How To Cut Lettuce To Encourage A Larger Harvest

Did you know lettuce can give you multiple harvests? It all comes down to how you cut it. Lettuce — such as romaine, butterhead, and even arugula — can regrow multiple times if you cut it the right way, so don't just start hacking at it from the base and hoping for the best. You want to always leave the crown (the first part of the plant, above the roots) with a bit of leafy growth still attached to give the plant a signal to keep producing new leaves. Just a few weeks after harvest, you'll have a whole new lettuce plant to pick from.

This isn't some wild TikTok theory, it's a real harvesting method called "cut and come again". Lettuce has a central growing point near the base of the plant and as long as this part stays intact, it will continue to send the plant signals to keep growing. So you can either chop the whole head, leaving a few inches at the base, or trim the outer leaves while leaving the center. Use a sharp knife or scissors for a clean cut, keep the plant well watered, and then watch it grow back. 

You'll only get three to four harvests per plant (sadly, it won't go on forever), but it's pretty good going considering many people will only pick their lettuce once. And if you're in the process of figuring out how to grow lettuce indoors without a garden, this works here too. Whether you have a full veggie garden or a few pots by a window, cut lettuce the same way for the same regrowth results.

While good cutting practice is a great start, it's only one piece of the puzzle for a lettuce plant to become the gift that keeps on giving. You also want to make sure you don't crowd your lettuce seedlings from the jump. Spacing is key so give each lettuce plant about six inches to grow without fighting each other for nutrients. And always, always keep the soil happy and moist. It's also very important to not try and grow lettuce in full summer sun, which will only cause the lettuce to bolt.  Some mulch around the base will keep water in the soil if you can't monitor it daily. This is a particularly useful tip during hotter months, as lettuce is sensitive to heat and lack of water. 

On days where the sun is feeling particularly intense, DIY a sun shade to keep your plants protected. These are all ways to avoid the gardening mistakes that'll kill your lettuce faster than you can think up a salad recipe for lunch. And finally, for a non-stop train to salad town running all season long, plant your lettuce in staggered batches every two weeks. Lettuce is definitely a more low-maintenance choice as far as growing vegetables goes, and with some clever strategy for planting and harvesting, you'll see much better results.