Lactuca sativa
Merveille des Quatre Saisons lettuce, Merveille de Quatre Saisons, red-headed lettuce: this French variety from the 19th century is aptly named—it can be sown from spring through autumn, whereas most lettuces are limited to a single season. Its bronze-red outer leaves envelop a tender, crisp blond heart, a contrast that gives it all its charm in a salad bowl.
Characteristics:
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Two-tone foliage: bronze-red outer leaves, tender and crisp blond heart.
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Versatile variety: staggered sowings from March to September, hence its name.
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Heritage variety: developed in the 19th century, it has never left vegetable gardens.
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Good cold tolerance: it withstands the cool temperatures at the beginning and end of the season.
Sowing advice:
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Exposure: sunny in spring and autumn, partial shade in midsummer. Like all lettuces, heat combined with long days triggers bolting.
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Soil: cool, loose, humus-rich, and well drained. Adding compost is beneficial. A key point: the soil must remain consistently moist—a dry spell, even a brief one, causes the lettuce to bolt and become bitter.
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Method: sow barely covered, as the seeds need light to germinate. Stagger sowings from March to September, every two weeks, in open ground, under a cold frame, or in a tunnel. Caution: above 25 °C, lettuce seeds enter dormancy and will no longer germinate—sow in the shade or at the end of the day in midsummer. See how to sow your seeds.
Planting advice:
- Transplant at the 4- or 5-leaf stage, spacing plants 30 cm apart, without burying the crown: this is the main cause of rot in young lettuces.
Care advice:
- Water regularly at the base, preferably in the morning, without wetting the foliage.
- Hoe lightly and mulch to retain soil moisture.
Harvesting advice:
- Harvest the whole head by cutting it at ground level as soon as it is well formed. Do not wait: a lettuce that begins to elongate in the center is about to bolt and will become bitter.
- Tip: leave the stump in the ground; it often produces a few tender regrowths.
Beneficial companions:
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Allow one plant to bolt at the end of the season: its small yellow flowers are visited by hoverflies and solitary bees, and its seeds feed goldfinches.
- Its quick growth helps keep the soil covered between two main crops.
Uses:
- Raw in salads, sandwiches, or wraps. The firmer outer leaves can also be cooked: braised, in a velouté, or with peas à la française.
Harvesting your own seeds:
Allow a healthy plant to bolt: it produces a tall flowering stalk, followed by achenes with fluffy pappuses. Harvest them as they ripen, since maturity is staggered. As lettuce is self-pollinating, the risk of cross-pollination is low—it is one of the simplest species for beginners in seed production. See how to store your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for all living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Auvergne Volcanoes, we choose open-pollinated, non-hybrid varieties, tested for their germination rate, carefully sorted and packaged, with no chemical treatment. Our belief: to give gardeners back the ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
An old-fashioned two-tone variety to sow almost all year round.
