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Lettuce turning bitter

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Hey guys - got a question regarding growing lettuce. We've been enjoying growing and eating red and green leaf lettuces over the past year or so. We grow them in large pots to keep them off the ground and free from slugs. We've noticed that the lettuce has started to get more and more bitter tasting. Is there something that we need to do to get the lettuce back to it's previously tasty condition? Amend the soil? Hydrated lime? Compost? Fertilizer? The soil still looks pretty good - light with significant amounts of leftover compost, though we haven't amended it in about a year.

 

The plants still LOOK great and grows well, but just tastes bitter.

 

Thanks!

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Could be a number of things. Nutritionally (meaning the soil), too much nitrogen can cause the lettuce to become bitter. It is a hard balance to strike because greens generally love nitrogen, but over doing it can cause them to become bitter.

 

Short of that, heat and lack of water can cause bitterness. Since you have them in pots, trying moving them to partial shade when it is hot outside. Also, since they are in pots, be sure they receive enough water.....pots can dry out fast.

 

Also, obviously, more mature plants start to bolt, especially in hot weather, so try to make succession plantings so you are continually harvesting relatively young plants.

 

And it is best to harvest lettuce in the early mornings as opposed to the afternoon or evening, as overnight the plants have time to rehydrate their leaves, which reduces any bitterness. Also, if you find that a particular batch is somewhat bitter, you can soak the harvested leaves in cold water for 15-30 minutes (of a few hours if you have the time), drain, spin dry, and then refrigerate for a few hours before use. This can help sweeten it up....the soaking can draw out some of the alkaloids.

"You know the Bill of Rights is serving its purpose when it protects things you wish it didn't."

 

"You can no longer be oppressed if you are not afraid anymore - Unknown"

 

SOL Member #174

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Thanks guys.

 

We haven't amended the soil in a while, so I'm pretty sure it's not too much nitrogen. The lettuce was fine for the last six months or so - just slowly getting more and more bitter. We've been getting a lot of rain, so I don't think it's lack of water. It might be the heat.

 

I think we will try replacing the soil in the pots and move them to a shadier area.

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