0tterbot wrote:
"Terryc" wrote in message
news:45489b2e$0$4670$61c65585@un-2park-reader-

(snippage)


OTOH, we scattered the seed heads from various lettuce last year on a
garden and this year we have about 25 square feet carpet of lettuce (Cos
style). We are amazed and have an elegant sufficency of lettuce for tossed
salads.


that sounds lovely! most of what i know about lettuce was gleaned through
failure, not success g

That is(hopefully was) our normal situation. We have limited success
raising seedlings and planting them out. Seem to be have a lot more
success just scattering/broadcasting the seed and see what comes up.

It all started with a wrong compost. It just doesn't get the heat and
kill the seeds. So borage, tomatoes, capsicum, pumpkins etc survive and
sprout every time we spread some around.

Then what few lettuce seedlings survived bolted to seed (just like
coriander is doing now, sigh) and we just left all the seed heads in
this area.

We have a patch of english spinach that is all the spinach that popped
up everywhere else and was transplanted. Alas, all but 2 plants have
magnificent sead heads already.

Currently, we have one bed 10'x4' that I'm broadcasting various old
seeds (capsicum, spinach, lettuce and whatever else I find that we have
collected in the seed collection) onto, I'll scratch the surface, water
and sit back and see what happens. it seems to work better, than
purchased or raised seedlings/





Even when they are obviously going to seed, they are doing it so slowly.


ime, the word "bolting" is a bit of a misnomer. it's slow, but it's still
too soon.

exactly.