yards of row to a person should yield an 

 abundance for as long as a single planting is usable and 

 a family supply may be grown in the smallest village 

 yard or even on the back of a city lot ; and, because of 

 coming to the table in better conrlition, may be suj)erior 

 to any obtains-ble from the market, 



Hundred-s of different varieties and strains have been 

 develofXfd, varying greatly in habit of growth and 

 character or prfxluct, .ranging from those with but a 

 few upright-growing narrow, smooth, thin leaves, and 

 which so<jn shoot to 8<;ed, to tho.se with many thick 

 broa/l, smwjth, crumpled or savoyed leaves, either 

 clu.'fterwl tf^ether, or overlaying ea<;h other so as to 

 form a round head like that of a cabbage. 



2136. Heading type of lettuce. 



Varieties differ greatU- in adaptation to cultural 

 conditions, some giving tine returns when grown under 

 glass but are hartUy usable when grown in the open 

 garden. They also differ greatly in color, tenderness 

 and other qualities of the leaf. In some varieties, like 

 the Prize Head, the leaf is mottled with red and brown 

 anil so tender that they arc often so broken and torn 

 apart by a heavy rain as to be vmsalable, while the light 

 green more tender-looking but really tougher leaves of 

 a nearby planting of (irand Rapids are uninjured. 

 There are varieties that form very broad white mid- 

 ribs which, when the green ]H)rtion of the leaf is cut 

 away, make quite as beautiful salad for table decora- 

 tion or to eat from the hand as the finest celery or 

 witloof. 



There are many forms of Cos lettuce that are seldom 

 grown in this country because they do not thrive in 

 our bright sunny days, but do much better in the 

 cloudy weather of England, where our most popular 

 American sorts are considered coarse and weedy. All 

 varieties require for the best development well-drained 

 but moist cool friable soil, and thrive best in cool moist 

 weather. They cannot be grown to perfection in the 



heat of midsummer. 

 Even more than with 

 many vegetables, it is 

 essential to the most 

 successful culture of 

 lettuce that the soil 

 be well enriched from 

 previous dressings 

 rather than recent 

 applications, and if 

 only coarse and fresh 

 manure is available 

 that it be well shaken 

 apart, evenly distrib- 

 uted through, and 

 well mixed with the 

 soil. The most ex- 

 perienced Boston 

 growers hardly expect 

 a full crop imtil after 

 the second or third 

 manuring. Hard- 

 wood-ashes and bone- 

 meal usually prove 

 the most profitable 

 artificial manures. Plantings for the first crop can be 

 safely made as early as the soil can be put in friable 

 condition. In many lots of seed the outer .seed-coats 

 are very hard, resulting in slow germination, and it 

 may lie advantageous to soak the seed for twenty- 

 four hours before planting. Drills about 16 to 24 

 inches apart and evenly about 2 inches deep should 

 be made and while the soil is still fresh and moist 

 twenty to forty seeds to the foot should be evenly dis- 

 tributed and covered with not to exceed ]/2 inch of 

 fine earth. Any greater depth, particularly on heavy 

 soils, lessens the chances of a good and even stand. 

 Some varieties are more sensitive than others to deep 

 covering. Many successful growers in jjlanting the 

 Grand Hapids do not cover the seed at all except 

 by washing over a little earth with a watering-jjot and 

 then shading with a board supported 1 or 2 inches above 

 the row and removed as the plants germinate and start 

 into growth. As the plants appear they should be 

 thinned so as to prevent crowding and replanting should 

 be made every fifteen to thirty (lays in order to secure 

 a succession. With common facilities it is impo.ssible 

 to grow good lettuce in the dry heat of midsummer, 

 though plantings in early autumn often furnish that of 

 the very best quality. 



In villages, plantings of lettuce for sale in the imme- 

 diate vicinity often prove very profitable, the great 

 essential to success being a rich well-drained soil, the 



