A prime example of a crisphead is iceberg lettuce: its round head is made up of tightly packed, crunchy leaves. Butterheads are also round, but the leaves are more loose and have a smoother texture than those of their crisphead cousins.
Butterhead Lettuce is occasionally referred to as “cabbage lettuce” due to the similarity in its size and shape to a cabbage head. This is a notably soft, delicious lettuce variety akin to spinach in texture, but with a much milder leafy flavor. It receives its “buttery” taste comparison due to a rich and less grassy profile when compared to other lettuce varieties.
In terms of its appearance, Butterhead Lettuce can be distinguished by its broad, soft leafy folds and that unique cabbage-like roundness. It is often green but can also be found in shades of red or with “purple tipped” leaves. All of these characteristics are just unique ways the Butterhead variety stands out from the crowd.
GROWING LETTUCE FROM SEED
Choose the right varieties and you can have lettuce almost all year round. There are
so many types of lettuce to choose from – all with different colours, flavours and
textures – that salad need never be boring! There are two main types of lettuce –
hearting lettuces have a dense centre, while loose-leaf lettuces have open leaves
and no heart. You can also grow a variety of salad leaves that can be picked while
young and tender.
Grow lettuces in full sun on moisture-retentive soil. In some parts of the country
early and late sowings may need protection against cold, using cloches, plastic
tunnels or horticultural fleece. All these types of protection will be available at
garden centres.
There are several different types of hearting lettuces:
Butterhead lettuces have an open habit, are quick-maturing and tolerate
poorer growing conditions.
Cos types have an upright growth habit and oblong head.
Crisphead types produce large hearts of curled and crisp leaves and are
more resistant to bolting (going to seed prematurely); this group includes
iceberg lettuces.
Sow a short row every fortnight to ensure continuity of cropping. Sow seed thinly
13mm deep in rows 30cm apart.
You could also grow lettuces in grow bags or containers – follow the sowing
timings and spacings as below.
Time of sowing depends on when the crop is wanted:
For a summer/autumn crop: sow outdoors from late August. For an even
earlier crop, sow indoors in early August in seed trays and plant out in early
September.
For an early winter crop: sow outdoors in early Autumn and cover the plants
with closed cloches before the first frost.
High soil temperatures in summer can prevent some cultivars from germinating.
Sow in the evening, water with cold water and provide some shade to keep
temperatures down.
