• Plant lettuce

With cooler conditions just around the corner, now is a good time to get leafy lettuces up and running. Keep in mind that we still have some hot days to come, so be prepared to protect young plants with shadecloth supported by a simple frame.

To prepare an existing vegetable bed, spread a 3–5cm layer of compost over the surface, sprinkle organic fertiliser on top, rake it in, then give it all a good soaking.

You can also grow lettuce in pots. Use 20cm-wide containers (or wider) and fill with a 50:50 blend of compost and quality potting mix with fertiliser added.

Buy seedlings if you want a quick start, choosing stock that is young and looks fresh. Multicell punnets are the best choice because there’s minimal root disturbance when transplanting. Plant seedlings out during the cool of the day, spacing them about 25cm apart, and water them in with a solution of liquid seaweed before throwing over some shade cover. If you’re planting in pots, position them for now in a spot that gets 3–4 hours of early-morning sun, and shade after 10am, then give them more sun as winter approaches.

Lettuce grows easily from seed. If you want to direct-sow, create a shallow drill 5–7mm deep in your prepared soil, sprinkle seed along the row, and backfill with a thin layer of soil. In pots, sprinkle seed over the moistened surface of the potting mix, then cover with a few millimetres of additional mix. I prefer to start my seeds in recycled multicell punnets because I can move them if it gets too hot or windy. Keep the medium moist, and pull up or transplant excess seedlings as they appear.