Content

• Steps
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

Lettuce leaves are easiest to grow hydroponically. Instead of growing lettuce in soil, use water, mineral salts, and another nutrient medium such as gravel. After you create your hydroponic setup, you will have your first crop in a few weeks. When using the hydroponic method, this vegetable grows very quickly; you can grow lettuce all year long. This article will teach you how to grow lettuce leaves in a small container.

Steps

1. 1 Choose a bucket or pot that has drainage holes at the bottom. The size of the container should be 4.54 - 22.7 liters.
2. 2 Purchase a bag of hydroponic formula from your local nursery or home garden store. Don't skip this step; all hydroponically grown plants must receive special nutrients.
3. 3 Decide what type of growing medium you will be using. The most profitable is gravel, but in this case the plants will have to be watered more often. Other popular options:
   • Sand
   • Shavings
   • Sawdust
   • Vermiculite
4. 4 Fill the bucket with the planting base of your choice. For best results, use an opaque bucket; too much light will encourage mildew in the water.
5. 5 Measure out your premixed nutrients following package directions and add the correct amount of water required for your chosen container.
6. 6 Stir the nutrient mixture in the water until it dissolves. If you won't be using this mixture right away, stir it again before placing your salad seeds or replanting them.
7. 7 Place the seedlings or lettuce seeds in the mixture. You will need 8 to 10 seeds or 3 to 4 lettuce seedlings for a small container.

Tips

• If you don't have a clear bucket, you can cover your container with black plastic or aluminum foil to avoid sun exposure.
• If you are growing hydroponic lettuce leaves outdoors in a courtyard or rooftop, remember to protect it from rain because excess rainwater should not fall into the bucket and dilute nutrients with water.
• Check the water level daily; your salad won't grow if it doesn't get water.

Warnings

• Whether you are growing lettuce indoors or outdoors, you should keep an eye out for insects and keep them away from the leaves. Aphids are the most common indoor pest, but if your salad bucket is outside, keep an eye out for grasshoppers, slugs, and caterpillars.
• Do not forget that hydroponic lettuce or any other plant that is grown without soil, in addition to water, also needs a growing medium.
• The lettuce you grow this way requires 15 to 18 hours of light a day. If you're growing your salad indoors, you can place the bucket under fluorescent lighting.
• Plants grown in a hydroponic plant need nutrient support in the same way as soil plants.
• If you want to grow your hydroponic salad in hanging baskets or in a window box, be sure to choose a light growing medium like vermiculite so that the container isn't heavy.

What do you need

• Lettuce seeds or transplant
• Bucket or other container
• Growing medium (gravel, sawdust, vermiculite, etc.)
• Water
• Nutrients
• Spoon (for mixing nutrients)