The end of summer doesn’t have to mean an end to the homegrown harvest. Cool season vegetables like lettuce thrive in fall (and even winter with the right protection) providing months of sweet, crisp leaves. In this article you’ll learn all about planting lettuce in the fall including the best timing, techniques, advice on caring for the seedlings, and how to protect the plants from cold temperatures. You’ll also discover the best types and varieties of lettuce to grow in autumn.

Why you should be planting lettuce in the fall

As warm season vegetables like peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers wind down in late summer, it’s time to get some greens into the ground for autumn. Lettuce is a perfect vegetable to plant for fall salads. It’s quick, easy, and stands up to cool temperatures. And by autumn, there are fewer pests to target your lettuce leaves. Certain lettuces are extra cold tolerant and are enjoyed beyond October and even into November and December. And, with the protection of a cold frame or mini hoop tunnel, even longer. Unlike spring lettuce which bolts and becomes bitter when the weather heats up, autumn lettuce is less susceptible to early bolting. That means you can enjoy your lettuce crop for months, not just weeks.

Another benefit of planting lettuce in the fall is the many types and varieties available to grow. I love romaine, butterhead, looseleaf, and iceberg varieties, often selecting those with unique colors and textures. And if you don’t have a lot of garden space, consider planting lettuce in containers, windowboxes, or fabric pots. Lettuce is shallow rooted and does very well when grown in pots. 

Planting lettuce in the fall: The best timing

In autumn cool weather and increased moisture provide ideal growing conditions for lettuce. But the decreasing day length does impact how quickly the plants grow. It’s important to plant lettuce early enough that it has time to reach the desired stage before the day length slips below 10 hours a day. In my zone 6 garden this is early November. Once there are fewer than 10 hours of light each day, lettuce growth slows dramatically. At this point the plants hold in the garden until you’re ready to harvest. 

Timing is also affected by whether you want baby greens or full-sized heads. Baby greens are quick to grow and in autumn are ready about 40 to 45 days from sowing. Full-sized heads of fall lettuce can take 50 to 65 days. In autumn, the shrinking days slow lettuce growth and when you’re trying to figure out timing, add an extra week or two to the ‘days to maturity’ listed on the seed packet. Generally speaking, fall lettuce is planted from late summer to mid autumn, depending on your location and what type of lettuce you want to grow.

Two options for planting lettuce in the fall

Lettuce should be planted in a site with full sun and fertile, well-draining soil. You can direct sow an autumn crop of lettuce or transplant seedlings into garden beds or pots. More on each of these below.

Option 1: Direct sowing

Direct seeding is the technique I use for planting fall lettuce when I’m growing baby greens. Once the bed is prepared, I sprinkle the seeds in foot wide bands, trying to space the seeds one to two inches apart. If you plant too densely, you can thin the seedlings once the seeds sprout and are growing well. In late summer and early autumn the soil is quite warm so expect germination to be quick – 4 to 5 days. 

The big challenge with direct seeding is overcoming thermal dormancy. Lettuce seeds don’t germinate well with soil temperatures above 75 degrees F (24 degrees C) or at all in even hotter temperatures. To keep the garden bed as cool as possible, create some shade. I like to set up a mini hoop tunnel using plastic or wire hoops and cover with 40% shade cloth or row covers. This brings down the temperature under the tunnel and helps the soil retain moisture. Check the seed bed daily, watering to maintain a lightly damp soil. 

Option 2: Transplanting

There are benefits to starting fall lettuce seeds indoors and transplanting the seedlings into your garden. The biggest advantage is that it gives the plants a head start when the weather is often hot and dry. By sowing them inside and giving them 3 to 4 weeks under grow lights, you bypass the issue of thermal dormancy and have healthy vigorous seedlings for your vegetable garden.

Another benefit of transplants is that it’s easy to space them properly; 6 to 8 inches for miniature varieties and 10 to 12 inches apart for large growing ones. This is helpful when growing lettuce for mature heads. In spring you can buy healthy lettuce seedlings from garden centres, but in late summer and autumn, they’re harder to source. It makes sense to start them yourself in cell packs or plug trays.

Expert tips for planting lettuce in the fall

Once your seeds or seedlings are in the ground, there are a few tasks you’ll need to do to support healthy growth.

