Lettuce 'Baby Oak Leaf'

These pretty little lettuces form dense leafy 14 to 20cm (7 to 8in) rosettes that look like lettuce bouquets. Baby Oakleaf’s elongated, notched, bright green leaves are tender, sweet and succulent. Each appetising head is perfect for a personal size salad for 1 or 2 people. Heads are quick to mature and grow equally well in beds or containers. You’ll find this lovely little lettuce is delicious and very ornamental and extremely attractive in the salad bowl.

Lettuce 'Baby Oakleaf' has all the taste and beautiful texture of its larger oak-leaf siblings, but in a compact form that's perfect for small gardens or containers, the dense leafy rosettes grow 14 to 20cm (7 to 8in) wide. This bolt-resistant variety has a long harvest period, recommended for a planting period from March to the beginning of May. The leaves can be harvested as required over a long harvest period.

'Oak Leaf' lettuce has the appearance of Oak leaves - linear, lobed and loosely serrated. A type of butter lettuce, the leaves form a semi-tight rosette at the base, growing upward and outward, to a wide, curly, loose top. Tender, smooth, and broad with many curls and frills. The edges of the leaves are bright green which fades into a white or pale green at the centre where a juicy, crunchy stalk resides. The leaves have a buttery texture and an mellow, sweet flavour, which rarely becomes bitter, even in hotter climates.

Baby Oak Leaf is perfect for sowing all year, but specifically for sowing in late spring, for harvesting in summer. For early cultivation outdoors pre-cultivation in greenhouse is recommended. The leaves can be harvested at any stage, when small for baby leaf salad or left to mature and harvested whole. 60 to 70 days to maturity.

Prepare the site:
Lettuce doesn't do well in very acidic soils, and some say the pH shouldn't be lower than 6.5. A rich soil is excellent for lettuce, but the crop will also do well in average garden soil. The best crops are grown in soil that is deeply enriched with well-rotted manure and is well-fertilized before planting, especially with high nitrogen--leaf-stimulating--fertilisers such as 10-8-4, cottonseed meal, or blood meal.

Timing:
Lettuce is about 95 percent water. It develops rapidly if the growing season is cool and moist. It can grow from seed to salad in about one month in many regions, and only a little longer in others.
Lettuce is a cool-season vegetable, with an ideal temperature of 10 to 16°C (50 to 60°C); it does poorly in hot weather, and is tolerant to some frost and light freezes. Cos is more heat tolerant than most.
Never sow a whole row at once, a small row about 60cm (2ft) long is adequate for most households. For a continuous crop, sow short rows every two weeks.

Sowing: Under protection: February to March (Plant out April) Outdoors: March to August
The perfect temperature for germination is 4 to 16°C (40 to 60°F) rates decline above 20°C (68°F). The perfect temperature for growth is 16 to 18°C (60 to 65°F)
Sow at a seed depth of 6 to 12mm (¼ to ½in) Seed will germinate in 7 to 14 days.
Sow seeds in short rows about 30cm (12in) apart. To do this, make a shallow trench with a cane about 15mm (¾ in) deep. Space the rows 20cm (8in) apart. Tip a small amount of seed into your hand, take a pinch and spread thinly along the trench. Cover with soil, label and water. If birds are a problem in your garden, spread netting to prevent them eating the seed.
When the seedlings are about 2cm (1in) tall, thin them out to give them space to grow, 15 to 20cm (6 to 8in). Make successional sowings at 14 day intervals.

Cultivation:
A mulch of grass clippings, salt hay, clean straw, or the like, will keep the weeds out and the growing soil moist and cool. Watering is essential if rainfall is scant. The plants need almost constantly moist ground. This is particularly important when the lettuces are one or two weeks away from harvesting, as dry soil now will cause the plants to put their energy into producing flowers.
The key to tender and tasty lettuce is rapid growth, however lettuce has a relatively shallow and compact root system that doesn't absorb nutrients and moisture from the soil very efficiently, which can slow the growth. To encourage fast growth, add plenty of finished compost before planting and again as a side-dressing a week or so after seedlings appear or transplants are planted. Give supplemental feedings of compost tea every few weeks until harvest.

Pests:
Aphids can be a problem. Wash off minor infestations before the plants are eaten. If there is a heavy population grow nasturtiums near the lettuce, or use an organic solution.

Harvesting: 60 days to maturity. May to October
Lettuce can grow from seed to salad in about one month in many regions, and only a little longer in others. It takes around 60 days to maturity. Harvest as soon as they are big enough for the salad bowl. The harvest is over when a central stem starts to form. This is the signal that the plant is getting ready to bolt and the leaves will be bitter. Harvest all lettuce in early morning for the maximum carotene and best taste and refrigerate immediately.

Rotation considerations:
Avoid following radicchio, endive, escarole or artichoke.

Good Companions:
Everything, but especially carrot, garlic, onion, and radish.

Bad Companions:
None

Lettuce Types:
There are many types of lettuce and many varieties within the basic types. These described below are only some of the more common types

• Crisphead
  Also known as the Iceberg lettuce, this is a very popular lettuce worldwide. It has a white, crisp densely packed heart. It should be light green and have a springy firm feel. A great lettuce if you plan to use the whole lettuce all at once. The leaves soon lose their crispness in the fridge.
• Butterhead
  A delicious lettuce with a tender buttery taste. It has an open loose leaf head and compact, crisp hearts. This popular lettuce is no 'supermarket' variety, but rather a proper lettuce with an exquisite flavour unavailable from anywhere but from your own vegetable patch.
• Cos
  This hardy lettuce, originating from the Mediterranean island of Cos, also known as Romaine lettuce, has tall light green leaves with pointed tips, slightly savoyed leaves and a pronounced ribbed structure. The cos lettuce should have a lovely crunchy texture and a light sweet flavour. It is the lettuce of choice for Caesar salads.
• Loose Leaf
  Also known as 'leaf' or 'Continental' lettuce, these lettuces do not form heads, rather a mass of loose leafs which can be picked individually as required. They are represented by a great variety of leaves, thick leaves, thin leaves, flat or curled, red or green. The foliage of the leaf lettuce can be an attractive addition to the vegetable garden and the flavour very pleasant.

Nomenclature:
The genus name Lactuca means 'Milk' in reference to the white sap of the plant.
The species name sativa (sativum, sativus) means 'that which is sown,' indicating the plant is a cultivated one, sown as an edible crop.
Oak leaf lettuce leaves are notched and bright green, they are similar in appearance to the leaves of the Oak tree.

History:
Oak Leaf lettuces are native to and were first cultivated in France from what was originally considered a weed found growing wild. The first early reference to Oak Leaf lettuce was in Acetaria, which was a book written in 1699 by John Evelyn that may indicate Oak Leaf lettuces had arrived in England before the 18th century. Oak Leaf lettuce was then introduced commercially under the name “Feuille de Chene” in 1771 by the French seed company Vilmorin. Today Green Oak Leaf lettuce can be found at supermarkets, farmers markets, and specialty grocers throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.