«Paris White Cos» - Organic Salad Seeds

Wonderful French Heirloom variety of lettuce grown at Monticello. Thomas Jefferson brought these seeds back with him after traveling to France and grew them faithfully for 60 years, beginning in 1794 when he began noting it in his Garden Book. Produces long, erect heads that are larger at the top than at the bottom. Crisp leaves on a slow-growing plant.

If you have the space, grow salads in beds or borders – these low growing plants can make excellent gap fillers between other plants and will prevent weeds from germinating.  Alternatively, sow seeds in growing bags or large pots filled with multipurpose compost. For a decent crop, ensure containers are between 20-45 cm in diameter. Although plants will do best in sun, they can be grown in a slightly shaded spot.

If growing lettuce leaves in the ground, first prepare the ground by forking it over, removing weeds and raking to leave a fine finish. Next, make shallow trenches about 1.5cm deep and spread seed thinly along the bottom. Cover with soil and water.  To sow lettuce seeds in pots, fill the container with compost and firm down with your finger tips. Aim to leave a level finish with a 2cm gap between the surface of the compost and the top of the pot. 

You can either scatter seed thinly across the surface or sow in rows, cover with compost and water. When seedlings are about 2cm tall, thin out to give them space to grow – check the seed packet for the distance, as this will depend on the variety.