Does Lettuce Need Full Sun?

QUESTION: Does lettuce need full sun? I have a spot in between my house and my neighbor, but it doesn’t get a full day’s sun. – Marjorie M

ANSWER: The answer to this question varies by situation. How much sun your lettuce needs will depend upon the time of year you’re growing it.

If you’re growing lettuce during cooler portions of the year, it will need full sun. This will provide adequate lighting for the crop.

However, the trick with lettuce is it prefers to grow in cooler temperatures. If you’re trying to grow lettuce when the temperatures are beginning to warm up, you might need to choose partial sunlight.

By planting where the lettuce receives a mixture of sunlight and shade could prolong your harvest. The shade could lower the temperatures in the growing area. 

When lettuce becomes too warm, it tends to bolt. This makes the plant feel like it’s growing time is nearing an end, so it focuses on producing seeds instead.

Consider the temperatures in which you’re trying to grow lettuce to know how much sunlight the crop will need.

Keep in mind, leaf lettuce varieties produce faster. Therefore, you can plant leaf lettuce and be ready to harvest it in approximately one month.

You can even grow it in the ground or in a container for greater flexibility. By choosing a container, you could move your crop into the shade when it needs protection from the heat.

As you can tell, lettuce is a flexible crop. It does best when grown in cooler weather. However, if you’d like to grow it a little later in the season, limit the amount of sunlight and heat applied to the plants.

Yet, if growing lettuce in cooler conditions, supply the crop with full sun. This information should prepare you to begin growing your own lettuce crop.

Learn More About Growing Lettuce

https://extension.umn.edu/vegetables/growing-lettuce-endive-and-radicchio

https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/lettuce