🥗 Lamb’s lettuce

Lamb’s lettuce, also called corn salad or mâche, is a very hardy, low-growing salad plant that provides mild, nutty rosettes of leaves right through the winter, when there is little fresh salad around. It is one of the best crops for a cold frame, pot or sheltered border.

The compact, spoon-shaped leaves are tender and delicious, and plants will stand frost, snow and shade. Sow it in late summer and autumn, and you will have pickings from October until spring, when it flowers and goes to seed.

Varieties to try

Verte de Cambrai (traditional, small leaves)Vit (larger leaves, mild flavour)Jade (reliable, upright)Large Leaved Italian (productive)

Sow from August to October, scattering seed thinly or in rows 10–15 cm apart, 1 cm deep, into fine, firm, moisture-retentive soil. Seed can be slow to germinate in warm soil above 20°C, so sow in a shaded spot in late summer and keep it watered. Seedlings usually appear in 10–14 days.

In cold regions, sow in pots or trays and keep in a cold frame, unheated greenhouse or under a cloche for an easy winter crop. You can sow again in March and April for a spring crop, although it bolts faster in warmth. Thin seedlings to 10 cm for larger rosettes.

Top tips

• Sow in late summer in the shade, as heat stops germination.
• Firm the soil before sowing.
• Scatter-sow into a pot for winter leaves.
• Cover with a cloche in the coldest areas.

Lamb’s lettuce needs very little care. Keep the soil moist while seeds germinate and keep weeds out, as the plants are small and easily overcome. Water occasionally in dry spells. No feeding is needed in reasonably fertile soil.

Slugs can damage seedlings, so check regularly on damp nights. In very wet winters, grey mould (botrytis) can affect plants, so remove any yellowing leaves and keep the foliage dry in a covered position. Established plants survive snow and hard frost.

Top tips

• Weed carefully, as plants are small.
• Remove yellowing leaves.
• Water during dry autumn spells.
• Check for slugs after rain.

Watch out for

SlugsGrey mouldAphidsBolting in spring warmth

Pick whole rosettes when they are 5–8 cm across, from October onward, by cutting just above the root with scissors. You can also pick individual outer leaves, leaving the plant to continue. Harvest regularly, as plants flower from March.

Plants grow slowly in winter, so harvest a few at a time from each row rather than clearing one patch. Spring sowings are ready in about eight weeks. The small pale blue flowers are edible, and plants will self-seed if you let one or two flower.

Top tips

• Cut whole rosettes just above the root.
• Take a few from each row.
• Pick often in spring before bolting.
• Let a few flower to self-seed.

Lamb’s lettuce is best raw, with its soft texture and mild, nutty flavour, in salads with beetroot, walnuts, goat’s cheese or oranges. Serve with a simple vinaigrette, and add at the last moment, as the leaves are delicate. It can also be lightly wilted into soups or used as a bed for fish.

The leaves keep for two to three days in the fridge in a bag lined with kitchen paper. For longer storage, the plants themselves are the best store, as they stay fresh in the ground all winter. It does not freeze well.

Top tips

• Pair with beetroot, walnuts and goat’s cheese.
• Dress lightly at the last moment.
• Rinse gently, as the leaves bruise.
• Leave plants in the ground until needed.