Red Romaine Cos is a beautiful, red romaine lettuce variety. It's a delicious crisp variety that is very good to use raw. The loose, high heads are dark red/brown with green veins. This easy to grow and fast-growing variety isn't suitable for cultivation in the warmer months of the year as lettuce quickly goes to seed in the heat. The heads can be tied together with string a few weeks before harvest to keep the leaves nice and tender.
Romaine lettuce is very healthy and versatile. Romaine lettuce contains: vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, B11, C and K. And the minerals: calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium, copper, magnesium, manganese, sodium and zinc. It also contains a lot of fibre, tryptophan and no calories. You can boil, bake, grill, stir-fry, stew, cook in the oven and of course use it raw. Romaine lettuce can also be used to make a deliciously refreshing, cold salad soup. This type of lettuce is delicious in combination with: cheese, eggs, Feta cheese, pine nuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, beef, pork, chicken, salmon, tuna, onions, potatoes, vinegar, oil, garlic and lemon. And with various other vegetables such as: tomato, carrot, cucumber, radish and celery. Lettuce can be used in various dishes such as salads, stir-fries, oven dishes, soups and of course in a Caesar salad. Non hardy annual.
Indoor sowing/Outdoor sowing under glass: middle of February - end of March
Outdoor sowing: end of March - beginning of June and beginning of July - beginning of August
Germination: 7 - 10 dagen
Germination temp.: 8 - 18 °C
Sowing depth: ½ cm
Plant distance: 20 - 30 cm
Plant position: sunny
Harvest period: middle of May - beginning of August and beginning of September - middle of October
Sow indoors in trays filled with moist potting soil. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil, because lettuce is a light germinator. Keep moist and light. Sow outdoors under glass in loose and moist (potting) soil from the middle of February on a sunny plot with moist and freedraining soil. Keep the soil moist and weedfree. You can harden of your indoor sown plants for 10 -14 days by putting them outside during the day from the beginning of May. Transplant the seedlings outdoors to a sunny plot with moist and freedraining soil from the middle of May, when there's no longer any danger of nightfrost. Keep 20 - 30 cm apart to ensure plenty of room. Sow ever 2 - 3 weeks a small amount of seeds to ensure you can harvest longer.
Sow outdoors from the end of March - beginning of June and from the beginning of July - beginning of August. Sow on a sunny plot with moist and freedraining soil. Keep 20 - 30 cm apart to make sure that the plants have plenty of room for the heads. Sow in rows about 20 - 30 cm apart. Sow in each hole about 3 seeds. Cover the seeds lightly with soil. Thin the seedlings after 3 - 4 weeks to 1 strongest plant per hole.
Sow approx. every 3 weeks a small amount of seeds to ensure a continious harvest of lettuce. Water when the soil is dry and water profusely during dry-spells. Protect your lettuce against snails and slugs and aphids. You can keep Romaine lettuce in the crisper compartment of your fridge for approx 2 - 3 days. Don't wrap the lettuce.
