Lactuca sativa
At Wisley, visit the Model Vegetable Garden to see a range of different lettuce cultivars, including both green and red cos-types such as 'Little Gem', 'Little Gem Pearl', 'Pinokkio' and 'Pandero'.
Vital statistics
- Common name
- Lettuce 'Little Gem'
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Height & spread
- Up to 20cm x 20cm (8in x 8in)
- Form
- Biennial grown as a quick maturing annual
- Soil
- Moist but well-drained, fertile soil
- Aspect
- Full sun (some shade acceptable in summer)
- Hardiness
- Frost hardy in some areas, needs protection in others
Lactuca
Lactuca is one of the few edible members of the daisy family, and has been grown as a food plant for thousands of years. The name is derived from the Latin word lac meaing milk, referring to the plant’s milky juice.
Lettuces are divided into those that form hearts or heads, and those that are loose-leaf. Of the hearting types there are: cos (romaine), butterhead and crisphead, which include iceberg lettuces.
Cos or Romaine is a long leafed lettuce said to have originated on the Greek island of Cos (Kos), off the coast of Turkey in the Aegean. Its original home is western Europe and the eastern Mediterranean area. Romaine has been cultivated and eaten cooked or raw for almost 5,000 years and may be the oldest form of cultivated lettuce.
Lactuca sativa
‘Little Gem’ is a cos lettuce suitable for smaller spaces or containers. It adds a sweet flavour and crisp texture to any salad.
The heads are small and solid, with mid-green, puckered leaves. It is resistant to root aphid and needs a fertile, moisture-retentive
soil in sun. Its AGM, originally awarded in 1993, was reconfirmed in June 2007.
Cultivation
- Open, sunny sites are best although in mid summer some shade is acceptable.
- To get the best crops, grow lettuce in fertile, moisture-retentive soil. Grow without any check, or they will bolt (run to seed), and taste bitter.
- Harvest in the morning when the plants and leaves are at their most fresh. If you cut rather than lift the whole plant they will usually produce a second crop of leaves.
Propagation
- Sow seed in small batches, preferably in modular trays. Transplant as soon as large enough to handle, before they have six leaves.
- Alternatively, sow seeds thinly, 1cm (½ in) deep in drills 30cm (12 ins) apart in soil which has been raked to a fine tilth. Water ground regularly, especially during dry periods. Thin to about 20cm (8 ins).
AGM
The RHS Fruit and Vegetable Committee awarded Lactuca sativa ‘Little Gem’ an Award of Garden Merit and described it as:
'small solid heads with mid green, medium-blistered leaves. Reconfirmed after trial 1999 and 2007. A cross between cos and cabbage lettuce.'
The RHS Vegetable Trial Subcommittee awarded Lactuca sativa ‘Little Gem Pearl’ an Award of Garden Merit and described it as
''Little Gem' type but with paler green, more blistered leaves; reconfirmed after trial 2007. Plant 18cm high, 21cm across, compact, spreading; leaves medium green, surface blistered, crumpled; head hard.'