I have started off Lettuce in pots due to weather conditions being too cold to brave and sow direct into ground. My question is there anything I need to do when I plant out that will help make sure they take and not bolt and any recommendations on how everyone does start theirs i.e would doing trays work just as well all your ideas on starting your lettuce to put out would be greatly received.
I sowed my first lettuces over six weeks ago and the plants are now big enough to plant under a cloche outside or in the greenhouse as soon as the weather gets a little better. Lettuce can tolerate a few degrees of frost, especially under cloches. They bolt in response to heat. All lettuces will bolt, some sooner others later, but bolt they will eventually. Nothing special needed when planting them out, but having a few days without frost will help them settling. I prefer transplanting, which works well, others prefer sowing directly into the ground.
Lettuces have problems germinating during hot spells and summer heat causes them to bolt even when the plants are quite young. Geoff Hamilton suggested transplanting half from the seed tray, then the second half two weeks later to space harvesting times.
Starting now is definitely not too early.
