How to Grow Lettuce in an Apartment

Grow small varieties of lettuce indoors.

Lettuce is a nutritious food often grown in the home garden. However, even those without a plot of land, such as apartment dwellers, can grow lettuce inside in containers. Choose small varieties of lettuce, such as Tom Thumb butterhead or leaf lettuces, because they don't need as much room. Indoor lettuce can be grown year-round, providing plenty of high-fiber food for the family.

Things You'll Need

• Clay pot
• Soil media
• Fertilizer

Instructions

1. Fill a clay pot with a pre-packaged, sterile soil mix. Choose media that is a blend of loam, peat moss and sand for a soil that drains well yet still holds moisture. Add soil up to 1 inch from the rim of the pot.

2. Sprinkle lettuce seeds over the top of the soil and cover lightly with more soil. Water the soil thoroughly. Set the pot in a sunny location such as a south-facing window.

3. Water the seeds daily until they have germinated. Once germinated, keep the soil moist, but the seedlings may not require daily watering -- depending on the growing conditions.

4. Apply a water-based organic fertilizer such as fish emulsion according to the package instructions. Do not overfertilize the plants as this can cause fertilizer burn and kill them.

5. Harvest leaves off the lettuce plant as it grows. This provides a continuous supply of greens during the growing season and helps control the plant's size.

References

• Virginia Cooperative Extension; Vegetable Gardening in Containers; Dianne Relf
• The Great Plant Escape: How to Grow Lettuce Indoors