Lettuce

Lettuce is an annual plant of the daisy family, Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. One variety, the celtuce, is grown for its stems, which are eaten either raw or cooked.

About Lettuce in brief

Lettuce is an annual plant of the daisy family, Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. One variety, the celtuce, is grown for its stems, which are eaten either raw or cooked. Lettuce was originally farmed by the ancient Egyptians, who transformed it from a plant whose seeds were used to create oil into an important food crop raised for its succulent leaves and oil-rich seeds. The Romans referred to lettuce as lactuca, an allusion to the white substance, now called latex, exuded by cut stems. The current word lettuce, originally from Middle English, came from the Old French letues or laitues, which derived from the Roman name. The name romaine came from that type’s use in the Roman papal gardens, while cos came from earliest European seeds of the type from the Greek island of Cos, a center of lettuce farming in the Byzantine period. World production of lettuce and chicory for 2017 was 27 million tonnes, 56% of which came from China. Depending on the variety, lettuce generally lives from 65–130 days from planting to harvesting. Some varieties, especially those found in the United States and Western Europe, have long, narrow, narrow taproots and a small set of secondary roots. There are also a few varieties with yellow, gold or blue-teal leaves, with some variegated varieties with red, blue or gold leaves.

The leaves are colorful, mainly in the green and red color spectrums, with a few variegate varieties with blue or yellow leaves, such as the iceberg type. There is also a wide range of shapes and textures, from the dense heads of scalloped leaves to the scallop-like ruffly leaves of frilly leaf varieties. L. sativa is a member of the Lactuca genus and the Asteraceae family. The species was first described in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus in the second volume of his Species Plantarum. It has many identified taxonomic groups, subspecies and varieties, which delineate the various cultivar groups of domesticated lettuce. It can be plagued by numerous nutrient deficiencies, as well as insect and mammal pests, and fungal and bacterial diseases. Contaminated lettuce is often a source of bacterial, viral, and parasitic outbreaks in humans, including E. coli and Salmonella. The plant is a rich source of vitamin K and vitamin A, and a moderate source of folate and iron. L sativa crosses easily within the species and with some other species within the genus Lactsuca. It also has a root system that includes a main taproot and smaller smaller secondary roots, especially in the U.S. and Europe. It’s a hardy annual, although it requires relatively low temperatures to prevent it from flowering quickly. The plants generally have a height and spread of 15 to 30cm.

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