Plant Encyclopedia

Description:

A tasty selection producing slow to bolt, bright green heads; exceptional resistance to heat and cold; great in containers and gardens; mild, sweet and tender flavor, ideal for salads, sandwiches and burgers; disease resistant

Edible Qualities

Butter King Lettuce is an annual vegetable plant that is commonly grown for its edible qualities. The crinkled oval green leaves which emerge light green in spring are usually harvested from early spring to late fall. The leaves have a mild taste and a soft texture.

The leaves are most often used in the following ways:

• Fresh Eating
• Eating When Cooked/Prepared

Planting & Growing

Butter King Lettuce will grow to be about 10 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 6 inches. When planted in rows, individual plants should be spaced approximately 10 inches apart. This vegetable plant is an annual, which means that it will grow for one season in your garden and then die after producing a crop. Because of its relatively short time to maturity, it lends itself to a series of successive plantings each staggered by a week or two; this will prolong the effective harvest period.

This plant is typically grown in a designated vegetable garden. It does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average conditions that are neither too wet nor too dry, and is very intolerant of standing water. This plant does not require much in the way of fertilizing once established. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is quite intolerant of urban pollution, therefore inner city or urban streetside plantings are best avoided. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Butter King Lettuce is a good choice for the vegetable garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing the canvas against which the thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.