• Watering – Lettuce plants have shallow root systems. That means they dry out quickly, especially if autumn temperatures stay warm. Deep water several times a week if there has been no rain. To help retain soil moisture, place organic mulches, like straw or shredded leaves, around heading types of lettuce.
• Fertilizing – To supply nutrients and encourage steady growth, I add a slow release organic vegetable fertilizer to the soil when I prepare the garden bed. Because lettuce is so quick to grow, I don’t need to fertilize the plants again.
• Succession planting – For the longest harvest, particularly of baby leaf lettuce, it’s essential to succession plant. Sowing fresh bands of seeds every 2 to 3 weeks means a continual supply of the highest quality lettuce. 
• Weeding – Weeds choke out lettuce plants, especially if you’re growing a crop of baby greens. Be sure to remove any weeds from the bed before you seed or transplant. Follow up by pulling any new weeds that appear. You can use a long-handled weeder or a weeding tool for raised beds like a Japanese sickle.

When to harvest fall lettuce

You can harvest lettuce anytime between the baby leaf stage and mature head. For tender baby greens, handpick individual leaves when they’re 3 to 5 inches long. Pick the outer leaves, which are the oldest leaves, to encourage the center of the plant to keep growing. 

To harvest head lettuce, slice the entire head from the stem when it’s reached its ideal size. Using a sharp knife, carefully cut about an inch above the soil line. If you leave the stub in the garden and water and fertilize, it should regrow fresh leaves in a couple of weeks. 

If heavy frost and a deep freeze threatens, cover your garden lettuce with a season extender to protect the plants. More on season extenders, like cold frames, below.

How to protect lettuces from cold temperatures

If you wish to extend the harvest of autumn lettuce into December, or later which is something I do in my zone 6 garden, you’ll need to DIY or buy a season extender. For lettuce, I set up simple mini hoop tunnels, or plant in a cold frame or my polytunnel.

• Mini hoop tunnels – Mini hoops are easy to set up overtop in-ground and raised beds. For temporary autumn protection, use  9 gauge wire, cut to the desired length and bent overtop the bed. Cover this with row cover or a sheet of clear polyethylene. Weigh down the edges of the cover with rocks, sandbags, or other heavy materials. Or use garden staples to hold the cover in place. 
• Cold frames – Cold frames are handy structures that provide heavy duty autumn and winter protection. DIY them from untreated lumber and top with an old window or a piece of polycarbonate or buy a cold frame kit. 
• Greenhouses and polytunnels – I use my polytunnel, also called a hoop house, to grow vegetables, like lettuce, in late autumn and winter. It’s 14 by 24 feet and offers plenty of space for succession planting so that I have a non-stop harvest of tender lettuce leaves. There are many types and styles of polytunnels and greenhouses available for year-round growing. 
• Cloches – If you have a small space, use cloches to protect lettuce plants in autumn. These are made from plastic or glass and act as a miniature greenhouse overtop the plants. 

Pests that can affect fall lettuce

One of the best reasons to grow fall lettuce is that it’s generally bothered by fewer pests, like slugs, aphids, and caterpillars, than a spring crop. You will still have to keep an eye out for larger critters like deer, rabbits, and groundhogs (Read our article on keeping groundhogs out of gardens). Use fencing or other barriers, like wire cloches, to keep these pests away from your leafy greens.

The best lettuces to grow for fall harvesting

There are many types of lettuce you can grow for the fall garden. My favorites include butterhead, romaine, oak leaf, iceberg, and looseleaf. All can be grown as full-sized heads or as baby greens.  It just depends how closely they’re spaced and when you decide to harvest. If you’re planting lettuce in the fall, try some of these varieties:

• Outredgeous – This is the reddest of the romaines with intense garnet red leaves for delicious – and beautiful – salads. The heads grow about 10 inches tall, but you can also grow it for a baby leaf crop. Romaine lettuce has sturdy, upright leaves that add crunch to salads. 
• Red Salad Bowl – I’ve been growing this heirloom oak leaf lettuce for decades! It has excellent cold tolerance which is why I plant it for late harvesting. Red Salad Bowl is also quick to grow with baby leaves ready in 35 to 40 days and full heads in 55 to 60 days. 
• North Pole – As the name suggests, this butterhead lettuce can stand up to cold temperatures. The lime green heads form loose heads of soft, buttery leaves, perfect for gourmet salads. 
• Winter Density – This heirloom is part romaine and part butterhead, and one of the best choices for fall (and winter). The compact plants grow 8 inches tall and are quick to mature. Expect the full-size heads to be dense with loads of tender leaves. 
• Salanova – There are many types of Salanova lettuce you can grow, with all harvested as mature heads, not baby greens. The heads of Salanova varieties are packed with leaves – up to 40% more than other lettuces, making these a high yield crop. They’re also heat tolerant and cold hardy.  

For more information on growing lettuce, check out these helpful articles:

• The complete guide to growing lettuce
• Growing lettuce in winter
• Romaine lettuce: A grow guide
• DIY a lettuce table